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This afternoon, I had just about finished my article for our weekly MDWK Connect newsletter. But as the news of yet another national tragedy came in, I set aside what I had written and decided to share a different word for this week.

Reports now confirm that Charlie Kirk had been assassinated. In recent weeks we’ve also heard of two Democratic senators, children in a Catholic school gunned down, a Ukrainian refugee murdered on her way home via light rail, another school shooting in Denver, and we continue to read about the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza. Then to add to that, the memory of 9/11 which we mark tomorrow. It’s clear: evil is not just a theory, it’s a daily reality.

It’s hard to process such a cascade of violence and hate. Why? We search for motives and explanations, but so often there’s no satisfying answer. Before I continue, we need to call these atrocities what they are: evil. Pure, unambiguous evil. And in moments like this, even a society confused about morality seems to recognize it. We might live in a culture hesitant to label anything objectively wrong, yet when faced with something like an assassination of a young husband and father on live video, people across the spectrum instinctively recoil and use the word evil. This collective outrage as seen in Arizona today, reveals a truth written on the human conscience: some things are truly and universally wrong. As one Christian commentator said “evil is a fact that points to a moral reality higher than human opinion, a transcendent authority: God” In other words, calling an act “pure evil” implies a real, objective moral law that comes from our holy God, whether people want to admit it or not. Yet so many today, shaped by moral relativism, resist calling anything evil in the abstract. Our culture blurs the line between good and evil until a horrific event forces moral clarity upon us.

So how should we, as Christians, respond in the face of such evil? What perspective can we offer to a shaken world and to our own anxious hearts?

The End of Evil Is Certain
We grieve these violent acts, but we do not grieve without hope. God’s Word assures us that evil’s rampage is temporary. From the vantage point of eternity, evil is on a ticking clock. Scripture reveals that God has appointed a day when He will judge all evil and set things right. No act of terror, murder, or abuse will escape His notice. Every drop of innocent blood cries out to Him, and He will respond. It may seem like evil is winning today, senseless killings dominating the headlines, but the story isn’t over. The Christian worldview promises that God will bring about a final act of judgment that will be the final word on right and wrong. In other words, evil will end. It will meet its Maker. The gunman may take lives and even take his own life, but he cannot escape the justice of Almighty God. The wheels of divine justice sometimes turn slowly from our perspective, but they are turning. Evil’s days are numbered. Every headline-grabbing atrocity adds to the pile of evidence that we need this righteous Judge to intervene. Human courts and leaders can only do so much. Ultimately, only God can banish evil forever, and He has promised to do exactly that.

God’s Justice Will Prevail.
When we’re bombarded with news of wickedness, it can feel like the bad guys are winning. But according to Scripture, that feeling is an illusion. Sin may win some battles now, but it cannot win the war. God is still King over His creation, and He has never ceded victory to the forces of evil. The psalmist asks, “Why do the wicked prosper?” a question that maybe you are asking over these past weeks? Yet the very next verses explain that their prosperity is fleeting; God will bring the wicked to account in due time (Psalm 73:16–19). We have a sure hope that every act of evil, from global atrocities down to personal injustices, will be answered by our holy God’s justice. Make no mistake: sin will not win. We have that guarantee because of who God is. He is sovereign, He is just, and He is good. The Lord will redeem every sorrow, judge every unrepentant evildoer, and right every wrong. There is coming a day when all of hell’s fury will be spent and nothing but the righteousness of God will be present. On that day, we will look back and see that our God has done all things well. Sin and death will lie defeated at the feet of Jesus. 

“Come, Lord Jesus, Make All Things New.”
My thoughts for this point tie closely to the sermon we recently studied in our summer Freed From series on death. Feel free to listen to it here: (https://www.sunbury.church/podcasts/media/2025-08-03-freed-from-death) In moments like these, our hearts cry out with urgency, “Lord, how long?” Every believer longs for the day Jesus returns to set all things right. Revelation assures us that after all the judgments and tribulations, Christ will return in glory. He will defeat Satan and every enemy once for all. Revelation 20 shows Christ as the conquering Judge, casting the devil and all who do evil into the lake of fire. This is not wishful thinking; it is our certain future. When we say “Come, Lord Jesus,” we are not escaping reality but placing our trust in His promise to bring justice. He alone can put an end to shootings, terrorism, assassinations, and war. He alone can heal what is fundamentally broken in the human heart. So we keep praying, “Come, Lord Jesus!” and we hold fast until He comes.

And what will He do when He comes? Revelation 21:5 declares: “Behold, I am making all things new.” That is the promise we cling to. John’s revelation reminds us: “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; grief, crying, and pain will be no more” (Rev. 21:4). Death itself will die. Every sorrow will vanish. In the new creation, everything sad comes untrue, and God will dwell with His people forever. That is our ultimate hope. 

So, in light of this promise, how should we live now? First, let tragedies turn your heart toward the gospel of Jesus. Tragedies have a way of shaking us. They remind us that life is a vapor and tomorrow isn’t guaranteed. They force even unbelievers to confront the reality of sin and evil and the fragility of life. If you do not yet know Christ, I plead with you: be reconciled to God. There is no answer to evil apart from the Savior who conquered evil at the cross. There is no safety outside of the One who defeated death by rising again. Jesus Christ died for our sins and rose to offer us eternal life, life in a coming world where evil is banished. Don’t let the reality of evil drive you to despair; let it drive you to the cross.

But also, for those of us in Christ, let every horrific headline preach to your heart. These events remind us why we must not love this world too much. They also confront us with the sobering truth that evil is not just “out there” but flows from the wickedness of the human heart (Jer. 17:9). Apart from Christ, we are enslaved to sin and powerless to change ourselves. That is why people desperately need the life-changing gospel of Jesus, the only hope strong enough to change man's wickedness. And practically, when conversations come up about these tragedies, don’t shy away from speaking truth in love. Our friends and coworkers are asking, “What is happening to the world?” We can gently point them to the only answer big enough: the goodness of God and the evil of sin met at the cross, and one day soon Jesus will abolish evil forever.

In the meantime, we mourn with those who mourn. We pray for mercy for the afflicted and justice for the guilty. The darkness is real, but it is fleeting. Evil’s clock is ticking, and our Lord is coming. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. Amen.