I have said the line thousands of times, “Don’t be surprised when non-Christians act like non-Christians.”  The scriptures ground us in the concept that God has standards for the way people are to behave.  When you remove those moorings, people are left to their feelings of right and wrong at the moment.  The unchanging standard is gone, and people will do whatever feels right, no matter how wrong it might actually be.  No amount of evil should surprise us by those who do not follow the way of Jesus. 

Jesus was more concerned about how his disciples behaved.  It was those who called themselves believers whom he instructed to act differently than the world around them.  Their lives were to be guided by God’s will, standards, and word.  Christians are to live according to the desires of God alone.  Jesus does not get angry with the Romans for their treatment of one another; instead, he is incensed at the behavior of the people in the temple and the Pharisees who knew the scriptures.  Their lives should have been unique when compared to the Roman culture, and they were not. 

The Church should be full of people whose lives are remarkably different than the rest of the world.  They live according to a moral standard set by God above.  There is no place for murder, adultery, theft, lying, or coveting.  They see the value of every human life. Believers love one another, and even love and pray for their enemies. They do good things for each other no matter what their background story may be.  When the world is full of chaos, the followers of Jesus should stand out as shining examples of faith, hope, and love. 

It is easy to throw stones at those outside of Christ and be sickened by their behavior.  But are we willing to look inside of our own lives and confront the evil that lives in there?  Change in the world will only come through Jesus, and it will only happen one believer at a time.  That means you and me.