Two headlines caught my eye last week:
- Officer used undue force, judge rules
- Robbery, assault charges urged against two B.C.
police officers
I could link to them, but newspaper links expire fairly quickly. The first was in the Times-Colonist on Saturday, Jan 30, the second in the T-C on Jan 27. Unfortunately such headlines are not that unusual, but that is not a critique of our police officers. By far, the vast majority of police officers are people of integrity and self-control. Though undoubtedly mistakes occur, probably 99.9% of police actions are appropriate for the situation. But these particular cases involve different officers in different cities, and, as I said earlier, unfortunately, we have heard their likes before.
What I’d like you to think about from these headlines, though, is something about human nature, especially your human nature.
What kind of people do you suppose these police officers were before these incidents happened? What kind of reputation did they have in their communities? What did their friends and neighbours think of them?
I would bet that those who know them thought of them as upstanding citizens, the “city’s finest”. They would be considered “good guys.” If they are family men, their kids are probably involved in community sports programs and these men would likely be found as volunteers on the sidelines as well. Wouldn’t you expect that out of these kinds of people?
So now they find themselves in trouble. Perhaps they did go beyond the law in their actions. Certainly at least one of them has been judged to have done so in a formal inquiry. These are serious matters.
But how does someone go from being the “city’s finest” and an upstanding citizen to a lawbreaker, condemned by his community in one day? What kind of person does that? Are they somehow monstrous individuals who surreptitiously entered the police forces? Or something else?
Even more troubling to you and me should be this question: Am I so very different from them?
The Apostle Paul teaches in the book of Romans that all men are sinners. He cites Old Testament scriptures to demonstrate the universal problems men have with sin. For specific examples (with very colourful language!), he points out first of all the problems men have with their tongues:
Rom 3:13-14 “Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.” “The venom of asps is under their lips.” “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”
I think you must agree that all men, even the best of them, have a problem with their tongues. Every one of us have said things we are ashamed of (or ought to be) and things we wish we had never said.
But Paul goes on to the subject of violence:
Rom 3:15-17 “Their feet are swift to shed blood; in their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known.”
Now someone might say, wait a minute, I’ve never murdered anyone! I hope that’s true! But is murder all there is to unlawful and unacceptable violence? Is your life free from misery (either because of you or done to you)? Do you know complete peace and harmony in every aspect of your life?
Coming back to our police officers and the trouble they are in, remember my earlier question: Am I so very different from them?
The answer to that question, Biblically speaking, is “No!”
But please don’t mistake my point! I am not just trying to put everyone on a downer, though our sins should trouble us. There is hope. We can break free from the guilt and power of our human nature and find forgiveness and new life if we will be reconciled, first of all, to God. I would urge you to consider your own sin nature and seek the solution God provides by faith in God’s Son, Jesus Christ.
— Pastor Don
Leave a Reply