Clayton Lockett
was a convicted murderer, a violent, cruel man. He shot a girl and buried her
alive. Yes, that is horrific! This week
Oklahoma botched his execution. After 45 minutes, he finally succumbed to a
heart attack. This led to an outcry about the death penalty here in the United
States. In our local paper today, a letter to the editor dismissed the whole
thing asking, “who cares if a murderer suffered during his execution?” I’m sure more than a few people wondered the
same thing.
I will not argue
the death penalty issue here, but I will ask Christians to think deeply about
how we regard the least among us. Can you imagine, even for a moment, Jesus
dismissing an execution that inflicted terrible suffering on a man, even one
with a horrible history, with a ‘well, who cares about a murderer? Glad he died
in pain.’ comment?
A nation is shaped by how she treats the lowest, the least among her people. America is quickly turning into a violent, ugly society because there is an attitude among the majority that cares nothing for those who are dysfunctional, poor, or powerless!
Some of my politically conservative friends are reading this and wondering when Jerry turned into a bleeding heart liberal, right? This is not about politics. This is about being human. This is about seeing the image of God, albeit marred nearly beyond recognition by sin, in everyone. This is about redemption and eternal life, about giving the same kind of grace we have received in Him to others, even those we are tempted to ignore as beyond hope.
A nation is shaped by how she treats the lowest, the least among her people. America is quickly turning into a violent, ugly society because there is an attitude among the majority that cares nothing for those who are dysfunctional, poor, or powerless!
Some of my politically conservative friends are reading this and wondering when Jerry turned into a bleeding heart liberal, right? This is not about politics. This is about being human. This is about seeing the image of God, albeit marred nearly beyond recognition by sin, in everyone. This is about redemption and eternal life, about giving the same kind of grace we have received in Him to others, even those we are tempted to ignore as beyond hope.
I know nothing
about Clayton Lockett, but I’d be willing to go out on a limb and guess that he
was born into poverty and neglect, that he likely suffered from serious mental health
issues, and that love was a concept he knew little or nothing about from
personal experience. But, he was a
person for whom Christ died. As much as I am personally repulsed by their
depraved acts, I pray for the Clayton Lockett’s – that they will come to know
the One who can save them from their sin and liberate them from the power of
Evil.
Yes, Christian, our sense of justice must be tempered by God’s call for mercy. God says "Do not pervert justice or show partiality." (Deuteronomy 16:19, NIV) “Cursed is the man who withholds justice from the alien, the fatherless or the widow.” (Deuteronomy 27:19, NIV) These were the ‘other’ of that time, those that the majority regarded as beneath their concern! Hundreds of years later in the history of God’s people, they had forgotten Moses’ directive. The prophet Jeremiah was moved by God to rebuke them for their injustice. “Among my people are wicked men who lie in wait like men who snare birds and like those who set traps to catch men. Like cages full of birds, their houses are full of deceit; they have become rich and powerful and have grown fat and sleek. Their evil deeds have no limit; they do not plead the case of the fatherless to win it, they do not defend the rights of the poor. Should I not punish them for this?” declares the LORD. “Should I not avenge myself on such a nation as this?" (Jeremiah 5:25-29, NIV)
Yes, Christian, our sense of justice must be tempered by God’s call for mercy. God says "Do not pervert justice or show partiality." (Deuteronomy 16:19, NIV) “Cursed is the man who withholds justice from the alien, the fatherless or the widow.” (Deuteronomy 27:19, NIV) These were the ‘other’ of that time, those that the majority regarded as beneath their concern! Hundreds of years later in the history of God’s people, they had forgotten Moses’ directive. The prophet Jeremiah was moved by God to rebuke them for their injustice. “Among my people are wicked men who lie in wait like men who snare birds and like those who set traps to catch men. Like cages full of birds, their houses are full of deceit; they have become rich and powerful and have grown fat and sleek. Their evil deeds have no limit; they do not plead the case of the fatherless to win it, they do not defend the rights of the poor. Should I not punish them for this?” declares the LORD. “Should I not avenge myself on such a nation as this?" (Jeremiah 5:25-29, NIV)
Jesus took a child
and set him before the people. We
romanticize His words because we do not understand the mean culture of His
time. “Whoever welcomes this little child
in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.
For he who is least among you all—he is the greatest.” (Luke 9:47-48, NIV) Children were a source of labor, a means of
support. They were not indulged as our
children are. They had no legal standing, no protection, no physical power to
defend themselves. Jesus gave them dignity and respect, calling on people to
welcome a powerless child as they would the Lord of Glory.
Christian, we must
love the least, the low, the broken, the despised, the alien, the different,
the violent … not with the sappy, indulgent, romantic emotion that passes for
love so often. We must love with a bold love that seeks true justice that is restrained by the realization of our shared
humanity. We cannot allow ourselves to
turn people, no matter how different they may be from us, into objects of scorn
or hatred. Let’s re-think Jesus’ command
to love in the context of Clayton Lockett’s sad life. What does it mean to love
a man like him?
"My beloved friends, let us continue to love
each other since love comes from God. Everyone
who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God.
The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love.
This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God. My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other." (1 John 4:7-11, The Message)
The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love.
This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God. My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other." (1 John 4:7-11, The Message)
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