Should Christians celebrate the death of Osama Bin Laden?
Big news has hit the media, Osama (or Usama) Bin Laden is dead. With that news people are rejoicing a lot. My facebook page is flooded with messages celebrating the death of the Al-Queda leader.
But personally, as a Christian, I have mixed feelings on it…
Which leads me to ask, is it okay for Chrisitans to celebrate the death of Bin Laden?
Why all the celebration in the first place?
The first thing that needs to be asked, is why is all the celebration happening in the first place? Osama Bin Laden is the leader of a terrorist group, Al-Qaeda, according to the FBI most wanted poster. For this reason, I think it is a good thing that Osama was taken out. This is not to say that this will stop or even slow down terrorism, but the fact that someone who would take the lives of innocent people, or command others to take lives, overwhelmingly shows that such a person must be stopped.
In the Old Testament we even see God ordering the death of the unjust and declaring judgment on those who are against God.
Because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you. (Proverbs 1:25-26)
Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, for God has given judgment for you against her! (Revelation 18:20)
As the Lord took delight in doing you good . . . so the Lord will take delight in bringing ruin upon you and destroying you. (Deuteronomy 28:63)
So yes, the celebration is called for.
Does Osama deserve Hell?
Now for the tough question which I am sure will stir a lot of emotions up, but bear with me for a minute.
Does Osama deserve hell, any more than you or I?
Our instinct is to declare “Yes, he does! I am not like Osama, I am not a terrorist!” but that is side-stepping the question. Osama committed horrible crimes against humanity, and for that he was dealt punishment by human hands. But when it comes to acts against God, you and I are no better off than Osama.
Every single time you or I tell a lie, look with lust, hate someone, or covet what we do not have, we are committing a sin against God. Romans 3:9-20 states:
9 What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin.
10 As it is written:“ There is none righteous, no, not one;
11 There is none who understands;
There is none who seeks after God.
12 They have all turned aside;
They have together become unprofitable;
There is none who does good, no, not one.”
13 “ Their throat is an open tomb;
With their tongues they have practiced deceit”;“ The poison of asps is under their lips”;
14 “ Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.”
15 “ Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16 Destruction and misery are in their ways;
17 And the way of peace they have not known.”
18 “ There is no fear of God before their eyes.”19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. 20 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
When it comes to our standing before God, we are all guilty. The only reason we have been forgiven, is completely because of the works Christ did on the cross, and completely because God called us. Not because we are any better.
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. – Romans 3:23-26
We need to be careful when we try to pass judgment on someone eternally. We should be praying for our enemies and hoping for their repentance more than trying to destroy them.
Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord God, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live? . . . For I do not pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; so turn, and live. (Ezekiel 18:23, 32)
So yes, we are thankful that a terrorist can no longer harm others and thankful for the American troops who did their job to stop this criminal who acted against humanity, but at the same time we should be sorrowful that another person must spend eternity in hell. And no matter how much we think that person deserves hell, we must stop and realize that we, you and I and our loved ones, deserves hell just as much as Osama Bin Laden.
Great post Jon.
I don’t think we should be celebrating his death no matter what bad things he has done. We should not be saying he deserves hell, that should be left to God to decide.
I also don’t think his death will change anything. Terrorism will still happen in this world no matter which leader is killed. The only thing that will put and end to it is God when he decides its finished.
Thanks for the comment, Phil. I agree, this will not change anything. Satan, the real enemy is still out there and still declaring war on humanity and specifically Israel, which is along the lines of what Joe said.
I don’t know… lately I have felt sorrow over anybody I know of that has died without showing evidence of Christ in their life… From celebrities, to terrorists, to just normal people off the street. I do not know why but I feel like weeping over anybody who has crossed into eternity.
This brought up mixed feelings when I see people celebrating the death of Osama Bin Laden. Which is why I wrote the article. 🙂
As redeemed by grace through no merit of our own, we should celebrate Christ’s victory over death. Not taunt the lost. Yet there are clear biblical truths that emerge in observing recent events. 1) Those who live by the sword, die by the sword. When Bin Laden chose his path, he sealed his own fate. 2) Christians are to love mercy, do justly and to walk humbly before God. There is nothing wrong or sinful in recognizing God’s justice in bringing the death of a mass murderer. But we should act humbly and acknowledge that this is the work of God and not ourselves. 3) We fight not against flesh and blood, but against the powers of darkness. The enemy of God’s people is Satan, not a mere political figure that is here one day and gone the next. Bin Laden was not set to destroy Christianity, rather the nation of Israel and the West that offered it support. As such he did not take on God personally, but the armies and resources of the West. A sure recipe for political and military defeat. As Christians we should not pray for the death of a political figure with whom we disagree, but for justice and mercy to prevail. In this case it did.because Bin Laden declared himself, as did Balaam and so many others in history, the enemy of a people that God swore to protect.
The death of Bin Laden should not give us cause to be arrogant or boastful. Rather we should humbly recognize that this is one more event in history that clearly demonstrates that God is not to be mocked. Rather we should expect that the principles he has given us to live by will play out as he tells us in his Word. The death of Bin Laden is not a good thing; it is a God thing. And all credit should go to Him.
Thank you for the comment, Joe. I agree with what you said but do not think I could put it so elegantly. Until Christ returns the death of one political leader means nothing… Things will still continue on their course towards the tribulation.
When I talked about not celebrating his death I think I meant not being arrogant and boastful in our celebration. That sounds in line with what I was feeling when I wrote this. Anyway, thank you again for reading the article and for commenting.
But if you take on Israel…you take on God Genesis 12:3
God takes seriously those who pit themselves against Israel and that is exactly what bin Laden did. So to say bin Laden didnt take God on personally because he didnt target Christianity is inaccurate..just as a side note, Osama and his posse did hate Christians and Christianity
I do not think I based any of my article on if Osama was targeting Christianity or Israel or not… Or did I make something unclear?
I also do not believe we should be celebrating someone’s death and pass into, in all likelihood, hell. Unless Osama was born again, he’s in hell. While I also am a “truther” and don’t believe all the 9/11 story, it seems to be that even if he was the mastermind behind all these terror attacks, he is still a human being. Jesus makes makes it clear how horrible and sad it will be for those who do not make it into the kingdom of God. Like the man who showed up to the wedding without wedding clothes. He was not allowed at the wedding supper because he had tried to come in another way, not through Christ. Jesus said somberly that he never knew him. I really feel that there are those unsaved who are watching us (christians) and some of them are wondering what we’re really about. When we are excited about someone going to hell we might as well be burning Korans or shouting God hates __(gay people). Prayer. We all need prayer.
Dear all Christians, Muslims, Hindu, Buddha, Others Religions.
I also don’t think his death will change anything. Terrorism will still happen in this world no matter which leader is killed. The only thing that will put and end to it is God when he decides its finished.
Does Osama Bin Laden deserve hell? I say HELL YES!
But ultimately it is God who has made that decision.
But, does He deserve it any more than you or I do?
Proverbs 24:17,18; ” Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbles: Lest the Lord see it, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him.” As “… Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.” Romans 12:19. We are not to take any part of that!
Well said, and thank you. 🙂