Law enforcement is a family more than it is a community. Because of my former career as a police officer, and in response to the terrible events occurring in our area, IE: the "manhunt," I received several phone calls and emails from folks across the country asking if I was OK. I think that they weren't concerned that I was physically in danger due to these events, but rather, how was I feeling in light of them - IE: The murdering crime spree of Christopher Dorner. Those events left four people dead, not including Dorner and, as I write this, the funeral service of one of the two policemen killed by the suspect is taking place. Sadly, there will be another service in a few days for the other officer. What a tragic last 10 days or so this has been.
I can look at what the perpetrator did in these last ten days and judge him "by his fruits" (Mt. 7:16) to be an evil-minded individual, "without natural affection" and a "despiser of those that are good." (2Tim. 3:3). As to his eternal judgment, that's not within my purview, but speaking as a police officer, I'm glad that we could arrange his meeting with The Judge.
Well let's see, can we take these tragic events and perhaps gain a spiritual lesson from them? I think that we can and to do so, my thoughts will center around something I started this editorial with - law enforcement being a "family." I'm going to try and relate that "family" to our Christian "family."
In law enforcement, it doesn't matter what color of uniform you wear, what shape or design the badge and shoulder patches are. In doing the job we all have a common goal - protecting and serving the public. We spend our careers dealing with the worst of humanity in doing our best to protect the good from the bad and picking up the pieces of broken lives. The vast majority of our citizens never see this and truly have no understanding of it. Only another cop does.
When the career ends and the uniform, badge and armor comes off, police officers are left with their memories. As to those memories, when we retired cops get together, the war stories abound and, with the passage of time, the events back then were more dangerous and we were more courageous. Funny how that works.
But, within our own minds, we ask ourselves questions that no one except ourselves can answer. Did I do OK? Did I make a difference? Was I a good cop?
Cops understand the nature of the business. They understand that, like our earthly families, we might not always agree on things, we might have personality conflicts, but none of that matters when help is needed. As we've so vividly seen this past week, police officers are willing to die to help their fellow officers and the citizens they've sworn to protect.
And, sad to say, that ultimate service happens all to often anymore. Let me share another bit of "cop information" with you and it's another thing that's sad to say but unfortunately true - if a cop needs help, the only person they can count on for that help is another cop. Does that help you to understand why law enforcement is a "family?"
Well, how does the brotherhood, the "family" of law enforcement, parallel or compare with our Christian "family?" Here's how I see the parable.
It doesn't matter what our individual secular properties are, whether we're the boss or the employee, what our bank account reads or, (relative to the color of the uniforms) what nationality we are. We are all tasked with the same goal, simply stated - get our souls to heaven ("make our calling and election sure" 2Pet. 1:10) and take as many souls with us as we can. (Mark 16:15-16)
In a sense, Christians are in the "protection" business too. We put on the "armor of God" along with the "sword of the Spirit" and go out into a world of unbelievers and do our best to protect their souls from Satan. We do that by convincing them to follow Christ and His Gospel.
As law enforcement agencies have a "Chief" - so do Christians. Christ is the "head" - the "Chief," of our "family" and it's His orders that we follow and operate by. He knows that if His Word is faithfully delivered by Christians, it will "pick up the pieces of those broken" as He said in Luke 4:19: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He hath anointed me to preach the Gospel to the poor, He hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised."
The Bible says that Christians are soldiers in the Lord's army. Parabolically speaking, we're officers in Christ's police force and our "beat" is our part of the world where we reside or find ourselves. And, many of the Lord's "officers" are doing their duties in places of danger to their physical lives. On too many occasions it has cost them that very thing and we need to never forget their sacrifice for the cause of Christ. In relation to that thought, please take the time to read what the apostle John says he witnessed in heaven in Rev. 7:9-14.
Many of us today are serving in the final stages of our careers in Christ's service. But, in truth, as we've so tragically witnessed this past few days, our careers can end at any time. As we consider this, keep one thing in mind as to a difference between our law enforcement "family" and our Christian "family" - we don't retire from Christ's force. Death is the end of our career.
Another point of consistence to note in the comparison of our "families" is that the Gospel has been left in our hands (2Cor. 4:6-7) and, like the "unfortunate truth" I mentioned, the only one who Christ's "family" can count on to "help" in His service is - other Christians. Other "family" members.
In considering the end of our Christian career, perhaps we should at least think like a retired cop and ask ourselves - Did I do OK? Did I make a difference? Was I a good and faithful Christian? Hopefully, based on the Gospel, the Law of Christ, we can answer those questions in the affirmative.
If there exists any doubt in answering any of these questions, we'd better do some serious studying and reconciling ourselves back to where we can answer them with full faith and hope that our "Chief" will say - "Well done, good and faithful servant....enter into the joy of thy Lord." (Mt. 25:23)
Allow me just one last Bible-related thought on our recently ended "manhunt." The news media is reporting that Dorner has many sympathizers who are voicing support for his actions. Their misguided cheering caused me to recall something the Prophet Isaiah said that I feel fits them to the proverbial " T."
"Woe unto them that call evil good and good evil; that put darkness for light and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter." (Isa. 5:20)
Respectfully submitted,
Ron Covey
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