You certainly haven't missed seeing all the posts from both camps regarding the death of Osama bin Laden. There are the Ezekiel passages with people warning about rejoicing about his death. There are other Scripture passages regarding loving our enemies. There are still more passages reminding us of how vengeance is the Lord's. Then there are those who are celebrating in his "justice" in Hell and how terrible his eternity is going to be and how he deserves it. The truth is, he does deserve it. So do I. And so do you. The fact of it is, none of us is righteous, not one according to God's Word. And yet, Jesus died and gave himself up to cover any of our sins, if we so choose to accept that payment for our punishment deserved. The fact also is, bin Laden was a very evil man who murdered many many people. He held much power. This is evidenced by the thousands and thousands of families in our country (and from around the world) who have sacrificed time together, worried over deployed loved ones, and some who even gave their lives or gave up the life of their loved one in the fight to find this man. Our whole country's security system has changed, affecting millions of us. Wars have been fought, locals have died some innocently and some perhaps provoked. This all because of what this one man created in an organization founded on hate and arrogance. Should we rejoice that this power is no longer his? I believe we absolutely should! In the Bible we see David rejoice when evil men are brought to justice and we see Israel rejoice (at God's direction) when their murderous enemies are defeated. Should we rejoice at a soul who will spend an eternity separated from God's love? Certainly not. If we do, we are no better than he in attitude or thoughts or to put it plainly, sin.
It is not an either/or situation. It is a both/and. This week the world can rejoice and celebrate that an evil murderer is no longer able to harm others. We can also mourn as God's heart does, the loss of one of his created beings-no matter how reprehensible his actions. And we can speak with grace and truth and not beat up any who disagree.
To my many friends and family members who have participated (or still are) directly in this long fight the last 10 years-THANK YOU! The whole world owes you their gratitude for your serving us well. To my many friends and family members being the feet of ones who bring Good News to people all over the world-may you be beautiful like Isaiah 52:7 says and may many see the Savior in your words and actions and trust him for themselves!