The entire world found out last night that Osama Bin Laden was killed by US troops. Personally, I found out through Twitter before I heard from any news source or even our President. There were tweets of:
“Hoorah - God bless our troops”
“Hell yeah USA, we finally got him”
“Hey Obama, you should hold his head up and play final countdown”
There were also tweets of:
“What we need is love”
“We rejoice over death and attempt to claim the justice as our own? In my relief I am also reminded that we do not hold these in our hands.”
“Romans 12:14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.”
My stomach was in knots as I saw friends, family, and other US citizens react in so many different ways to the killing of this man. Now, please believe me when I say that I understand and appreciate both sides of the argument. If I agreed with just one side my heart wouldn’t be heavy like it is, but I am caught in the middle.
You see, I understand that our world is fallen and evil is an absolute part of living. I also understand that sometimes the best way to help the world is to eliminate (kill) the evil. By killing Osama Bin Laden, the US sent a very serious warning to the entire terrorist world that, I believe, was absolutely necessary.
But I also have an understanding that Osama Bin laden was a child of God and every time he committed evil Christ groaned over his iniquity. You see, Christ loves us all the same, he yearns for all of us to draw close to him no matter how far away, and he can forgive even the most atrocious of sins.
Osama Bin Laden was no better than I, and I am no better than he.
(And this is where I’m stuck.)
How can I celebrate the death of a man who has the same sin stains that I have? How can I feel bad when we eliminated one of the most evil men in the world? Is it sometimes okay to kill when the good outweighs the weight of death?
I don’t know. I don’t know how to begin answering these questions. But what I do know with all of my being is that my God, OUR GOD, is bigger than our world. I know that the Holy Spirit will intercede for the words that I can’t speak but the feeling in my heart and stomach try to form. I also know that we are supposed to pray without ceasing for all things good and evil.
Will you join me in praying even if you have no idea what to say?
