Marks of the True Christian

I may not gather a lot of fans with this one. But really, that's OK. The reality of it is, if you have a problem with what I'm about to say, then you should take it up with God, because it's based on His word. Here we go!

Romans 12:9-21.

⁹ Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. ¹⁰Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. ¹¹Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. ¹² Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. ¹³ Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.

¹⁴ Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. ¹⁵ Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. ¹⁶ Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. ¹⁷ Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. ¹⁸If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. ¹⁹Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord." ²⁰To the contrary, "if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head." ²¹Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Unless you live under a rock, or have no cable TV, or have no connection at all with the outside world, then the major news announcement from President Obama should have had time to settle in your heart.

If you are like me, those are words that you never thought you would hear. "Osama bin Laden is dead." I never imagined that we would ever catch him, much less kill him. But at the same time I was watching the special reports I was so overcome with feelings that I couldn't place. Feelings that I thought were a mix of joy and jubilation. Feelings that I thought were the culmination of the events that have defined this generation. Feelings that I fear are fueled by watching too many seasons of 24. Feelings that I wanted to jump and shout. Feelings that I wanted to sit and weep. So what did I do? I went to bed.

But when I awoke early this morning, as is my custom. I was burdened with the thought that maybe, just maybe, this was a bad thing. For lack of a better term, I feel maybe we, the US, have awakened a sleeping giant. I went to bed with the thought of a night of safe sleep, that the beast was dead. But I also had a feeling that this beast probably has more heads. I awoke this morning thinking that OK, it's a cause to celebrate, because the personification of evil is dead. But I still wasn't sure what to really think. In fact I asked on facebook, what if he confessed Christ and denied Islam, turned himself in, and faced the consequences. What then?

As I sit now, in Big Apple Bagels, here in Ramona, I am led to the verses above in Romans. I'm convinced that because of verses 14 to 21, that God is not jumping up and down on the streets of heaven, chanting 'USA! USA!' But rather, I think there may be sorrow in His heart, for the loss of one of His creations, denied the opportunity to know Him, to receive salvation, forgiveness and grace. (Rob Bell lovers, stick it) The gospel is clear.

I'm still maybe a bit numb to this all, but still, I'm burdened by what has happened. While on the one hand, I'm happy that not a single one of our SEAL Team 6 was wounded, I'm wondering, if thanks to George W. Bush, we as Americans, didn't digress to John Wayne status, and want to call bin Laden out for a shoot out in the streets of the Badlands of Pakistan.

I'm not going to tell any of you that celebrate, rejoice, party or whatever over the death of bin Laden, that you are wrong, that's up to God. I'm just going to say, for the Christian, maybe you need to rethink your attitude on this.

Blessings.