Perhaps the most difficult challenge in this life is to assume one’s true identity and become oneself, rather than copy the behavior of others. Human behavior is often sheep-like. Wherever there is a trendsetter who assumes leadership, others tend to follow without question. A child entering a boarding school where bullying is common may come to accept it as normal—becoming a bully or shrinking back as others are bullied.
Zimbabwe’s liberation war used violence against innocent citizens and contributed to the eventual fall of Ian Smith’s regime. A cowed population then acquiesced to violence as acceptable, and violence hardened into culture. While some individuals are known to have led Gukurahundi, many others passively supported it, as though it were divinely ordained.
Propaganda is often the instigator of unprovoked violence against fellow human beings. At the time of unleashing Gukurahundi, propaganda was used to claim that Dr. Joshua Nkomo sponsored dissidents who were opposed to the government. Many believed this without verifying the truthfulness of the claim. Similar propaganda was used to murder Jesus, yet such propaganda failed to convince an outsider, Governor Pilate, that Jesus deserved crucifixion.
“Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers, and the people, and said to them, ‘You brought me this man as one who was inciting the people to rebellion. I have examined him in your presence and have found no basis for your charges against him. Neither has Herod, for he sent him back to us; as you can see, he has done nothing to deserve death. Therefore, I will punish him and then release him.’ But the whole crowd shouted, ‘Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!’ (Barabbas had been thrown into prison for an insurrection in the city and murder.) Wanting to release Jesus, Pilate appealed to them again. But they kept shouting, ‘Crucify him! Crucify him!’” (Luke 23:13-21 NIV)
It is unclear what the crowd hoped to achieve once Jesus had been put to death. Why did they prefer Jesus’ death over the release of the rebellious criminal Barabbas? How could ordinary people be comfortable watching a fellow human being hang on a cross without tangible evidence of wrongdoing? What is observable is an emotional charge in humanity to kill the innocent. Jesus prayed for them because they did not know what they were doing.
“When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left. Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.’ And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.” (Luke 23:33-34 NIV)
Jesus spoke from an awareness of the prevailing insanity, yet also of the potential humanity in them—a potential that could only be reached through grace. Is it not startling that the killing of more than twenty thousand innocent people during Gukurahundi caused little alarm? Thousands, perhaps millions, believed the purging was justified. This reveals the wickedness that arises when the abnormal is normalized.
Some may call this “mob psychology,” but even apart from the mob, many remain indifferent to injustice until it touches them personally. Lack of true education has much to do with such reasoning. By education I mean something distinct from mere schooling, which often breeds pride, instead of developing responsibility. True education imparts knowledge, not arrogance. Jesus endured the cross because he was not indifferent to humanity’s degradation and hopelessness; he acted from the knowledge he possessed.
Consider Members of Parliament becoming incensed when colleagues think differently during debates on matters of national importance. Truly educated people, in my view, are dignified enough to respect another’s viewpoint before asserting their own. A merely schooled person, by contrast, is known for annoying others with claims of superior knowledge. Such people crave more respect than they deserve. An uneducated person is driven more by emotion than by reason—a trait that can be a waste of time, if not dangerous, to anyone attempting to engage them.
Think of the millions of Jews murdered under Hitler. While Hitler and his spin doctors spread propaganda, many simply believed it and assumed the killing was justified. Many abnormal things are passed off as normal. I had never heard of a president forgiving known murderers until Patrick Kombayi was blatantly shot at in 1990. A presidential amnesty was granted shamelessly, and no public revulsion followed.
I expected an uprising; instead, life went on as usual, revealing an apathy that persists to this day. That incident set a precedent. It has become normal to hear of political opponents disappearing or being killed by known state agents. The culture of violence has endured for as long as our so-called independence has existed. There is a deafening silence from Christians, who seem to assume that such a detestable culture is God-approved—or even justify it as proof that this is Satan’s world.
Fearing for one’s life is a display of not being Christian even though one claims to be one. Such Christians may mesmerize audiences by charismatically declaring that evil is normal because this is Satan’s world. What they fail to appreciate is that Christians were given power to cast out demons in Jesus’ name. Christ’s power was released through believers to defeat the devil.
In the Lord’s prayer, Jesus emphasizes that God’s will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven, made possible by those dedicated to be His disciples. Fearless as they are supposed to be, this suggests how serious the significance of Christianity entails. Where Christians truly exist, there ought not to be such problems, for they are the light of the world.
“And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name, they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.” (Mark 16:17-18 NIV)
Jesus’ appearing was not for physical self-protection; it was for the sacrifice of his physical body to redeem an apathetic humanity. Christians are not meant to be cowards who fear for their lives more than they desire to stand for truth, because they represent Jesus’ principle of love and peace. Otherwise, Stephen would not have been stoned, nor the apostles martyred—except John. Only true Christians understand that physical death was defeated on the cross.
Our triumph in Christianity lies in surrendering our physical bodies for righteous causes rather than protecting them. The behavior of killers is sustained by ignorance, made worse because Christians fail to shine the light of truth in Jesus’ name. Known killers are people whose conduct confirms the darkness that requires light. No knowledge surpasses the knowledge that human beings are spiritual, not merely physical.
Murderers behave as though life requires taking other people’s lives rather than protecting them. Jesus prayed for his murderers because he understood life, while human ignorance clings to physical death. He spoke from the standpoint of being spiritually alive. A truly living person is marked by reasoning, made possible by true education.
Those who cannot think are ruled by emotion more than by the exchange of reasonable ideas. For example, xenophobic incidents in South Africa are driven by ignorance. The perpetrators do not understand what they are doing. The question is: What are enlightened people doing to help the ignorant? The worst thing is to see wrong and do nothing, which suggests being complicit.
