“I Am Just Like Peter” — Ender’s Sin and Our Situation

Ender’s older brother Peter loved inflicting pain. He delighted in killing animals and threatening his brother. Ender hated him.

The bullies targeted Ender at school. The first opportunity they got, they ganged up on him. They tried to beat him. Ender lashed out in self-defense. The head bully went down. Ender knew if he let it go at this, they’d just gang up on him later. So he kicked the bully when he was down. Several times.

The other bullies got the message. They didn’t bother Ender again.

As soon as Ender turned the corner, as soon as the other bullies couldn’t see him, he “leaned his head against the wall of the corridor and cried until the bus came. I am just like Peter. … I am just like Peter.”

Also, Ender was six.

I suspect when Ender’s Game comes out in theaters, if it makes any kind of money, we’ll see all sorts of outcry about children inflicting violence on children. And make no mistake: there’s a fair amount of such violence in the novel.

How could this be? How could innocent children do such things to each other? Sure, children are naughty. They don’t always understand. But how could one child do such violence? We even find out later in the book that the boy whom Ender attacked died! We shouldn’t be putting such a thing in front of our children, should we? We don’t want to encourage violence in our kids, so I just won’t show them. As long as I protect them, they’ll stay innocent, right?

I’m not going to engage in a discussion on when it’s appropriate to allow your children to see violence. Each parent and child is different, and God gave parents to help guide their children.

I’d like to say one thing, though: Children aren’t innocent.

Yes, I know you love your children. I love mine. My oldest is five. He’s cute. He loves to help and is chomping at the bit to have a list of official chores. He’s fiercely protective of his little sister.

And he is such a sinner.

He resists submitting to commands. He decides when to do something, no matter what mom or dad have told him. He’ll hit his sister.

And yes, these things are natural… because he’s a sinner. It’s not just a matter of not understanding proper behavior, though that also comes into play.

The Bible says it this way: “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.” (Psalm 51:5) Way back to Adam and Eve, when Eve gave birth to Seth, the Bible makes a point of saying that this baby wasn’t in the image of God, but the image of sinful, fallen Adam (Genesis 5:3). When Paul talks about how “all have sinned and fallen short the glory of God” (Romans 3:23), he doesn’t say, “Well, everyone but children, anyway.”

Children can do horrible things to each other… because they’re sinners just like their parents. Just like a polluted stream can’t have crystal-clear runoff, children inherit their parents’ sinfulness.

Hamate is a small carpal bone (along the ulnar side of hand) and may get injured or viagra doctor free suffer from any health issue. It sounds easy, and yet too many people live with problems that sales uk viagra could be eased or managed through chiropractor bond: Chronic headaches, including migraines Sciatica Back and joint pain Fibromyalgia Carpal tunnel syndrome Neurological conditions such as neuritis and radiculitis Osteoarthritis Colic ADHD PMS Many sufferers rely on painkillers and anti-inflammatory medications to manage the pain and discomfort. This is the reason; all the people of all class might levitra generic cheap be attack with the disease. Also see your doctor if mild health consequence stays in body brand levitra online more than 2-3 days. And so, yes, when you read about Ender and all the things he has to endure… despite the science fiction trappings, you’re reading about how sinfulness really works in the life of a child.

That’s not the end of the story, though. Did you notice Ender’s reaction to his own sin? He hated himself. He felt very real shame. He didn’t want to be like his brother. He knew he had done wrong.

The novel never tells the reader – or Ender – the only effective way to deal with that guilt. When a child struggles with guilt, an adult can never remove it by saying, “It’s not really a bad thing. You just made a mistake.” Ender would never have accepted such hogwash. He needed the same thing that any child who recognizes his sin needs – in fact, the same thing an adult needs in that situation.

They need forgiveness.

They need to be told that yes, they’ve sinned. They’ve done something terrible. They’ve hurt another person. They’ve offended God himself.

But they also need to be told that God still loves them. Jesus chose to take the punishment for that terrible thing they’ve done, and now there’s no punishment left for them. Jesus has taken all their guilt and hurled it into the heart of the sea. It’s gone. They have been declared not guilty.

In the novel, the military that Ender works for covers up his crime. They hide it and just make it go away. That’s not what Jesus did. He didn’t just cover up our sins and pretend they didn’t happen. He dealt with them. Permanently.

Ender was just like his brother: He was a sinner. 

And we’re just like them, too.

But through faith in Jesus, that is what you were. You were washed. You were sanctified. You were justified. (I Corinthians 6:11).

Children are sinners, too. And here we see one of the greatest blessings God has given: Baptism. Here he washes away sins. Here even a little child, even an infant, is granted saving faith. Yes, children sin… but God saves even sinful children.

Maybe one of your friends is going to go see Ender’s Game. And when that person sees children doing horrible things to each other, they may comment on it. Don’t be afraid to use that as a bridge to talking about children and sin… and their need for forgiveness, too. And don’t be afraid to use that as a bridge to talk to your friend about the forgiveness you have! Because just like those children, you are a sinner. The only difference? You know not only the depth of your sin, but the depth of the forgiveness that Christ brings.

What is Ender’s Game all about anyway? 

In Ender’s Game, the earth has narrowly survived an alien invasion. To prevent our possible extinction, we enlist a new type of soldier to train for combat in the zero-gravity environment of space – children. Ender Wiggin is six when a military general selects him for special training at Battleschool. As the novel progresses, Ender grows to the age of thirteen, dealing with vicious bullies, cruel commanding officers, and challenging environments, while learning that the fate of the entire human race may be in his hands.

This is the first entry in a series on Ender’s Game, which will be out in theaters in November 2013.