1 Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members?
2 You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask.
3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.
4 Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
Ultimately, crime and conflict come as the result of selfishness, that is produced by rejecting the principles and presence of God and accepting the work of the enemy, who comes to steal, kill, and destroy. The knowledge of and relationship with Christ can produce heart change, bearing fruit for the glory of God. We can stand, as the Church, and intercede for God to do His work in us so that we might be mobilized to pray boldly and consistently for the release of His presence.
The Bible is clear about the works of the flesh and the roots of evil. If we want to effectively address conflict and tension in our neighborhoods and communities, it's important to recognize the spiritual sources. Jesus laid some of those out in Mark 7, when he taught:
20 And He said, "What comes out of a man, that defiles a man.
21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
22 thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.
23 All these evil things come from within and defile a man."
They had just celebrated their sixth wedding anniversary - and made the announcement that they were expecting their second child. She was a former beauty pageant winner and actress, he was a bodybuilder. The couple had just relocated, they had their own business - life was good.
They also had a unique activity in which they participated on Saturday afternoons - they would go into various neighborhoods and share about God. One such Saturday recently, as reported by a host of national media outlets, with his wife and their 2-year-old son looking on, he was shot and killed. A teenager is in custody for the murder.
This is not a story from New York, Chicago, or another major city. This is a story that has resonated throughout the nation and it occurred in late January in Montgomery, Alabama just days ago. The Daily Mail reported that the victim had converted to Christianity and "since became passionate about studying the Bible, enlightening others about Christianity, and hoped to one day become a preacher," according to one of his friends, who said, "He studied the Bible day in and day-out." The irony is that they had just moved from New Orleans to what they thought would be a safer home.
It's a chilling thought - for a person who follows the Lord to be sharing his or her faith and lose his life in the midst of it. I have not seen a report of a motive, but it still is a terrifying prospect.
There are spiritual dynamics at play in this story, and we have to recognize that criminal behavior has a spiritual element. Out of hearts that are hard, that are rebellious, that are hostile or indifferent toward God, come all sorts of sinful acts. And, no one is immune from either being a perpetrator or a victim. We might not get arrested for the sins you and I commit, but we are guilty all the same - that is why we need a Savior. And, the harboring of sinful thoughts and motives can result in crime. The essence of the crime problem that has seemingly spiked in many areas over the last few years is a lack of devotion to the One who can truly save a soul and transform a heart.
But, we can respond in prayer. Just recently, a prayer gathering occurred at a local entertainment center in Montgomery where numerous people were shot and one person lost his life. A group joined together on behalf of a young man from Montgomery who has been reported missing - before the group members went to search a particular area they spent time in prayer.
It was March of 2019 - just six weeks after a young man was killed in his home as the result of a drive-by shooting. His pastor was contacted and showed up at the house that day. On that March morning, the first O.U.R. Montgomery Prayer Walk was born, with the young man's mother leading the way. The prayer walk is now about to celebrate its third anniversary, meeting the first Saturday of every month, even though it went virtual during the pandemic.
WSFA covered the walk, and offered these comments from that pastor, Ken Austin of New Walk of Life Church. He said, "We’re tired of crime. We’re tired of murder. We’re tired of all the things that’s been going on in our school systems, and we believe that the citizens of Montgomery is where the key lies. I think as we come together and walk together and pray together, that God will do a revival in our city..." Then-Mayor Todd Strange said, "We need to put the guns down. We need to hold parents accountable. We need to make sure that our kids are safe and our kids have an opportunity to grow and develop and lead this city in the future..."
You may feel helpless; with a sense of discouragement over crime in our society - and it does seem that no one is immune from it. But, there is much that we can - and must - do as the Church. I want to offer four prayer points, which are centered around the word, RISE. We can rise above the violence and criminal behavior all around us - through the one who is risen from the dead.
First, we recognize our placement in our community or area in which we live. No matter where you are, God has appointed you to be there, and I believe there are opportunities to serve and to display and spread the love of Christ. You can be a light where you are. So, in prayer, we can ask God to give us a greater burden for the people around us.
Then, we can identify the strongholds in your area - call them out. 2nd Corinthians 10 says that we are not at war against "flesh and blood," i.e. people are not our enemy, and that we have been given power to pull down strongholds. It's not hard - what are the components that produce the fruit of the flesh, the expression of crime and violence in our communities? The enemy will use brokenness in a number of forms, including family breakdown, economic and other stress factors, a lack of hope and direction, and the works of hate and anger in order to activate the acts of evil that are perpetrated in our society. So, we can pray against these and ask God to direct us.
We also, in obedience to 1st Timothy 2 with the influence of Romans 13, which addresses human governments, we can support those who serve in the community to bring peace and safety - that would include people in authority, such as political leaders, certainly law enforcement, as well as community influencers, which also includes church leaders. We can pray for godly wisdom to be available to produce effective solutions and provide peace and safety.
Finally, we need more allies - we can emphasize prayer in response to the issues that we face as a society. We can pray for open doors for truth to be shared and implemented. And, we can pray for the Lord to change hearts, because out of transformed hearts come transformed communities. We can pray for boldness for God's people to rise up and to be involved in being the solution. So, can we - will we - rise to the occasion with the power of the risen Lord?
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