justice and sorrow

There is a great deal of talk surrounding last night's tracking down and killing of Osama bin Laden by a task force of US Special Operations warriors. As followers of Jesus, we have much to consider about this event. The more we consider, the more we must realize that there are no easy answers, no easy positions. While we may be tempted to delight glibly in seeing the arch-terrorist put to death, or conversely to decry his killing as murder, we disciples must, before everything, approach this with prayer and a godly attitude.

The first thing we must realize is this: we are made in the image of God. Because of this, we are imbued with a strong sense of justice, the desire to see things set right and to applaud when we see justice done. And because we are God's agents in the world, it is up to us to do all we can to see justice brought about, and injustice destroyed.

The difficulty for us lies in knowing exactly what justice entails in every situation. In some cases it is clear and obvious. In other cases it is muddied, uncertain. One of the great theological minds of the previous century, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a man thoroughly convinced of the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, was executed for his part in a plot to assassinate Adolph Hitler. in 2009 Scott Roeder, conservative Christian pro-life advocate, slew late-term abortion provider George Tiller. Tiller, who during the week killed gestational infants in their third trimester of growth, on Sundays was himself an usher at his church, a ministry in which he was engaged when Roeder shot him. The same Jesus who told Peter to put away his sword had just that very evening told His disciples to arm themselves (John 18.10-11, Luke 22.36-38).

What is certain is that Jesus laid down His life for Osama bin Laden, as surely as He did for you and me. The fact that bin Laden never availed himself of that sacrificial death for his sins does not change the fact that God loved him. I imagine His sorrow over bin Laden is not unlike that He expressed over Jerusalem (Matthew 23.37, cf. Luke 13.34). This, then, should be our first reaction—godly sorrow for a lost soul—before we allow ourselves the satisfaction of justice meted out.

For surely the death of Osama bin Laden is an act of godly justice, even though it may be dispensed by a team of Navy SEALs, upon the command of President Obama at the behest of the government of the United States of America by the will of the people of this land. As Jesus told Pilate, no one has any power or authority unless it is given him by God (John 19.10-11). Bin Laden's death is simple and long-delayed retribution for the thousands upon thousands of lives his plotting and scheming and planning and training have violently ended over the course of his nefarious career.

On another level his death was, it would seem, the one he chose. For surely he would've been taken prisoner and brought to trial—or perhaps a military tribunal—in the US had he surrendered on May 1, 2011 when the SEALs stormed his compound. Rather than be taken, however, he took up arms as he had vowed, and purchased for himself the death he had sworn himself to.

Nevertheless, even though justice has been served, our response as followers of our Lord should not be jubilation, but sadness—and only then satisfaction. D. A. Carson, in his book Love in Hard Places (ISBN-13: 9781581344257) has this to say:

He is an evil man, and he must be stopped, but he is a man, and we should take no pleasure in destroying him. Vengeance is the Lord’s alone.

Do not offer the alternative, “Should we weep for Osama bin Laden or hold him to account for his genocide and prevent him from carrying out his violent intentions?”

The right answer is yes.

The only rejoicing being done over the death of Osama bin Laden ought to be the glee of the demonic forces of darkness, who this day claimed another soul for eternal torment. And that, indeed, is a tragedy worthy of godly lament.