Riotous rage has spread across the globe in the wake of the death in Minneapolis of George Floyd, ostensibly as a result of brutal arrest by a police officer.

But it’s becoming increasingly clear that the shocking incident is being used as a Trojan Horse to fan the flames of fear and fury of a restless generation further emboldened to express their distaste for authority.

And the anarchic forces of darkness committed to wrecking the foundations of Western civilisation are rubbing their hands in glee.

Of course, black lives matter and justice is paramount, but our topsy-turvy world portrays the victim as a saint rather than a convicted armed robber who threatened to shoot a pregnant woman. Indeed, the truth is hard to uncover as a generally biased mainstream media pursues its own agenda.

The latest worldwide protests follow hard on the heels of the Extinction Rebellion climate change campaign that brought London to a standstill. And before that we had the 'Me Too' movement gathering global momentum among women claiming to have been sexually abused.

What we desperately need right now is some perspective. What about the 400,000 deaths throughout the world due to COVID-19? The protests will not have helped this crisis. But far more importantly, what about the unborn – the state-sponsored murder of millions of babies (well over nine million in the UK since the passing of the 1967 Abortion Act)? Who is protesting on their behalf? Where is the compassion for these innocent victims, especially since yet more liberal abortion laws are being proposed that will endanger unborn children right up to birth? Where are the street protests outside Parliament?

The truth is hard to uncover as a generally biased mainstream media pursues its own agenda.

Silence and Violence

Someone has pointed out the awesome irony that, in view of the difficulty with access to ‘family planning’ clinics due to the current pandemic, more lives will actually be saved than killed by the virus! But the unborn have almost no-one to speak up for them, and we in the West are reaping the whirlwind with violence – and murder – on our streets.

Even our bishops remain silent, as many Christian leaders did during the Holocaust, but mercifully there is a courageous remnant of passionate Christians, led by organisations such as Christian Concern and CARE, who are raising their voices in a wilderness of callous brutality. One protestor has even been banned from using graphic images of the abortion process (i.e. portraying the unpalatable truth).

God’s response to all this is contained in these words from the prophet Ezekiel: “Since you did not hate bloodshed, bloodshed will pursue you” (Ezek 35:6). And I am again reminded of the sobering verse from Isaiah, especially in light of the COVID crisis:

Go my people, enter your rooms and shut the doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until his wrath has passed by. See, the Lord is coming out of his dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The earth will disclose the blood shed on it; the earth will conceal its slain no longer. (Isaiah 26:20-21)¹

But we are largely silent on these matters, and yet, though still supposedly under a limited form of lockdown, thousands have been allowed to take to our streets in protest over the admittedly unjust death of one man, breaking government rules on restricted gatherings in the process.

Pressure to Conform

As for police ‘taking the knee’ as a gesture of support for the Black Lives Matter movement, it sets a very dangerous precedent by effectively submitting to pleasing the crowd, which in turn hands them the baton to call the tune. Talk about the tail wagging the dog. And I thought 'PC' stood for police constable, not political correctness.

It also calls to mind the trial of Jesus, with the authorities swayed by the baying crowd’s wishes. And it leaves the distinct possibility of fellow officers being condemned as racist for not ingratiating themselves, rather like a Christian school student I know of who felt singled out when a visitor promoting LGBT doctrine asked for those supporting the movement to stand up.

The unborn have almost no-one to speak up for them, and we in the West are reaping the whirlwind with violence – and murder – on our streets.

Who protested when child euthanasia was being practiced by the Nazis? Among those who sent unwanted children to their deaths was a young paediatrician named Hans Asperger, who diagnosed what became known as Asperger’s Syndrome – a form of autism.²

Who protested over the six million Jews slaughtered during the Holocaust that ran parallel to the killing of some 800 ‘undesirable’ children in this way? As it happens, protests supposedly over the injustice meted out to George Floyd have reportedly spilled over into attacks on Jewish property in Los Angeles where synagogues have been vandalised.

The Days of Noah

It’s somewhat reminiscent of the riots in Ephesus over the preaching of the Apostle Paul, about which Scripture records: “Some were shouting one thing, some another. Most of the people did not even know why they were there” (Acts 19:32). We are witnessing days of rage and violence of the kind our Lord suggested would indicate his imminent return (Luke 17:26f; Gen 6:11). Where are the people of God raising their voices in the wilderness of wickedness, preparing the way of the Lord in warning a rebellious generation of coming judgment?

The Bible talks of how truth is suppressed by the godlessness of wicked men, as a result of which the ‘wrath of God’ is revealed. In other words, God ‘gives them over’ to their sinful desires – he lets them get on with it – which in turns reaps a whirlwind of trouble and strife in society (read Romans 1:18-32 for a full explanation).

But there is good news. As well as judgment, there is mercy too for those who turn from their wicked ways and trust in Jesus.

References

1 A powerful resource in this respect is the movie Unplanned, based on real events and available online from Eden.

2 Sheffer, E. Asperger’s Children: The Origins of Autism In Nazi Vienna. WW Norton (reviewed here).