After watching two extremely controversial movies, Sound of Freedom and Killers of the Flower Moon, I realize how history repeats itself when our society refuses to change. It’s unfortunate but true. As long as people care more about themselves than they do for others, then a history of abuse, violence and murder will continue until someone puts an end to it all.
I will never take for granted my upbringing of being raised with Christian beliefs and high standards that were placed upon me even as a child. I grew up being taught “to do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” That didn’t mean that others always treated me fairly nor did I always did what was right. However, I learned that there were consequences when I didn’t follow the rules or when I hurt others. I learned that “no meant no” and that it was not for my detriment but for my good. I learned that when I intentionally hurt others it also hurts me because we are supposed to be “one body” that helps each other. We should be “one society” that doesn’t tolerate violence at any level so why do we allow it?
Scripture says in 1 John 2:16-17 “For everything in the world – the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.”
Desires that try to rule our bodies are examples of the lust of the flesh. We desire food, water, shelter, affection and even comfort. God created us with those desires. However, when we desire to please ourselves and we let those fleshly desires rule us and take priority over us, we get out of God’s will for our lives. When hunger turns to gluttony or sexual desires turn perverse, we are no longer pleasing God but pleasing ourselves instead.
The lust of the eyes is the desire to possess what we see that is appealing to us. This could be coveting someone’s home, spouse, possessions or even status. The enemy has a way of turning our ear to listen to his temptations and then look at something that is forbidden and entraps us. Do you think it’s just a coincidence that the world calls things that we shouldn’t have “eye candy?”
Finally there’s the pride of life and this is a big one to tackle. Remember Satan was cast out of heaven because of pride. That alone should make you think twice. In Proverbs 16 the Bible tells us that “pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.” You see, a prideful person has no need for God or His divine grace because he or she believes that they possess it all. A prideful person likes to take all the credit for themselves. They boast of their own abilities rather than realizing the favor and blessings come from above.
All of these things – the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life- set us up for failure. They set us up to care more about ourselves than others. They cause history to repeat itself over and over again. Think of all the kingdoms of this world. Most have gone to war over these three things. They saw something or someone that was not theirs and they coveted it. So they devised a plan to take what was not theirs and their pride boasted in their glory.
We must remember that if we don’t want history to keep repeating itself, then we have to do something differently. We must humble ourselves in the eyes of the Lord then He will exalt us. There must be consequences for wrong doings. As movies prick our hearts of the calamities of our past and our present we must make the changes in our hearts that move us to a different outcome.
There’s more to this life than just getting everything you want or desire. Figure out your purpose and God’s plan for your life by helping others more than you help yourself. I think you’ll be surprised just how happy and fulfilling your life will be once you do. Then that history can repeat itself without any shame or regret.
