Articles
Justice Is Served
I have read various viewpoints over the past week concerning the killing of Osama bin Laden. Here are some views critical of those who take satisfaction in his death:
- "Osama Bin Laden deserved to die for his crimes. The point is, how should we as Christians react to the death of a wicked person who dies in their sins? Should we rejoice or weep?"
- "When I read words like, 'Bin Laden is dead, what a happy day,' I am led to believe there is little remorse for the death of a sinful man."
And, counterpoint:
- "Do you hate the sin or the sinner? We rejoice that good has prevailed a massive evil plague on the worlds is gone -- brought to justice. ... We weep that such evil exists and feel sad that any soul be lost!"
- "I'm jubilant, because God has allowed our troops to put an end to a murdering terrorist who was spreading his false teachings and violence around the world. If you don't want to celebrate, then don't, but please don't make it sound as if those who do aren't being good Christians."
Many other comments -- very spirited -- were offered on both sides. Here is my two cents:
God sometimes punishes people in this life for their crimes and sins. The Old Testament is full of such examples, including individuals and whole societies who felt the retributive hand of God. Sodom and Gomorrah, the Egyptians and the Canaanites would be obvious examples of the latter, and Achan, Korah and Uzzah exemplify the former.
God sometimes deems a man so evil that he forfeits his privilege of life. God’s punishment follows “due process” either directly or through men. In the above examples, God unilaterally handled Sodom and Gomorrah, but the Israelites implemented God’s judgment against the Canaanites.
God does not condone vigilante justice: "Do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, 'Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,' says the Lord" (Rom. 12:19). But one express purpose of civil government is earthly punishment of crime. Immediately after saying “do not avenge yourselves,” Paul said, “But if you do evil, be afraid; for he [the civil ruler] does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil” (Rom. 13:4).
God is patient and gives all men ample opportunity to find Him. God wants all men to come to repentance and be saved (II Pet 3:9), and He has gone to great lengths to inform and persuade men to return. Nevertheless, God ends the lives of some, thus terminating their opportunity to repent.
Anyone who deems himself to be a Christian should have sympathy for sinners and rejoice in their repentance and obedience to God. We are deeply grateful for Paul’s conversion to Christ and all the blessings it has brought to us. But Herod Agrippa I did not make the same decision and God struck him dead (Acts 12:23) -- a sad end to a ruined life.
So far, so good. But the bothersome question to some was the jubilation or satisfaction that Christians expressed over bin Laden's death. They seemingly judged any expression of relief or joy to be "un-Christian," of failing to have due regard for the sinner.
First, I would acknowledge that we can err in the matter of our attitudes toward others. Jesus does say to love our enemies and to do good to them. God says that He does not rejoice in the death of the sinner. We are to be deeply concerned about the lost and try to save them.
But these principles do not exist in a vacuum. After bin Laden's death, some people quoted certain passages in isolation and drew a comprehensive conclusion from them. Isn’t it possible -- on a purely emotional level -- to feel things that may have some contradictory but legitimate elements? I’m visualizing the recent Facebook picture of little Antonio Smith covered, along with his bedroom, in baby powder and wondering if Billy and Ivette had conflicting feelings (summarized by "I think I’m going to blow a fuse" and "This is really hilarious").
My own summary view of bin Laden's demise: America acted in the capacity of civil law and did what God gave it the right to do -- swing the sword. Bin Laden committed heinous crimes of mass murder and impenitently continued on his course of fanatical terror. We can rejoice in that which is righteous, and “it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you” (II Thess. 1:6).
Happy that a soul is in hell? No. Happy for God’s vindication of His righteousness? Yes. Happy that bin Laden wouldn’t repent and see the light of truth? No. Happy that another positive step in the war against Islamic extremism has been taken? Yes. Can we rejoice in the downfall of evil without being hateful toward sinners? Yes. Can we exercise the judgment God gave us to punish crime though beset by human imperfections? Yes.
(I say this because some of those who were indignant over the rejoicing sounded positively agnostic, saying we had no right to make such judgments against men like bin Laden. If so, we may as well make the same argument against our judicial system, shut down the courts and open the prison gates.)
Can we honor the principle that God doesn’t give everyone a full lifetime of opportunity to repent? If not, we better quit singing “Lord, come quickly, alleluia” and “Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight. ... The trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend; even so, it is well with my soul.”
I would remind us all that when the Lord returns, the opportunity for billions of people to repent will be lost forever, and yet the New Testament tells us to eagerly anticipate that day (II Pet 3:12; I Cor. 1:7; Philip. 3:20; I Pet 1:3-9). A contradiction?
