london riots Archives - Colin Dye

When peace comes to a city

Colin Dye — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 10:13:27 +0000

Earlier this month, London witnessed an unprecedented wave of violence and social disorder. Scriptures tell us that the only answer to this unrest is the Shalom of God.

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The reason for our hope

Colin Dye — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 07:57:27 +0000

Colin Dye

It is said that you can live 6 weeks without food, 3 days without water and only 4 minutes without air, but you cannot live one second without hope. Hope, vital as it is, is failing in today?s world. The youths who perpetrated the acts of looting and vandalism in London last month were said to have acted out of desperation, having no hope. They were described as victims of a society that has given them no future, nothing to look forward to.
For us Christians, hope is an essential part of our relationship with God. Jesus is our hope and he gives us a confidence to face the future. We can be sure that he will never leave us nor fail us. We are persuaded that nothing can separate us from the love of God. We are convinced that God is working out all things for our good and for his glory.
Hope in the Bible is ?a certain expectation of a positive future event?. We speak of the hope of the return of Christ, the hope of the resurrection from the dead and the hope of heaven. All these things are guaranteed us because we belong to Jesus, the source and ultimate reality of all things. By him all things consist and are held together.
You would think that such comforting ideas would be snatched up at once by politicians, sociologists, psychologists and educationalists. Imagine if all these people incorporated Christian hope in both their private and professional lives. Think of the difference it would make if such spiritual confidence lay at the heart of every personal and public decision in our society. Hope in Christ gives us stability in this life and the motivation to make a difference. It is a solid foundation to live for God now as well as confidence for the hereafter.
However, not everyone is persuaded that such hope exists, least of all in the Christian gospel. There are many reasons for this. One of these is that the world is governed by its senses. It is dominated by the natural and is blind to the spiritual. Spiritual truth is not innate. God has put eternity in our hearts and we all have the remains of a once-perfect image of God in our hearts. That?s why humanity is incurably religious. However, we are totally dependent on God?s revelation to find our way back to him.

?Always be ready to give a defence to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you (1 PETER 3:15)

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What is happening to us?

Colin Dye — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 10:36:24 +0000

Ten years ago the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre in downtown New York shook the world. We have been living with the fallout ever since. Despite the so-called ?war on terror?, we have witnessed the increase of Islamic Radicalism:

What is happening to us?

October 12 2002 – Bali bombings, 202 dead
March 11 2004?- Madrid Train bombings,?191 dead
July 7 2005 -?London bombings, 52 dead
November 26 2008 – Mumbai, 164 dead
Added to this there has been the recent killing of innocent lives by an extreme Right Wing fanatic in Oslo opposed to the Islamisation of Europe.
The credit crunch of 2008 and last month?s financial crises caused losses of billions of pounds in the world?s financial markets. The Coalition Government?s austerity measures have not been universally welcomed. Times are hard. The recent riots and looting in London and other major cities in the UK pointed to a breakdown in law and order, social unrest and community collapse.
These are the realities of life today. It is time for society to take stock and ask what is really happening to our world. The biblical answer to that question is clear. We are experiencing the inevitable consequences of a society eating the fruits of its ways. The Bible tells us that we reap what we sow.
Years of systematic institutional ?anti-christianism? have eroded the values that hold Western society together. Multiculturalism, secularism and irresponsible liberalism have all contributed to the breakdown we are seeing today. Politics has also let us down. Bankrupt ideologies cannot help us. False religion is not the answer. It is time to get back to the pure message of God?s love, his grace and his life-transforming power. Christians must engage deeply with the world and point our society back to God.
The greatest need of the hour is for the Church of Jesus Christ to arise in all its forms and expressions and speak with a unified and credible voice. We must declare Christ?s love and demonstrate his compassion. Truth must be both seen and heard. That is how the Holy Spirit acts to turn lives back to God, heal whole communities and save a nation from itself.

