“There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.” (Luke 13:1-5)
The death of Osama Bin Laden at the hands of the U.S. military was a momentous event. It was a time of justice, and I take nothing away from the fact that it is always a good thing when justice is served although as Christians we should glory more in mercy but we cannot abandon justice. Paul said in Romans 13:4, “”For he(government) is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.” The government was not only right and just in accomplishing this mission but they were acting as minister’s of God in that act.
What I found interesting were the massive crowds of people gathering to celebrate his death. Now the act of celebrating itself was not a bad thing, in fact it was a time of touching national unity and pride. The issue that came to my mind as I watched the pagan world celebrating this event was that here is a group of lying, thieving, drunkard, fornicating, adulterous, murderers at heart who are celebrating the death of what they call an “evil” man. Every person in those crowds felt he was evil but probably felt they were not so bad. They were comparing themselves to somebody else and when that happens it’s easy to find that you are not so bad when compared to some other evildoer. We never compare ourselves to God’s standard, a standard to which we have all fallen short(Romans 3:23).
Jesus pointed out that the crowd figured that the Galileans who Pilate killed were suffering because they were such bad sinners and probably deserved it but then Jesus makes an amazing statement. He goes on to tell them, “I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.” He pointed out that they were just as deserving of death as these others. He repeated it when He spoke of those who died when the tower of Siloam fell on them and delivered the same warning that if these people did not repent they would be worthy of the same death.
As we celebrate the death of a wicked man, and he was very wicked, we need to remember the warning of Jesus. Do you think that Osama Bin Laden was a sinner above all? I tell you, but except you repent you shall likewise perish!
The Gospel Beacon 