STONECALL

I would like to preface my comments regarding Haiti with the following thought: As a believer and follower of Jesus, I try to approach every situation with His teachings in mind. This is not to suggest that I am a red-letter Christian, or that I elevate the New Testament above the Old Testament. God has spoken to man and revealed His will in various ways (as recorded in both Testaments) but in these last days, He speaks to us through His Son. Jesus is the fullest expression of the mind of God and the exact representation of His person (Hebrews 1:1-2). He is the summation of both the Old and New Testaments, as both speak of Him to the glory of His Father. He only says and does what He sees His Father say and do, so it has pleased His Father to submit all things to Him. With that in mind, I asked myself the following question: What would Jesus say about Haiti? I believe the first few verses of Luke 13, give us a pretty good idea. Here are the verses in question:

There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And he answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” (Luke 13:1-5)

Jesus is told of a seemingly horrific incident regarding some Galileans. Obviously, some had thought that this incident happened because of the sinfulness of these people. It wasn’t (and still isn’t) uncommon for people to think this way, however Jesus reorients how we should view situations like this. His response is ‘we will also perish, unless we repent’. He brings up another incident regarding some people who were crushed by a tower in Siloam and asks if they (those who asked the previous question) believed that these people were worse offenders than others. His answer is the same: ‘Unless you repent you will likewise perish’. So what is the point of this? Jesus shows that we are ALL sinners that need to repent and just because some experience things that others don’t, doesn’t mean they have sinned worse than others or that they deserve misfortune because of their actions. I believe Jesus would respond the same if He were asked about Haiti.

Believe me, Jesus loves Haiti because it is a part of His inheritance and He has called out many from there. Idolatry, immorality, corruption, and other types of wickedness that have been seen in Haiti can be seen in just about any other society and government on this planet, so they are not exclusive to Haiti. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) so ALL need to repent. The plight of Haitians as a result of the recent earthquake should draw compassion out of us towards them and humility in us before God. The Haitian people are no more sinners than any other people group because of what has happened, quite the contrary. This should cause us to ask God for mercy in light of our own sinfulness. He that hath an ear, let him hear…