A Christian response to the killing of Osama bin Laden

“The Kingdom of God is Within You.” -Jesus

Recently, many people have asked me what I thought about the killing of Osama bin Laden. “Should we be happy?” or “Should we be upset?”

On one hand, his death appeals to the sense of justice that God put in each one of us… and I’m glad he won’t be terrorizing anymore.

On the other hand, it can reveal the ugly side of humanity – which is particularly ugly when death is celebrated by Christians.

I think this is a good response: If we celebrate the death of our enemy, then we deny the Christian faith and prove to the world that we serve the same god as our enemy.

Our perspective on life and death is different from God’s. Humans tend to be happy at the death of the wicked, but God isn’t happy. We as humans get upset and sad in the death of God’s servants – calling it tragic or “unfair.” But “Precious in the eyes of God is the death of Christians.”

We come from a different kingdom where our president is Jesus and we love our enemies. So the question should be, “how does the Kingdom of God deal with people like Osama bin Laden?”

What do you think?

corey@hilltopcommunitychurch.com
@coreydrose