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Jesus, the only foundation

Colin Dye — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 09:43:53 +0000

A word that God gave me about what is happening in the spiritual realm right now, and on the plans ans strategies of the enemy. It is a spirit of deception to draw people away from Christ as the only solution. It is coming like a wind, and what we have seen on our streets last week is only the physical manifestation of a spiritual reality.
A strategy of the enemy is being released against our nation. It is a spirit of deception whose purpose is to shake people’s confidence to draw them away from Christ as the only solution. It is very subtle and comes like a wind who is going to sift God’s people.
Sift yourselves now! So when this comes, you will be already sifted!

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Is violence ever the answer?

Colin Dye — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 09:58:47 +0000

Calm has been restored to the streets of UK cities. Last night saw greater numbers of police on the streets taking tougher measures against the rioters and looters. The situation was also helped by greater vigilance and some robust acts of self defence both on the part of shop keepers and that of the general community. Magistrate Courts were open throughout the night, mostly referring those under arrest to the Crown Courts where tougher sentences can be imposed.
The civil unrest has divided the nation. Most are simply shocked and appalled, but others equally angry are speaking up for the looters. The Prime Minister condemned the ?sick” elements in a society gone wrong. Others are blaming the riots on society itself which has produced the levels of social deprivation leading so many to take part in acts of lawlessness.

Is violence the answer?

The tough talkers scorn the mayhem by labelling its perpetrators as ?thugs? and ?feral rats? who are taking their ?sick revenge? on society. Those with a more liberal social outlook assert that the ugly scenes are ?hardly surprising? given the frustrations of the ?ignored underclass? at the core of the riots. Given the opportunity, such people will certainly steal a large screen TV or a pair of designer trainers – ?that?s just the way it happens?. They have no decent home and no prospects. They are voiceless and powerless, victims of a society that has forgotten them. To some, acts of arson, vandalism, looting and maiming are ?understandable?, ?excusable? or even ?justifiable?. Others, are just plain angry and want the perpetrators to be brought to justice.
In this atmosphere of indignation is no co-incidence that seven out of ten top sports items currently on sale are baseball bats. Amazon reports that its sale of aluminium bats have increased by 6,000%. Violence breeds violence. Justice is one thing, but angry retribution only sets up a fresh cycle of misunderstanding and hatred. We must all take a long look at our society and begin to fix it.
In the weeks and months to come, there will be much debate as people position themselves on either side of the divide. Government policies will increasingly come under attack from its opponents. Community workers will speak out on behalf of the under-privileged. Counter arguments will be marshalled, pointing to the breakdown of the family, lack of discipline among the young and the need for a return to values of personal responsibility and respect for authority.
Either way we must take a long, hard look at ourselves and the kind of society we have made. There will be no quick fix. No one-stop solution. Long after every visible trace of the riots and looting has been removed, the scars will remain. It is easy to destroy, but much harder to build. Easy to hurt and difficult to heal. Those on either side of the argument must listen to the viewpoint of the other. We cannot solve this by needless perpetuation of the ?us? and ?them?. We are in it together.
Christians must take their share of the responsibility. We have allowed ourselves to be marginalized for too long. The self-imposed policy of non-engagement with society must end. We must take our gospel out there, where it really counts. By word and deed, we must become part of the solution and not just pontificate about the problem.
The Christian gospel is rooted in compassion and finds it highest expression in self-sacrifice. Jesus did not come to arm the poor to fight against the rich. Neither did he come to boost the complacency of those who are wealthy. He did not lead a just war against the Roman Imperialists. He did not raise a rabble army against slavery and injustice. But, neither did he give us a mandate to withdraw from these issues.
Jesus? death on the cross was supremely an act of sacrifice in which he paid the price for our sins. Society cannot ignore the dark side of human nature and the Christian story of redemption points us all to the only solution. Changed hearts lead to a changed society. In Christ, anger is turned into forgiveness. Violence is transformed into determination to build a better future for all.

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