“No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it.” 1 Corinthians 10:13

School Shooting Number 18:

“A shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, has left at least 17 people dead. Students and adults are among the victims. A 19-year-old male suspect, Nikolas Cruz, has been charged with 17 counts of premeditated murder. Cruz, a former student at Stoneman Douglas, took an Uber to the school Wednesday afternoon. He was armed with an AR-15 rifle, law enforcement officials said, which he used to carry out his rampage. He fled the scene on foot, blending in with the rush of students pouring from the building. The massacre unfolded in less than 10 minutes, according to the timeline released by the Broward County Sheriff’s office. “That should not happen in Parkland. It should not happen anywhere in this country,” Broward County Public Schools superintendent Robert Runcie said on Wednesday night. “We have got to find a way for this to stop.”

As Christ unites the community in Corinth, Paul offers guidance on how to live in community and warns against the mistakes of the past. As flawed people living in a broken world, the Corinthians will inevitably experience trials in striving to maintain this unity. People are coming from diverse backgrounds and social locations, so coming together as one collective will require preparation by the entire community. Despite the difficulties, however, Paul calls the community to remember that G-d will provide them with the same kind of strength and perseverance as G-d has provided in the past.

The story of Paul and the people in Corinth is instructive for our communities who struggle with events like school shootings, mass shootings, and other mass casualty events. If we are to move forward, making the decisions we need to make, finding the strength to make the necessary changes both in our laws but also in the way we care for and about one another, we will need to find the unity that Paul speaks about – a unity that comes from G-d. To achieve such unity, we must first look within ourselves to understand our own depth of diversity both in practice and beliefs – and then look around us to see the commonness within our diversity. 

In this season of Lent, when we practice self-examination, let us not forget that our faith is inherently communal. We are called to live with one another in beloved community united by Christ. So let us examine ways in which we can grow as a communal body. How might G-d be calling us to refine our relationships and heal our divisions? As we encounter adversity, let us remember G-d’s faithfulness and walk together in times of trial.

Pastor Dave