Jump Start # 1488

Proverbs 21:10 “The soul of the wicked desires evil; his neighbor finds no favor in his eyes.”

  Another mass shooting has taken place in our country. These are becoming too frequent. We will never get used to them, nor should we. It is hard for righteous people to understand the heart of the wicked. Why are some so mean? Why do they hate? Why is violence the alternative that is chosen so often? Why do they kill the innocent?

Our passage helps us see a few things. The soul of the wicked desires evil. But that’s not enough for us. We want to know why they desire evil? We want to know why their soul is wicked?

Some would simply say because that’s just the way they came. They were born broken and there’s nothing anyone can do about that. I don’t buy that. That’s not true Biblically. We are not “born broken.” We are not born sinners. We may inherit eye and hair colors from family but we do not inherit the guilt of their sin. Sin is a choice. We become sinners when we have chosen to disobey God and fallen to the temptation of wrong.

The soul of the wicked desires evil mostly because of the environment and surroundings that he has put himself in. Hanging around wrong people, who are doing wrong things, will eventually lead to you doing wrong things. Filling your mind with hate and evil will eventually turn one into a hateful and evil person. The soul of the wicked desires evil because evil is honored in his environment. Evil is praised and promoted among his peers. Evil is considered good. Evil is seen as a sign of strength. Taking a gun and shooting unarmed, innocent people isn’t brave. When such evil people encounter armed police, they always lose.

Talk shows will fill their nightly programs with experts trying to convince us why these things happen. Most don’t have a clue. Few will say anything about the break down of parenting, lack of Jesus Christ in their lives and a failed religion that fosters hatred and violence. Put those three things together and you have a really messed up person who doesn’t value life, who thinks selfishly, and feels hurting others is a way to further his cause.

We can’t change the world, but what we can do is shape and influence our family and those around us that we love. Parental responsibility involves much more than getting the kid out of the house in time to catch the school bus. It involves shaping his thinking. Turn off the TV. Get everyone around the kitchen table and do some talking. It doesn’t take long for attitudes to come out. That’s a place to start. But it needs to actually start when the child is young. Getting his way and caving in to his fits isn’t healthy nor productive. That person will grow up expecting everyone to cater to him. Life isn’t like that. Life isn’t supposed to be like that. No, is a wonderful word in the home. Use it. Don’t allow back talk. Don’t allow disrespect. There may be a battle or two, but you, the parent must win. You the parent, are in charge. You the parent are the one God put in charge of that home. Start early.

Jesus Christ needs to be in the home, not just the church house. Prayers. Love. Forgiveness. Respect. Repentance. Hope. These are the guiding principles that need to fill our homes. When they are missing or replaced with failed religions that are selfish, violent and twisted, or when they are replaced with nothing, then turmoil and disaster awaits. Influencing your child to be kind and thoughtful and thankful starts early. This is an everyday process. You are molding his thinking to be just the opposite of our verse. Heroes ought to be godly people. Thugs and druggies who may have made a name in sports or the music industries are still thugs and druggies. Stepping on the little guy isn’t the way of Christ. Bullying isn’t the way of Christ.

Someday, probably at the judgment, parents are going to be held responsible for what they failed to do with their children. No, they may never have put a gun in their kids hands, but they allowed an atmosphere of hate, selfishness and violence to fill their life without anything being done. It’s amazing to hear a parent cry on TV after their son has been arrested for shooting someone proclaiming, “He’s a good kid.” No, he’s not. He has a wicked soul that is evil. Good kids do not hurt others. Good kids don’t shoot others. His soul is wicked and evil because the parent let the world raise him instead of the parent.

Wicked souls become evil because of influence, environment and neglectful parents. Wicked souls become evil because nothing positive, righteous nor good are allowed to intervene, influence and guide them. Wicked souls will continue to cause heartache in our land because people expect the school and the government to come up with solutions. God has the solution. It’s called “Mom and Dad.” It’s called “nurture and admonition of the Lord.” It’s called “Jesus.”

May we see what we must be doing and get doing it.

Roger