Not that God has gone anywhere, but we have shoved Him to the sidelines. We pulled prayer from the schools, public displays of the Holy Scriptures are being removed at alarming rates, and anything that resembles a cross is next on the list for demolition.

In these days of harsh political rhetoric, class warfare and mass killings, we need the voice of reason. It is possible in these modern times, in public institutions that have been stripped of any vestige of the Living God of Heaven, that some people have never heard the sixth commandment, “Thou shalt not kill.” Or the golden rule, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” “Be kind to one another,” as a practice, has slipped away long ago.

We live daily with road rage, domestic violence, child abuse and torrents of hate speech on every venue. Why would we expect the outcome to be any less than mass murder?

When Almighty God liberated the people of Israel from Egyptian bondage, He brought them to Himself in the wilderness of Sinai (southern Israel) and gave them some principles to live by. We call those principles the 10 Commandments, but they were more like the rules for a healthy society.

First of all, God established that there is a higher being and that there is moral responsibility to Him. You might fool people, but you cannot fool God.

The next thing God put in place were simple guidelines for personal interaction. These are: you should not kill people; you should not steal from others, you should not lie; you should respect the sanctity of marriage; and you should not be looking across the fence at your neighbor’s stuff planning how to get it for yourself.

God wrote those guidelines on stone tablets and gave them to the people. It is amazing that those principles seeped into almost every society and, for years, peace and tranquility came to those who abided by those simple guidelines. There have always been rogues and scoundrels who disregarded any moral compass and resisted authority but, for the most part, they are brought into check by those who revere God’s principles.

Jesus Christ is the Prince of Peace. He is the gentle One. In the gospel of Matthew, chapter 12, verse 20, it is declared of Jesus, “a bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench.” Jesus is weeping over our land much like He wept over Jerusalem in the gospel of Luke, chapter 19, verse 42: “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!”

What will it take to fix our culture? We must bow our heads, lift our hands, and ask God for help. He is right there; closer than we can imagine.