Do we really understand the heart of a problem if we only treat one symptom and ignore what is at the root? I am thinking of something very specific this week in light of the tragic events in Rosenburg, Oregon. I think we are a society that is happy to continue picking fruit to destroy the evil tree instead of taking a chainsaw to its roots.

Fruit is an indicator…it’s a teller of the tale of the tree. If you are eating delicious apples from a tree you know you have a healthy apple tree; however, if you are eating shriveled, wormy apples from a tree you know you have a diseased apple tree. Now, you can pick all the fruit you want to in an attempt to get rid of the disease, but if you don’t get to the root of the problem then the problem will continue.

Jesus said,

“So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit” (Matthew 7:17-18)

This is how I see the approach of our governmental leadership to the martyrdom of our nine sisters and brothers. Those killed were Lucero Alcaraz Treven Taylor Anspach, Rebecka Ann Carnes, Quinn Glen Cooper, Kim Saltmarsh Dietz, Lucas Eibel, Jason Dale Johnson, Lawrence Levine, and Sarena Dawn Moore. The President has never acknowledged that these nine gave their lives because they were Christians. He didn’t even hint that the shooter asked the question, “Are you a Christian.” Imagine that, believers in Jesus Christ in the United States of America were targeted and murdered for their faith, and most of the media outlets and the President refused to give that any attention. Instead he decided to take this opportunity to talk passionately about gun control. In my opinion all he wants to do is pick some fruit instead of addressing the heart of the problem.

What is at the very core of this issue is sin. The shooter had a bad heart and that is where we have to start. He had a history of behavior that would lead us to believe he was mentally unstable. I would contend that anybody who murders nine people in one morning is certainly not mentally stable. What we should be addressing is not gun control but the treatment of people’s hearts. People (like this young man) who are hurting, outcast, marginalized, neglected, forgotten and abused need help. Jesus had a special mercy for those suffering the way this young man obviously suffered. I just don’t think he woke up Thursday and decided to be a mass murderer.

So many in our society suffer as this young man did. It is too late to help him. His story is written, but those currently living in desperation can still be helped. We must get to the heart of their problem and show them how God wants to rewrite their story with a beautiful chapter of redemption and hope. If we genuinely want to prevent, or at least curtail, public mass shootings then we will begin to bring the heart problems people have into clearer focus. We will spend more time and dollars on mental illness than stiffer gun laws.

Are we going to go on picking fruits or killing roots?

Grace & Peace,