I read a story in the news today about a 15-year-old girl that was brutally raped while 40 people watched on Facebook Live. Have we come to a point in our society where something appalling happens, and no one does anything to stop it? Not only do people choose not intervene, but they sit by and watch someone being attacked. Technology has gotten us to the point where we can watch something bad happen without getting involved. We get a front row seat to a multitude of evil situations. It is almost as if society has become numb to what evil is. Instead of taking a stand against something, we quietly sit and idly watch.
Has this behavior always been this way or is it something that has just developed in recent years? With the 24/7 news cycle, you would think that this type of behavior just started a generation ago, but it hasn't. In fact, multiple stories in the Bible describe the exact behavior that we are seeing from people today. In the Bible many people watched bad things happen, and they didn't do anything to intervene. One story that comes to my mind is the story of the good Samaritan.
People watched bad things happen in the Bible too.
So if you are unfamiliar with the story of the good Samaritan story, it can be found in the book of Luke. The parable is about a traveler who was beaten, stripped and left for dead alongside the road. The road was traveled first by a Priest and then by a Levite. Both men saw the beaten man but chose to walk by and go about their own business. Instead of wanting to help the man, they let him lay along the road. Next along came a Samaritan man. This man went out of his way to help the Jewish man. At this time Samaritan's and Jews hated each other. So it was a big deal that the Samaritan man was willing to help a Jew.
Mark 7:20-23 NASB “And He was saying, “That which proceeds out of the man, that is what defiles the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness. All these evil things proceed from within and defile the man.”
What does think about watching bad things happen?
While 40 people watched a rape on Facebook Live, they too committed the sin of rape. In God's eyes, our heart is just as guilty of our actions. When we participate by watching something bad happening, we are just as guilty as those committing the sin. Some day we will all have to give an account for not only our actions but the feelings in our heart as well.