A CHRISTIAN'S RESPONSE TO THE DEATH OF BIN LADEN

A massive debt of gratitude needs to be extended to all the men and women that serve in the United States military and other government agencies that make the United States and the world a safer place to live!

Like many Americans, I stayed up last night to hear the news that Osama bin Laden had been killed by United States Special Forces. After 10 years, this evil man who plotted of the murders of 3,000 Americans on September 11, 2001 has finally been killed. Also, like many Americans, I sat mesmerized watching the spontaneous celebrations in Washington DC, New York City, and even in Philadelphia as word spread of bin Laden's demise at a Mets/Phillies baseball game. There was and is much flag-waving and impromptu chants of "USA! USA!" If you're like me (and you probably are, or else you probably would not be reading this blog entry!), you are also connected to the social media through FaceBook and Twitter. It was through FaceBook and Twitter that a concerning battle took place...how should a Christian respond to the death of Osama bin Laden?

As Americans who experienced the horrors of 9/11, and have lived in a world forever changed since that tragic day, we want vengeance upon bin Laden. When the news reached us last night that he had been killed, our hearts swelled with pride and soared with relief. Many, including former Southern Baptist pastor, Arkansas governor, and Presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, have taken joy in the fact that bin Laden is now in the eternal torments of Hell. On this side of the issue, there are many who echo this sentiment.

On the other side of the issue, you have people that say Christians should not rejoice over the death of this terrorist. They will cite verses such as...


"Do not gloat when your enemy falls; when they stumble, do not let your heart rejoice."
                                                                                                     (Proverbs 24:17 NIV)


"But I tell you, 'love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you...'"
                                                                                                     (Matthew 5:44 NIV)

"Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: 'It is Mine to          avenge; I will repay,' says the Lord."                                           (Romans 12:19 NIV)

This side, based on their application of these and other verses like them, receive the news of Osama bin Laden's death in a pacifist manner totally rejecting any notion of celebration as being ungodly and carnal.

And because of both of these extremes, therein lies the split among well intentioned, patriotic Christ-following Americans. So, how exactly is a Christian to biblically respond to this historic event?    

1. When quoting or citing Scripture, know the context of the passage, what it is saying, and what it is not saying. As Christians, our foundation is Scripture. Our foundation is not our interpretation of Scripture...there is a HUGE difference! When Solomon writes, "Do not gloat when your enemy falls; when they stumble, do not let your heart rejoice." in Proverbs 24, we affirm that. We are not to gloat, but do not confuse gloating with a sense of relief that justice has been served...again, there is a HUGE difference! When Jesus teaches, "But I tell you, 'love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you...'" in Matthew 5, we affirm that. We are to love our enemies through prayer and desire that they turn to God for salvation...but do not confuse Jesus' command to love our enemies and pray for them as being a pacifistic. We love and enemies and pray for them before their time here on this earth is up and they enter into eternity to a very real, very horrible reality of Hell. When Paul writes, "Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: 'It is Mine to avenge; I will repay,' says the Lord." in Romans 12, we also affirm that. There are a couple points of distinction that must be made about this verse...1) there is a difference between vengeance and justice, and 2) Paul was writing to Christ-Followers in Rome, not the government in Rome. So, even though there is (presumably) many in the US government that want to enact vengeance upon bin Laden, the pursuit of the United States' military was to bring Osama bin Laden to justice for his crimes against this nation.
2. Anyone's happiness over the fact that bin Laden is in Hell, speaks more to their lack of knowledge about the reality of Hell than it does about their patriotism. Jesus taught more on Hell than He did on Heaven...why...because it is such a s horrible place that He does not wish that any should have to go there even for a second...even a mass murderer such as bin Laden.  
3. Remember that Jesus Christ is our Judge...every single one of us. He is a Judge that is just...He will not allow sin to go unpunished. The death of Osama bin Laden was not his judgement...bin Laden's judgment came as he stood before Jesus Christ and had to give an account of his life to the God that created and sustains life. His punishment did not come from a US Special Forces team that killed him in a firefight...bin Laden's punishment came in the form of an eternal sentence from Jesus Christ, Himself. Just as bin Laden stood before Jesus Christ in judgment, so too every single  one of us will stand before God and give an account of our life to a holy God. We will not, however, receive a judgment that will be measured up against the life and sins of bin Laden (I think all of us look pretty good when compared to bin Laden), but our lives will be measured up against the standard of perfection (I'm sure all of us look not so good when compared to perfection). This is why accepting Jesus' free gift of salvation and exchange of our unrighteousness for His righteousness is so vitally important!
4. It is always right to celebrate justice! As a matter of fact, God gets angry when we do not celebrate, pursue, and value justice. A few verses to look over in celebration of justice...
1. "For the Lord is righteous, He loves justice; the upright will see His face." (Ps.11:7 NIV)
2. "For the Lord loves the just and will not forsake His faithful ones." (Ps.37:28 NIV)
3. "I will sing of Your love and justice; to You, Lord, I will sing praise." (Ps.101:1 NIV)
4. "When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers." (Pr.21:15 NIV)
5. "I will make justice the measuring line and righteousness the plumb line..." (Is.28:17 NIV)
6. "Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore He will rise up to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice." (Is.30:18 NIV)
7. "This is what the Lord says: 'Maintain justice and do what is right...'" (Is.56:1 NIV)
8. "For I, the Lord, love justice..." (Is.61:8 NIV)
9. "Hate evil, love good; maintain justice in the courts...but let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!" (Amos 5:15,24 NIV)
10. "And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." (Micah 6:8 NIV)
11. "This is what the Lord Almighty said: 'Administer true justice, show mercy and compassion to one another.'" (Zec.7:9 NIV)

To summarize what our response, as Christ-Followers, should be to this news that is making global headlines: know the Bible, hate Hell, know that justice has been and will be served by God Almighty, and celebrate that, in the end, justice always wins!