To Shake Hands with the Devil
Recently I heard a sermon from a sensational minister. He talked about a book called “To Shake Hands with the Devil”. It was about the UN military commander in Rwanda during one of the greatest periods of genocide in our history: the murder of over 800,000 over a little more than three months in 1994. It would be immeasurable the number of lives affected by this dark time in our history. There is a lot to read online about the Rwandan genocide, but if you have seen the movie Hotel Rwanda then a visit to The Hotel Rwanda Rusesabagina Foundation website, founded by Paul Rusesabagina, is worth a visit.
One thing in life I have always believed is that sadly events such as these will be repeated. Those who commit such inhumanity to their fellow humans are not isolated to those who live in some third world nation or to a period of human history where an entire nation was swept up in the euphoria of a particular regime.
No. As Solomon writes in Ecclesiastes 7:20: “For there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin”.
But perhaps the next verse is more telling. It help explains where hatred starts.
“Also do not take to heart everything people say,
Lest you hear your servant cursing you,
For many times, also, your heart has known
That even you have cursed others”
But we do take things to heart when we should not. We all do. As that sensational preacher said on the first Sunday of 2010, if we tried to live like Jesus for just one day we would find it incredibly hard, not impossible as nothing is impossible with Jesus, but very difficult.
So we all battle with sin. Some lose that battle and find it easier to shake hands with the devil. The people who have committed the atrocities of recent times were not produced in some factory somewhere and sent into the world. No. They were people we might have called friends, neighbours, colleagues or even family.
People who one day found it easier to demean, dehumanise, degrade and disrespect their fellow humans than to do the opposite. As Proverbs 29:10 states: “The bloodthirsty hate the blameless, But the upright seek his well-being”.
The people they slaughtered were not indefensible. They were people who could not fight back because the thought of hurting another was not possible to them. They would rather die on their feet than live on their knees. Many missionaries have died exactly like this. Standing tall in front of our Heavenly Father as their life was taken from them.
When we do not seek after Jesus we start to turn to our own ways. And as Isaiah 53:6 states: “All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all”.
But it is hard to live for Him when wrong has been done to us and all we want is to right that wrong. No matter how long ago that all happened. When we are treated badly we want that wrong to be righted. But this is where we go wrong so quickly.
For we forget, or even worse just ignore, the words of Jesus in Matthew 22:37-40:
“Jesus said to him: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind”
This is the first and great commandment;
And the second is like to it: You shall love your neighbour as yourself”
On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets”
I have failed on this myself many times. But I try and try every single day to live better, to seek Him first and myself last. It is hard, but I will always try my best to serve God.
One of the single hardest things to do as a Christian is to forgive another for their actions before they have sought us to do the same. I have been privileged to meet and know many who live this way. I am proud if this is one of you. And I thank you for showing to me what it is and what it means to be a Christian.
For seeking after God is the only way that we can avoid meeting the devil and shaking his hand. Sadly, in our lifetime, we have all seen some horrific things. But this generation we see now as children I fear will see even worse. I do not want to shake hands with the devil. I want to stand in front of Jesus instead and feel His love for me. I want more and more to know Him, to feel Him, to seek him in greater abundance.
But there are those who feel greater fulfilment from hatred, negativity, bitterness, and their own need for vengeance. Nelson Mandela wrote on hatred: “No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.”
Sadly many will take a long time to replace hatred with love. In 2010 there are still very few who have answered for the atrocities they have committed, either in a court of law, to those they hurt or even to themselves. The genocide committed in Cambodia where over a million lives were taken, largely ignored by the world until made famous by the movie The Killing Fields, has seen few answer for their crimes.
I will always say a prayer for those who are in this position, who are shaking hands with the devil and not even thinking twice about it, because Jesus loves all of us and wants all of us to know Him, to know what love is. My tears I feel rolling down my cheeks are for those I know who no longer know what love is, what His love is, and instead seek to hurt the innocent. To bring more hatred into the world when there should be only love.
If you don’t get along with someone then don’t hate them. Please. Don’t call them a name that removes their humanity and makes it easier to hate or feel nothing when harm befalls them. As a cyclist it is amazing to hear many people I know say cyclists don’t deserve to be on the roads. You are entitled to your view, but remember 'they' are not just ‘cyclists’ but people. People God loves.
I hope I never have to shake hands with the devil. Maybe I already have and was saved from any harm by the love of Jesus. I hope that by seeking God with more abundance that I get to stand in front of our God and enter into Heaven to be with Him for all eternity.
Thank you for reading and God Bless.
