Witnesses Without All the Answers
This past week I spoke on how the Holy Spirit not only prepares us to go out and speak the life of the gospel message to people, but He also gives us the power to do it. And this is important for Christians to remember because God has placed us in places we could never reach on our own, and has given us His Spirit so we don’t have to represent Jesus in our own strength.
But sometimes being a witness for Jesus isn’t about having the answers to difficult questions. Sometimes it’s about how we respond when there are no easy answers to be found. The Spirit doesn’t just empower us to speak about Jesus when we have answers; He empowers us to represent Jesus when we don’t.
A clear example of this is the recent trial of Lindsay Clancy. The trial ended in a mistrial on September 4 after seven days of deliberation. The jury could not reach a unanimous decision about whether Clancy was criminally responsible. Her defense argued that postpartum psychosis left her without criminal responsibility; prosecutors argued that she understood what she was doing and its wrongfulness. The case is not resolved, and a retrial remains possible.
But before anything is determined or said about anything else, it’s important to grieve a tragedy before you analyze it. Cora, Dawson, and Callan should be alive. Their lives mattered and were sacred. This is a heartbreaking situation that must be grieved first, as Paul told us in Romans: “Weep with those who weep” (12:15). Loss of life should never become a symbol in any debate about mental illness, motherhood, criminal justice, or even worse, a theological study. So as a person who understands the sacredness of life, I grieve the loss of their short lives.
This case did center itself on the mental health of Clancy, and as a people of faith, we must address that health with wisdom. On on hand, some might say, “Mental illness explains everything, so accountability doesn’t matter.” And on the other hand: “Mental health is irrelevant because people are responsible for their actions.” The reality is, mental illness can be profoundly real and profoundly serious. It deserves compassion and a better understanding. Yet, compassion does not require us to pretend that horrific actions aren’t horrific and evil. While the trial raised postpartum psychosis and conflicting interpretations of her mental-health care and mental state, we cannot diagnose Clancy ourselves. Whatever is concluded about this case, Clancy is a human being in need of the grace of God, just as we all are.
Too often grace and justice are misunderstood in difficult situations or tragedies like this. Some might view God’s grace as God not caring about what happened or, even worse, that His punishment should look exactly like what I think is appropriate. Instead, it’s important to know that justice always says evil matters, while at the same time grace says that broken people are never beyond God’s reach. And the gospel refuses to make us choose between the two. This is nowhere more evident than at the cross: God never minimizes sin, but neither does He abandon sinners. At the cross, God demonstrates that sin is serious enough to require judgment and sinners are loved enough to receive grace. This distinction is important as it reminds us that we can trust God’s justice without becoming indifferent to justice here and now.
As we found out, the jury couldn’t reach a unanimous verdict, forcing the judge to declare a mistrial. If you look anywhere, there are opinions about what the jury should have done, or whether Clancy was legally insane; what she was thinking. I even saw a podcast that stated: “If your pastor didn’t comment on the trial on Sunday, find a new church!” But the reality is, we don’t need to know everything there is to know about this case to know something about ourselves. Tragedies like this remind us that we are called to grieve and seek godly wisdom. In all situations, we must pursue justice while extending grace. Ultimately, judgment is God’s. But the question for us to ask is: What does it look like to represent Jesus when we’re talking about something this painful?
Maybe it looks like grieving before debating. Or maybe it means taking mental illness seriously without minimizing the devastation it can cause. Maybe we should pursue justice without believing that justice requires us to become cruel. Or extending grace without pretending that evil doesn't matter.
It requires being a witness for Jesus, and I’m willing to say, “I don't have an easy answer. But I know how Jesus calls me to respond.”
We live in a world that often wants quick conclusions with certainty. But followers of Jesus are called to something even deeper. We are called to grieve with those who grieve, to seek wisdom, to pursue justice, to extend grace, and ultimately to trust God with the things we cannot fully understand.
