BROOKHAVEN, Miss. — A Mississippi police chief boldly declared the word of God on Thursday and referred to those in law enforcement as the army of God against evil as he spoke at the funeral of a fallen police officer.
“How awesome is God,” Brookhaven Police Chief Kenneth Collins declared at Easthaven Baptist Church, as he paid tribute to Cpl. Zach Moak, 31, who was killed on Saturday along with Officer James White, 35, as they responded to a call of shots fired after 4:30 a.m. Saturday morning. White arrived on the scene first, followed by Moak.
The suspect, Marquis Flowers, 25, reportedly engaged in a shootout with the officers, striking both of them. Even though he had been wounded by gunfire himself, Moak grabbed White and sought to pull him to safety, sacrificing his own life in the process.
“He went off and entered the valley of the shadow of death, and he feared no evil because God was with him,” Collins told those gathered yesterday, utilizing text from Psalm 23. “He engaged the suspect even when he was mortally wounded. He did not think of himself. He went toward Officer James White and he was pulling him out of the line of fire to safety.”
Moak called out to dispatch in his final moments, “Brookhaven, I’m going down.”
“There is no love greater than to give your life for another,” Collins said. “God gave His only Son thousands of years ago.”
He then addressed the many law enforcement officers who had come to honor a fallen comrade, reminding them that while they put their life on the line on a daily basis, they do not do so simply to fulfill an employment requirement. They have a higher calling.
“Law enforcement, we are in a fight to the death, make no mistake about it,” Collins declared. “[But] we aren’t law enforcement officers because it’s a job. We were chosen by God. We are His warriors. It’s a calling from God; it’s not a job, and we cannot lose this fight.”
“We’re under attack every day,” he acknowledged. “But I’ve got news for you, Satan: You get out of the way or we’ll kick you out of the way. We will never stop. We will never give up. And if we should fall, somebody rise up. Stand up and answer the call.”
Collins asked all law enforcement officers, along with district attorneys, jailers and judges, to stand to their feet. He said that he wanted to show the family the support that they had from others.
“They come from all over the world,” Collins outlined. “This is God’s army to honor our fallen hero. … When God is for you, who shall be against you? There’s no power on this earth [that] can stop us.”
He then promised the family that those present will carry on the fight in Moak’s absence.
“All you criminals, all you social media folks, you want to talk about us? This is God’s army, and no weapon formed against us will ever win,” Collins declared, quoting in part from Isaiah 54:17.
The chief’s remarks were met with applause and affirmation. View them below.
As previously reported, Romans 13 outlines that “the powers that be are ordained of God” and are “the minister of God to thee for good.”
“Do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same,” it states. “[I]f thou do that which is evil, be afraid, for he beareth not the sword in vain. For he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.”