Remembering 9/11

I was in my junior year of highschool sitting in Spanish III watching it on TV. At lunch my dad checked me out and we later attended a prayer meeting at our church. On Sept 11, 2001 I was sad but still had the priorities and mentality of a 16 year old....friends, dance team performances, tennis matches, homecoming dances, etc. Ten years later after being glued to the TV once again and hearing the testamonies of 9/11 survivors, watching how the events of the day unfolded, my perspective has changed as a 26 year old wife and mother. It is disturbing how an evil act of terrorism occurred and could occur again in our country.

This past Sunday our pastor, David Platt, did a wonderful job displaying how the events of 9/11 point toward God. He began by pointing out two questions that have historically challenged the greatness and goodness of God: Can God prevent evil and why does He permit evil? Though these two questions have been asked for ages, the fact of the matter is that evil does exist. No one in their right mind can look at this world and say with full conviction that evil does not exist. And to acknowledge that evil exists presupposes that good exists also. There is a moral code that transcends all cultures for all times. Even those cultures who have never heard the gospel and know nothing of the Bible, can point to good and evil. Why is this? Because God has written the law on their hearts (Romans 2: 12-16). Platt reminded me that if God does not exist, then good and evil do not exist. An atheist believes there is no God. If there is no God there is no standard for good and evil. If an atheist believes there is good and evil then on what basis? Why the conviction of right and wrong, good and evil? But if neither evil nor good exist then we are all empty. There would be no rhyme or reason to peoples actions. And therefore just products of chance, genetically predisposed to act in accordance to the DNA one received. As Platt said, "the terrorist would have just been dancing in their own DNA", not necessarily being evil. If that is the case 9/11 would be an unfortunate coincidental accident, not a devastating coordinated attack.

Throughout scripture we see that God is supremely sovereign over trials, disasters, and death. (Job 37: 10-14; Isaiah 37: 23-29)  I was convicted Sunday to stand in awe of God's design and his power. He has the power to prevent sin but yet still permits sin (Genesis 20:6; Psalm 81:11). His character is never stained by evil because He himself never directly causes sin (James 1:13). God is sovereign over everything; He gives and takes away (Job 1: 20). So if God is sovereign then how can evil not be attributed to Him? Platt put it nicely when he stated that we as the creation sin under a sovereign Creator. Meaning I make choices everyday which are sinful bringing me under the condemnation of God. God does not cause it, I choose it and choose it freely (Genesis 8:21). But the beauty is.... God ordained the most evil act of all (Jesus' murder on the cross) and still triumphed over it as Jesus paidof our sin and pays the penalty for the evil done by His creations....thats LOVE!

9/11 was carried out by Islamic extremists. Some say that Islam and Christianity are both equally valid religions, both leading to the same God. All of this reminded me Sunday that both Christianity and Islam can not both be true. Christianity says Jesus died on the cross, Islam says he didn't. Christianity says Jesus rose from the grave, Islam says he didn't. They differ at the very foundation of the Christian faith!  I believe our gospel/bible is true. The fact that the Creator died to be the means of sinful man's salvation is worthy of all of our praise and demands all of our lives. I was convicted that though ~3000 people died on 9/11, which is a tragedy in and of itself .... people are dying everyday heading to an eternity in Hell. Billions of people either place their faith in lies or have never heard the gospel. There is no time to waste. I was charged to remember that there needs to be a sense of urgency in my life toward sharing the gospel. When I reflect on 9/11, I should not simply be patriotic or want revenge on radical Islam, but rather be a radical Christian willing to give my life so that others may come to know the glorious savior, Jesus Christ.