The Holy Spirit doesn't empower us because we have all the answers. He empowers us to represent Jesus faithfully even when we don't.
And that’s one of the most important ways we can be His witnesses in a broken world.
But sometimes being a witness for Jesus isn’t about having the answers to difficult questions. Sometimes it’s about how we respond when there are no easy answers to be found. The Spirit doesn’t just empower us to speak about Jesus when we have answers; He empowers us to represent Jesus when we don’t.
A clear example of this is the recent trial of Lindsay Clancy. The trial ended in a mistrial on September 4 after seven days of deliberation. The jury could not reach a unanimous decision about whether Clancy was criminally responsible. Her defense argued that postpartum psychosis left her without criminal responsibility; prosecutors argued that she understood what she was doing and its wrongfulness. The case is not resolved, and a retrial remains possible.
But before anything is determined or said about anything else, it’s important to grieve a tragedy before you analyze it. Cora, Dawson, and Callan should be alive. Their lives mattered and were sacred. This is a heartbreaking situation that must be grieved first, as Paul told us in Romans: “Weep with those who weep” (12:15). Loss of life should never become a symbol in any debate about mental illness, motherhood, criminal justice, or even worse, a theological study. So as a person who understands the sacredness of life, I grieve the loss of their short lives.
This case did center itself on the mental health of Clancy, and as a people of faith, we must address that health with wisdom. On on hand, some might say, “Mental illness explains everything, so accountability doesn’t matter.” And on the other hand: “Mental health is irrelevant because people are responsible for their actions.” The reality is, mental illness can be profoundly real and profoundly serious. It deserves compassion and a better understanding. Yet, compassion does not require us to pretend that horrific actions aren’t horrific and evil. While the trial raised postpartum psychosis and conflicting interpretations of her mental-health care and mental state, we cannot diagnose Clancy ourselves. Whatever is concluded about this case, Clancy is a human being in need of the grace of God, just as we all are.
Too often grace and justice are misunderstood in difficult situations or tragedies like this. Some might view God’s grace as God not caring about what happened or, even worse, that His punishment should look exactly like what I think is appropriate. Instead, it’s important to know that justice always says evil matters, while at the same time grace says that broken people are never beyond God’s reach. And the gospel refuses to make us choose between the two. This is nowhere more evident than at the cross: God never minimizes sin, but neither does He abandon sinners. At the cross, God demonstrates that sin is serious enough to require judgment and sinners are loved enough to receive grace. This distinction is important as it reminds us that we can trust God’s justice without becoming indifferent to justice here and now.
As we found out, the jury couldn’t reach a unanimous verdict, forcing the judge to declare a mistrial. If you look anywhere, there are opinions about what the jury should have done, or whether Clancy was legally insane; what she was thinking. I even saw a podcast that stated: “If your pastor didn’t comment on the trial on Sunday, find a new church!” But the reality is, we don’t need to know everything there is to know about this case to know something about ourselves. Tragedies like this remind us that we are called to grieve and seek godly wisdom. In all situations, we must pursue justice while extending grace. Ultimately, judgment is God’s. But the question for us to ask is: What does it look like to represent Jesus when we’re talking about something this painful?
Maybe it looks like grieving before debating. Or maybe it means taking mental illness seriously without minimizing the devastation it can cause. Maybe we should pursue justice without believing that justice requires us to become cruel. Or extending grace without pretending that evil doesn't matter.
It requires being a witness for Jesus, and I’m willing to say, “I don't have an easy answer. But I know how Jesus calls me to respond.”
We live in a world that often wants quick conclusions with certainty. But followers of Jesus are called to something even deeper. We are called to grieve with those who grieve, to seek wisdom, to pursue justice, to extend grace, and ultimately to trust God with the things we cannot fully understand.
The Holy Spirit doesn't empower us because we have all the answers. He empowers us to represent Jesus faithfully even when we don't.
And that’s one of the most important ways we can be His witnesses in a broken world.
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