A true Christian has a responsibility to denounce evil, using every means of communication to help the misinformed. This is part of Jesus’ teaching. Those who cannot distinguish what is good from what is evil may be described as not knowing what they do. But those who have received grace to understand the truth are responsible for doing righteous works according to their abilities. They see things as God sees them.
“For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. So from now on, we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.” (2 Corinthians 5:14-16 NIV)
If a Christian sees evil practiced among fellow humans and does nothing, that Christian participates in the wickedness. Justice and mercy are the responsibility conferred on Christians. It is not a matter of whether the flesh feels comfortable. It is not about self-protection; it is about behaving like the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:27–37).
“If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.” (James 4:17 NIV)
Permissiveness is rampant worldwide. The fact that someone cheated on a spouse is no reason to accept cheating as normal. We live in a world where cheating and other sins have become fashionable, especially when practiced by influential people. Christians who confess Jesus’ name ought to be influential in pursuing goodness.
If they sin—for example, by divorcing their spouses—the public may adopt divorce as normal. Similarly, corruption becomes normalized when influential people practice it, while those who stand on principle and refuse to engage in it can be vilified as abnormal. Traditions and culture develop over time as evil practices become accepted because influential people set the trend. There is such a thing as group agreement, which subtly invites sinful behavior.
A newcomer entering an organization tends to adopt existing bad habits when seeking to be accepted. Watching influential people behave unethically, newcomers feel compelled to blend in, even if they were ethical before. Our physical nature leans toward comfort, often ignoring consequences. Bad habits are powerful and nearly irresistible to carnal human beings.
In Zimbabwe, the public has observed that government ministers are often absent during parliamentary question time. This habit was first charted by influential senior ministers before it long made Parliament a laughingstock. Life continues while parliamentarians and unproductive ministers draw salaries. This confirms corruption that has cascaded into other sectors. Much of the uneducated public assumes such conduct is acceptable for those elected to government.
The ready excuse is that we are a third-world country and former colonizers are the ones to blame. It then becomes acceptable for third-world countries to kill one another without anyone raising questions. Christianity is assigned a docile status, in the name of peace and support for the government of the day. Ordinary people may be appalled but feel powerless. In other words, darkness is allowed to dominate while light is suppressed.
The failure of those empowered to confront evil is abominable, because it allows evil to triumph unnecessarily. These are the very people Jesus empowered to change the world, yet they fail. Their excuses may sound genuine, but not when we remember that Christians were given authority to cast out demons (Mark 16:17–18). When Christians appear incapacitated, it suggests tomfoolery in the faith.
It is necessary to stand on principle: One is either a Christian or not; one cannot be both. The carnal mind remains vulnerable because it refuses to settle its true identity, often to avoid pain. But for those who take a stand as God’s children, tolerating evil becomes impossible, even under threat of death. Sin was defeated at the cross, and a true Christian is willing to confront it without fear. Christians are privileged to defeat sin in this present world.
No Christian needs approval from anyone to confront demonic forces in their surroundings. They have Jesus, whom they trust even unto death, at their disposal. Christianity is not necessarily about numbers; otherwise Jesus could not have defeated sin as an individual. Doing what is acceptable to God requires no human approval—only God’s.
A spiritually empowered Christian has no reason to feel helpless. It is a matter of taking one’s rightful position and acting accordingly, without seeking others’ approval. If one is not a Christian, one should not pretend to be one. But if one is, they must accept the responsibility.
Out of cowardice, many Christians hide behind denominational leadership rather than challenge wickedness personally. Permissiveness may appear harmless, but it is like cancer—more deadly than flagrant sinful practice out of ignorance. The apostle Paul clearly distinguished between the two ways of living and warned of the consequences of moral degradation. This warning should not be taken lightly, but as a matter of life and death.
“So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They conflict with each other so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
“The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Galatians 5:16-21 NIV)
This is a matter of life and death. Life in the flesh is governed by pain and pleasure; avoiding pain often threatens pleasure, yet pleasure carries the price of pain. Jesus paved a way, showing that transient pain is inconsequential. Christianity is an individual decision; it does not require looking at what others are doing or drifting into permissiveness.
A new convert often becomes disillusioned when observing misconduct even within a Christian community. But the Christian package includes the awareness that this is a sinful world, one that must be confronted in Jesus’ name. Following in Jesus’ footsteps means making him the only model, rather than looking at what fellow Christians are doing.
Jesus never looked at what others in his environment were doing. This stand-alone posture does not mean resenting those who disagree. It simply means choosing what pleases God above what pleases one’s surroundings. However appealing a practice may be, if it is not agreeable to Christ, a Christian must reject it unreservedly, even though everyone else relents to it.
The most important understanding is that a Christian lives to please God, not the surrounding people. Christianity should be regarded as a lonely journey in which the Holy Spirit takes center stage. One may lose everything in this world by taking that stand—which is the only way out of a hellish condition. But that is the price of Christianity, whose reward is eternal life. There cannot be two ways about it.
Andrew Masuku is the author of Dimensions of a New Civilisation, laying down standards for uplifting Zimbabwe from the current state of economic depression into a model for other nations worldwide. A decaying tree provides an opportunity for a blossoming sprout. Written from a Christian perspective, the book is a product of inspiration, relieving those who have witnessed the strings of unworkable solutions, leading to the current economic and social decay. Most Zimbabweans should find the book to be a long-awaited providential oasis of hope, in a simple conversational tone.
The Print copy is now available at Amazon.com for $13.99
Also available as an e-copy at Lulu.com for $6.99