Gawking at accidents?

Today’s devotional presents a view of Christians that is startling. Tozer writes, “Through the leading and the power of the Holy Spirit, the Christian is involved in a daily life and habit that cannot be explained. A Christian should have upon him an element that is beyond psychology—beyond all natural laws and into spiritual laws. He points to the following passage:

“Hear, you who are far off, what I have done; and you who are near, acknowledge my might. The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling has seized the godless: ‘Who among us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings?’ He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly, who despises the gain of oppressions, who shakes his hands, lest they hold a bribe, who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed and shuts his eyes from looking on evil, he will dwell on the heights; his place of defense will be the fortresses of rocks; his bread will be given him; his water will be sure.” (Isaiah 33:13–16)

Tozer says, “A genuine Christian should be a walking mystery because he surely is a walking miracle . . . we Christians should be men and women out of the fire.”

The Bible calls God a “consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:29) because He is holy, hostile to sin, and can only burn on and on against sin forever. Who can stand against that fire? Only those who have been made righteous. Who are those made righteous? Those who believe in Jesus Christ and whose lives demonstrate that righteousness as described by Isaiah: walking righteously, speaking uprightly, despising any gain from oppressing others, shakes his hands refusing bribes, stops his ears from hearing bloodshed and shuts his eyes from looking on evil.

In a practical sense, the last two are gray zones. It seems to me this isn’t about being blind to what is going on in this world, refusing to read the newspaper or watch the evening news. It is more about that attitude that causes people to slow down and gawk when passing a highway accident. A reporter once told me that this is what sells — that inner desire to see blood and bad stuff. Without it, newspapers would not sell and he would not have a job.

This is poking at me. I click on my news app so I know how many people were killed in the latest weather disaster. Sometimes I’m looking for ‘good’ news, but good news is rare so I become curious about the bad stuff, the reports of increasing evil. There is something in me that tends to gawk. That something is sinful and not the attitude that passes the test of fire. God is telling me to deal with this, however slight it might be.

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For your name’s sake, O Lord, pardon my guilt, for it is great. (Psalm 25:11) It hasn’t felt like a big deal but Your Word speaks of this ‘hearing of bloodshed and looking on evil’ as something God’s righteous people do not do. I admit the desire to gawk. I also admit ignoring any conviction that I might have felt about it to the point that it didn’t seem important. Instead of stopping to look, I must imagine You holding my hand and giving me a totally different attitude toward the bloodshed and evil around me. I agree that such interest is ungodly and realize that You have a far different attitude toward looking at evil than I do. Change my heart.