Many of you know me from when I was younger. In high school, or even after, I was full of opinions and was not afaid to voice them. The Mandi of today is not so sure on things anymore. I am much better at seeing things from both sides of an issue. That being said:
The death of Osama Bin Laden on May 1st (or whenever he actually was killed since this date seems to be in question) is a point of interest for many people. My question is this: as Christians, are we to celebrate this death or mourn it?
Yes, OBL did many horrible things in his life. Yes, he was to fault for many deaths and much suffering around the world. But are his sins any worse than mine or yours? Are there degrees of sin? I tend to think not. I believe Jesus Christ died for ALL of our sins, even those as horrific as homocide, genocide, and mutilation. Do I think that OBL believed this? No, I dont think he did. But as a Christian, shouldn't my reaction to his death be more of sadness and mourning that his soul was never saved? Doesnt God weep over OBL just as much as he weeps over me, or you, or a sick child, or a natural disaster? Should we have spent more time in prayer for him?
Several places in the Bible mention death of an enemy. From what I can find, if we are to act in a manner modeling Christ, we are to be weeping for this occasion, not celebrating.
* Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord GOD, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live?" Ezekiel 18:23
* Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbleth: Proverbs 27:14
However, Matthew Henry says of that verse (above) "The pleasure we are apt to take in the troubles of an enemy is ...forbidden." We are not taking pleasure of the trouble's of an enemy. We are rejoicing that good has triumphed over evil. David, a man after God's own heart, rejoiced over and over at God's triumph over his enemies particularly those who were also God's enemies. (See....I knew I could show both sides!) A friend of mine said the following, which really made me think:
So for those of you who agree to his death you are saying that he got justice..am I correct in this? So do you believe that all people who commit injustices should be put to death. How about we rally all the people who commit abortions, which is a huge injustice, and kill them all...would that then be justice?
We cannot confuse the justice of men with the justice of God. The death of this man was a political decision. Many people from all over the world have lost their children to this war. Do we not mourn for their loss...I am a father and could not imagine losing my son. I hope no one in this discussion is under the false impression that the United States has not killed many innocent people as well....should we kill them all or just rejoice when they are killed?
Think of nations...think of children who have grown up with nothing around them except for war and devastation from the hands of their fellow human beings. Do we mourn for them?
My heart goes out to all those who lost loved ones on that tragic September day. But our hearts must go out to those who suffer at the hands of humanity. To suffer is humanity but to show compassion is humility. But God loses His children everyday..his heart breaks for all of those lost....and it breaks more than you or I can ever imagine.
Where does the killing stop? Jesus had every POWER available to HIM to hand out JUSTICE to the Roman empire BUT HE DIDN'T!
Of course I do not agree with anything he (OBL) did as a human being. But are we saying that we deserve grace more than he does? Did Jesus not suffer for Him?...WHILE WE WERE SINNERS CHRIST DIED FOR US.
Justice is for God alone...I am not saying that...HE SAID IT. Yes I agree he must now stand before His creator...think about that..his creator....he too as disgusting as it sounds is made in the image of God. And one day we must stand before God and answer to him how we responded when one in His image was killed.
This world is not in need of Justice by human endeavors..we are in desperate need Christ to redeem us all back to Himself, and the Church must be the instrument of compassion, love, forgiveness and mercy - this is justice...the Gospel is justice. Direct quotation from Nirup Alphonse (Thanks, RUP!)
Something to think about......isn't it?!
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