Latest Phil Hotsenpiller News | Fox News

Texas church shooting: God, evil and a senseless act

Sun, 05 Nov 2017 20:05:00 -0500

What are we to think when the sacred things of society are disregarded and become the site of evil? Evil seems unavoidable -- even in church.

On Sunday, November 5, 2017, America witnessed the deadliest church shooting in her history. The gunman walked into a house of worship outside San Antonio, Texas and opened fire on members of the congregation.

Is God the author of evil? It is the question that challenges all of us during times of unexplained evil acts. If not God, how then do we explain evil?

Without debate, it was a gunman who perpetrated the evil in San Antonio. So it's man and not God? Which brings me to the next question, "Why didn't God make better creatures?”

The act didn't just happen; the law of causality teaches us that every event has a cause.

Investigators will spend countless hours trying to understand the motive behind the murder. In the end, the conclusion will be similar to other investigations. The shooter will be found to be unstable, using anti-depressants or inconclusive.

No one seems to want to recognize the existence of an evil being, only evil acts.

The reason that immoral acts bother us and get our attention is that we are moral creatures who know the difference between good and evil.

Jesus made a shocking statement about Judas, the one who betrayed him, "it would be better for him if he had not been born."

It's shocking on to think Jesus would make such a statement and equally shocking that Jesus, knowing the world would be better without Judas, allowed Judas to remain.

What is there about good and evil that we don't understand? Is it necessary for both to co-exist, at least for a season? Does evil cause us to strive for good and in our striving permit us to find good? Does God permit evil in this world as a way to produce the best in us? That seems like God is using an illegitimate "end justifies the means" ethic.

There is something about evil that drives us to God. Atheist Jean-Paul Sartre said, "I needed God...I reached out for religion; I longed for it, it was the remedy. Had it been denied me, I would have invented it for myself.”

As a pastor, I struggle to explain the "why" behind the senseless evil acts that we witness as human beings. Simple answers to complex questions are bound to be wrong.

So what am I to do? I can give the pat answers that weary all of us, or I can admit my struggle, confront evil and seek to extend the love of God in both good and bad times.

California's devastating wildfires and God

Wed, 11 Oct 2017 15:32:00 -0400

The term “scorched earth” is usually one we associate with a military policy that targets anything that may be useful to the enemy. As a resident of Southern California, more specifically, Anaheim Hills, the term has recently taken on a different meaning.

Earlier this week, my wife and I were given 30 minutes to evacuate our home of 12 years. To make matters more complicated, I was en route to the airport when I received the text from my wife asking, "What do you want me to pack in the car? I have to leave in minutes."

My mind raced trying to determine what was important and irreplaceable. All I could think of was family photos and the flag that draped my dad's coffin at Arlington National Cemetery. In the midst of the chaos and disbelief, our friends and neighbors rallied to assist us in our time of need.

The next day, I found myself sitting in another airport trying to process everything that had happened in the past 24 hours. At first I reflected on our kind neighbors and how even in the worst of times we can see the good in humanity and love of God. Then my thoughts shifted and I began reflecting on the chaos, both natural and man-made, that has affected our nation in recent days. I began to wonder if I had become numb to all the tragedy. I don't even have time to mourn the fact that we had to evacuate our home.

Thinking about all of this, I found myself asking, “Where is God?” As a nation, we are facing an increase in lawlessness and what appears to me, an unusual number of natural disasters.

It’s a natural human response to ask questions for things we can’t understand or process. I get it; moral evil can be explained by the free will of man but much of the things we face (cancer, death, hurricanes and fires) are not a result of our free will. So where do I go from here? Either God or nature (which He created) must cause these physical evils. But these things seem incompatible with an all-loving, all-powerful God.

I'm left with what I call a "divine tension." I affirm the greatness of God and yet, at the same time wonder as the condition of the world.

C. S. Lewis captured my tension when he wrote, “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but [God] shouts in our pain: it is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”

I admit I hear God better in the struggle than I do in its absence. Tears, heartbreak, loneliness and hurt all add to my humanity and character. My joy and peace is found in those little unexpected moments when my children call, my wife smiles, my friends rally to my side, and I hear God say, "It's going to be OK, I got this one!"

Lawlessness and the war on law enforcement

Sun, 09 Jul 2017 00:00:00 -0400

As someone who regularly speaks to biblical prophesy as it relates to the end of the world, I once was asked, “When you think about the future, what scares you?”

Without hesitation, I responded, “Lawlessness.”

Lawlessness is now becoming—a normal part of mainstream culture.

The ambush shooting of a New York City police officer demonstrates the spirit of lawlessness that exists in our world. This is more than a random and isolated assassination; this is a war on our way of life and the foundation we hold dear.

This week’s tragedy came on the heels of James Hodgkinson’s shooting of House Majority Whip Steve Scalise and four others. Hodgkinson somehow justified his behavior because he did not approve of the politics of President Donald J. Trump. Maybe it's time to look deeper than one's political views and identify the real problem that exists in society.

The epidemic of violence is more than a plank in a political platform or a topic for talk radio; it will not be resolved with the passage of new, tougher laws because it is not simply a civil matter. It is a symptom of the much deeper and wider spiritual problem. A major shift appears to be taking place, indicating a new and threatening level of lawlessness in the United States, from the pinnacle of government to the living rooms of every community.

Our nation is great, in part due to government, laws, and order that we have enjoyed. Laws are designed to promote justice, and resolve conflicts. The Rule of Law militates against the right of an individual to decide for themselves, which laws are right and which laws are wrong. Without law, we have anarchy, fear and the erosion of civilization.

Lawlessness is more than breaking the civil or national law. This is because lawlessness is not the action of violating the established laws of a nation; lawlessness runs much deeper and is by nature spiritual. Scripture recognizes the authority of government and even goes so far to say that they are appointed by God for the good of all mankind (Romans 13:1-3).

The corrosive and destructive spirit of lawlessness is not primarily a consequence of defying the law. It also includes the absence of the love for his fellow man. It is quite possible (and all too common) for people to be model, law-abiding citizens with regards to the laws on the courthouse books, but if they do not have genuine love for God and for “neighbor,” then they are contributing to the problem of lawlessness.

When society fails to respect the law, fear is elevated as disorder rises with the result that social patterns begin to change and residents feel disconnected from other members of society. Communities crumble, and trust is absent from the vocabulary, except as a memory.

For America, perhaps our finest hour came after 9/11, which was an eye-opening alert that evil from outside was making its way in. We responded to our national shock by pulling together, foregoing personal concerns to help others in greater need, consoling those who had lost loved ones, and rebuilding what external terrorists thought they had destroyed.

But to believe that America has somehow risen above the spirit of lawlessness that is spreading across the world is both foolish and naïve. In the years since 9/11, the pendulum has swung far in the opposite direction, revealing that this spirit has not been subdued. Our nation is being torn apart by inner-city strife, the dispute over immigration, the epidemic of addiction and more. In addition, we have begun to witness a startling disregard for God’s Law.

What once was shocking and abhorrent to most people is now widely accepted. The threat of lawlessness from without, while still a cause for much concern, is far less frightening than the potential consequences of extended, ongoing weakening of our internal moral compass.

We have become like the Prodigal Son who longs to return to the father. Remembering a time when things were better. America is not perfect, but America is great. During times of turmoil, struggle, and war we have demonstrated our resolve and our faith in God. The character and essential qualities of our great nation lie just below the surface of struggles. I, for one, am confident in our future.