Inside the Violent Mind

What is within a human being that erupts against others? by David DeLong

Wife beating; child abuse; gang fights; drive-by shootings; genocide; wars. Since the Fall, violence has come in many different packages, and it doesn't show signs of stopping. The biblical writer, Paul, told his young charge, Timothy, that before Christ's return, men would be brutal and without self-control (2 Timothy 3:3).

What humans have devised in this century -- from nuclear warheads to gas chambers to semiautomatic guns -- we have used to harm and destroy human life. But why? I believe the reason stems from our basic sinful nature. After Adam's rebellion, men have naturally gravitated toward violence. Lacking the holiness that is characteristic of God, we don't immediately seek the good of our fellowman. Let's look briefly at four motivations in the violent mind.

Desire for control

The desire for control resides in all of us. We have an inborn hankering to regulate not only our lives but also others' lives and even the circumstances of life. This need to be in control is a prime example of the pervasive human inclination to overthrow God. It dictated action in the Garden of Eden.

As long as Eve and Adam were governed by God's command not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, all was well. But when they seized control from God by eating of this tree, then great harm came to them and to the entire human race. Our first parents believed that by eating from the tree, they would be "as gods, knowing good and evil" (Genesis 3:5). Their desire to control their own world (i. e., be as gods) actually set the stage for every abuse that humanity has experienced. Just ten generations later, "the earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence" (6:11).

Desire for vengeance

Many who say they want justice after an injury, for example, want to exercise "justice" in their own way. They want jurisdiction over their own little universe, which means taking God's place as supreme ruler and judge. When people who feel abused live by their own laws and mete out their own punishment, they usually obtain "vengeance," not justice. The "violated" now becomes the "violator," resulting in a worsening spiral of all types of violence. On the international scene, this desire for vengeance has been a major source of the world's wars.

God is supreme, but even He doesn't use this supremacy to force people into subjection. Humans are not supreme, but we have assumed an attribute that belongs only to Him when we try to exert our control over others through force. Whatever the causes of such power plays, the results are tragic.

Lust for possessions

A third cause for violence in our world comes from people's desire to own their surroundings. This goes beyond control to the need to "call it mine."

We also may covet God's position as creator-possessor by trying to create and possess our own domain. Instead of being stewards over God's good earth, we may look greedily after what belongs to others, convincing ourselves that we have a right to it. When two or more individuals, or two or more nations, lock in a struggle to obtain the same possession, violence usually occurs. The friction generated from this type of situation often turns deadly.

De-humanizing theories

Humanistic philosophies, like evolution, misguide millions into believing that human beings -- merely animals -- are alive by accident and that nothing really matters anyway. If the theory is true, human life has no intrinsic value, so to kill it is no great crime. Some reason that since no one's life really counts and nothing is important in life, then at least they can make the world pay some attention to them through violence.

Though the theory is false, being continually subjected to it introduces frustration and conflict into our lives. Why? Because most people understand intuitively that they are more than mere animals, that a higher power exists, and that they have a higher purpose. Not knowing how to resolve these conflicting beliefs and desires, some people are filled with anger, depression, frustration, and hopelessness and may resort to random acts of violence for relief.

Renewing our minds

The only solution to this problem -- and to all our problems -- is for each person to relinquish complete control to God, through Jesus Christ. Only God is wise enough, powerful enough, and good enough to control people and events for a positive outcome. Therefore, it is His responsibility to control our lives and our universe.

David DeLong pastors the Church of God (Seventh Day) in Stockton, CA. Scripture quotations are from the New King James Version.

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