We Can't Fix Ferguson

Jesus is our teacher. Jesus is our example. Jesus is our hope.

Most, if not all, of you have no doubt read, seen or heard much about what has been going on in our country recently regarding the deaths of Mike Brown in Ferguson, MO. and Eric Garner in New York City, NY. I’ve been following these cases fairly closely and honestly, I’m pretty surprised, frustrated and disappointed. But not at what you might think.

Honestly, what has really struck me is the responses of many Pastors. I’ve heard, seen or read dozens of blogs, tweets, articles and videos from men who are shepherds to God’s people, yet I’ve not seen nor heard what I believe is most desperately needed to be said. Let me explain.

First...I won’t be using any names as my intent isn’t to point fingers. Second...neither is it my intent to judge anyone’s motives. I understand that sometimes it’s easy to focus on one aspect of something like this and not be able to deal with everything you would want to. But...I think there is something missing from the responses of many Pastors.

Of course, as I begin this, there is so much going through my head that I want to address and I know I won’t be able to say everything in this limited space, so I may be just as frustrating to others as others have been to me, but I will do my best so please bear with me.

Please keep in mind that I’m responding here to what I have read, seen and heard from Pastors, not anyone else. There has been so much said, in one way or another, about needing to have a “conversation” and that we have so many “systemic” problems. At the same time, some have pointed out some of the underlying problems that lead to the greater problems, but few have actually offered a biblical response.

Some have, but not all. A few Pastors have even targeted other Pastors and what they have said, while, in my opinion, failing themselves to respond with what is most needed. Many shepherds have seemingly been content to try to fix the worldly problems that worldly men have...without addressing the main problem. Oh sure, most have said that sin is behind it all, but then many went on to seek solutions without actually dealing with sin! That won’t work.

Let’s go back to Jesus. How many sermons did Jesus preach on racism? Well, not any, actually. He told the story about the good Samaritan which hit on the topic. He sat and talked with a Samaritan woman, a Gentile woman, a Roman ruler...all of which would be examples of breaking down racial (and gender) barriers (which certainly existed in his time). But he never taught a message on how to fix racism, because that isn’t the problem.

What Jesus did everywhere and with EVERY problem was to preach the Gospel. “Follow me.” That is his solution to every issue we face. Do we have problems with our system? Of course we do. Even the best of systems is run by sinful men, many of whom do not bow the knee to Christ, and so even the most effective of systems will become corrupt and will not solve man’s problems.

Again, how much did Jesus teach on politics and worldly systems and governments? No sermons at all and he taught very little about politics...basically teaching to submit to authorities and pay your taxes! His answer was always...”Follow me.”

You see, if sin is the main issues, as I think most Pastors would agree, then sin is what must be dealt with. If you don’t deal with the root problem, it’s like putting a band aid on cancer. You might cover it up and make it look better on the outside, but the inside is still eating away. I know that many people believe that if we could just sit down and talk, we could make some good progress.

But sin will even taint and hinder our conversations. Sin affects our attitudes towards one another and will cause all kinds of struggles between people in a variety of ways. Sin causes people to be selfish and want what THEY want, so that will effect the discussion. Sin will cause people to view things differently (sometimes in opposite ways) and will make it difficult to find common ground to build on.

Sin tells people that life is about them and having their own identity, whereas Jesus calls us to die to self. If we live for self and to build our own identity, we will always struggle to have peace with others who are doing the same. We need look no further than our own homes to see this happen.

People hate because of sin. People fear because of sin. People can have biases or prejudices because of sin. Sin exalts and looks out for self. Sin causes essentially ALL of our problems and so, pastorally, when speaking about issues such as what these events bring up, we must address sin. We must be clear about it and we must point people to the only help and hope, Jesus Christ!

We must not dance around the Gospel for the sake of not offending people. We must not neglect the Gospel and hope to come up with some kind of man-made plan to rescue us because all that does is serve to reinforce in people’s minds that we don’t need God, because we can do it ourselves...which we have proven for thousands of years that we can’t!

The Gospel removes racism. The Gospel replaces hatred with love. The Gospel looks out for others ahead of self. The Gospel crushes sin!

I don’t have the space here to expand on these, but as we consider the problems of the world, like the ones being talked about right now in our country, here are some of the things we must remember and study, so as to get and guard a biblical perspective...we must have proper theological understandings of things like: God’s sovereignty, sin, death, justice, righteousness, authority, compassion, submission and many more!

As we study Scripture and allow it to shape our thoughts, those thoughts then must not only affect our actions, but there is a great opportunity for them to then affect our conversations. It is here that I want to encourage you the most...study God’s word!

Seek to have the best understanding of Him, His ways and His teachings to us about these things. From there, be prepared and be looking for opportunities to have Gospel conversations with people about Jesus, our only hope. I encourage you to not fight over the issues that are merely the symptoms or results of sin, but humbly go right to the heart of the matter...man is a sinner in need of a Savior. Only Jesus can fix Ferguson...and one day he will!

Finally, please don’t misunderstand me...I am not opposed to having a conversation. I do believe there are flaws in the system. And I also believe that because of God’s common grace and because He has made man in His own image, that even those who are not Christians can work out some of their differences. I am for things that will be helpful to all men. But I am mostly for the one thing that is the only hope and help to all men, which is finding salvation in Jesus Christ and submitting to him as Lord!

Man, by himself, will never be able to fix man’s problems. Only Jesus can do that and he won’t do it until he returns! As a Pastor myself, I always want to shepherd people in helpful ways, which will always require biblical thinking...about everything, including issues like these.

Pray for our nation! Pray for the world. Pray for the Gospel to transform people! Pray for Jesus to come quickly! Jesus is our teacher. Jesus is our example. Jesus is our hope....our only hope! Follow him!!

Humbly,
Chris

Note - while writing this article, I read several other Pastor’s writings and a few others have addressed the subject of the necessity of the Gospel in regards to subjects like this, and not just an acknowledgment of sin in a general way. I hope more of that continues!

Chris Kiiskinen is one of our Pastors here at Grace Bible Church