As the world has been mourning the loss of so many lives in Orlando this past week, it’s really gotten me thinking; and the verse that continually pops into my head is Romans 12:15:

Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 

I have seen so many blog posts, news stories, and social media that have been focused on how Christians judge the lifestyles of these people, or how Christians couldn’t possibly care about the shooting, and a lot of other really nasty things that have made me extremely sad for America.

The truth is, regardless of the lifestyle, the “sins” that these people committed, and all of the other crap that we’ve been hearing about, the bottom line is this:

The Bible itself says that we should be sad with those who are sad, and rejoice when they rejoice. Everyone is made in the image of God.  ALL fall short of the glory of God.

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (ESV, emphasis mine). Romans 3:23.

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:27

The amazing part of Romans 3:23 is that in every translation it’s literally the exact same words. That has to mean something right? It says ALL people. All have fallen short – not just homosexual people, not just addicts, not just those with poor impulse control,  ALL.

So instead of making the Orlando tragedy about persecuting lifestyles (which shouldn’t be done in the first place – some people need to review how Jesus actually lived) but about appreciating that there were so many images of God that needlessly died. These people had families, loved ones, people who knew them, cared about them, and now those people will live with a loss like no other. Those who were lost can no longer create, love, or change. That, in itself, is a tragedy.

Focus on what actually happened. Don’t turn this into yet another way to publicize your agenda.

You can find me weeping with those who weep.

 

-P