Thou Shalt Not...
This is a response to an entry on my F-list today. I mean no offense to anyone. I was just provoked to think, and I will be processing my thoughts below the cut. Love to all.
I am 100% opposed to the Death Penalty. Have been for a long time. Just as I am 99.9% opposed to abortion, save for the case where it is needed to save the mother's life. This is a seperate topic, worthy of its own post, and I may do it sometime. But back to the issue at hand.
By now, most of you will have heard of this gruesome piece of news. Like anyone and everyone, I am shocked, horrified, ashamed, angry, and a myriad of other very bad things. I wish this was the first and last time. My heart breaks to know it won't be.
A part of me wants to see this man suffer. What he did was wrong. He deserves death. He deserves to never be happy again. He deserves to suffer ten times the pain he has inflicted upon the world.
Here's the problem. I don't like that I feel that way. I don't like that I feel that way because I have made a choice to follow God's will and accept the sacrifice of His only Son that I might be saved from the same fate. After all, I am a wretched, dirty sinner as well.
Are my own hands blood free? I haven't thrown any children off bridges. But the cancer rate in Coal Mining towns is enough to break your heart. Healthy, happy people have their lives cut short because I left the lights on. I have no idea sometimes where the clothes or other things I buy came from. The cut-rate prices I sometimes buy things at may come from bad labor practices that will forever keep some people living in conditions I can't even dream of. I didn't pull the trigger. But I didn't give it a second thought either when I left the water running or shopped at Target. That's rather cold-blooded.
What does it take to make your life "good?" In this fallen world, I don't know that I can live a life free of sin. The wages of sin are death. We say this man deserves it. What about the rest of us? Are we so innocent that we can be spared the same fate? If your standard is how good you are relative to someone else, that's pretty poor, because someone is ALWAYS going to be better than you. If your standard is perfection, what does it matter how much better you are than someone. Compared to your ultimate goal, you both are so far away that the distance between the two of you is negligible in comparison. Again, to quote Aslan, that is pride enough to lift the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the mightiest emperor. We are the same in God's eyes, are we not? For God so loved THE WORLD, not just me.
But what about that? He loves this man too? And what's more, He wants ME to love him? Are you serious? I'm supposed to feel compasion for him? I'm supposed to pray for him? What's that about God? I mean, I know when I agreed to follow You, You told me it was going to be hard sometimes. I thought that was because I just had to be on better behavior that my friends who weren't following You. Like, being in bed on time and eating my vegetables and stuff. Is THIS what You were talking about? I have to tamp down on my righteous fury and share Your love with him? I don't know if I can do that. I thought being a warrior for You meant that I would be exacting justice on guys like this. You mean You want me to show Your mercy? This is what I signed up for?
This is not easy.
What about the kids? I know they are surrounded by Your love now. And I suppose Your love is always with us in this fallen world, especially in the darkness. It's hard to see sometimes. I know You let all of us choose, and if you always gave us what you wanted, we'd probably still go back to the tree and eat the apple, because that's who we are. I know that if miracles happened all the time, they wouldn't be miracles. And, worst of all, I know that if I believe in You, I also believe in Satan and Demons. I know people will just laugh me off as crazy when I say that, but that doesn't mean I don't hear that whisper in my ear saying "look at this man, how can you believe in your God now."
So, the kids are with You, right? I can't see Heaven and Hell, but I believe in them. It's easy to believe in Heaven. It's our wildest dream. Hell's hard. It's hard for most people because when I talk about Your love, they find it hard to believe that You would condemn anyone to Hell. Hell's hard for me too. But it's hard for me because You've convinced me that You don't send anyone to Hell. They send themselves, and they lock the door from the inside. That scares me, because I don't always know what stops me from sending myself there.
So, does this man deserve death? Yes. So do I. Will you send me to the gallows with him?
Responses, comments, reflections and such are welcome. Please, keep it civil. No matter what happens, those of us left behind must share this beautiful world. Let's do so without further strife.
I am 100% opposed to the Death Penalty. Have been for a long time. Just as I am 99.9% opposed to abortion, save for the case where it is needed to save the mother's life. This is a seperate topic, worthy of its own post, and I may do it sometime. But back to the issue at hand.
By now, most of you will have heard of this gruesome piece of news. Like anyone and everyone, I am shocked, horrified, ashamed, angry, and a myriad of other very bad things. I wish this was the first and last time. My heart breaks to know it won't be.
A part of me wants to see this man suffer. What he did was wrong. He deserves death. He deserves to never be happy again. He deserves to suffer ten times the pain he has inflicted upon the world.
Here's the problem. I don't like that I feel that way. I don't like that I feel that way because I have made a choice to follow God's will and accept the sacrifice of His only Son that I might be saved from the same fate. After all, I am a wretched, dirty sinner as well.
Are my own hands blood free? I haven't thrown any children off bridges. But the cancer rate in Coal Mining towns is enough to break your heart. Healthy, happy people have their lives cut short because I left the lights on. I have no idea sometimes where the clothes or other things I buy came from. The cut-rate prices I sometimes buy things at may come from bad labor practices that will forever keep some people living in conditions I can't even dream of. I didn't pull the trigger. But I didn't give it a second thought either when I left the water running or shopped at Target. That's rather cold-blooded.
What does it take to make your life "good?" In this fallen world, I don't know that I can live a life free of sin. The wages of sin are death. We say this man deserves it. What about the rest of us? Are we so innocent that we can be spared the same fate? If your standard is how good you are relative to someone else, that's pretty poor, because someone is ALWAYS going to be better than you. If your standard is perfection, what does it matter how much better you are than someone. Compared to your ultimate goal, you both are so far away that the distance between the two of you is negligible in comparison. Again, to quote Aslan, that is pride enough to lift the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the mightiest emperor. We are the same in God's eyes, are we not? For God so loved THE WORLD, not just me.
But what about that? He loves this man too? And what's more, He wants ME to love him? Are you serious? I'm supposed to feel compasion for him? I'm supposed to pray for him? What's that about God? I mean, I know when I agreed to follow You, You told me it was going to be hard sometimes. I thought that was because I just had to be on better behavior that my friends who weren't following You. Like, being in bed on time and eating my vegetables and stuff. Is THIS what You were talking about? I have to tamp down on my righteous fury and share Your love with him? I don't know if I can do that. I thought being a warrior for You meant that I would be exacting justice on guys like this. You mean You want me to show Your mercy? This is what I signed up for?
This is not easy.
What about the kids? I know they are surrounded by Your love now. And I suppose Your love is always with us in this fallen world, especially in the darkness. It's hard to see sometimes. I know You let all of us choose, and if you always gave us what you wanted, we'd probably still go back to the tree and eat the apple, because that's who we are. I know that if miracles happened all the time, they wouldn't be miracles. And, worst of all, I know that if I believe in You, I also believe in Satan and Demons. I know people will just laugh me off as crazy when I say that, but that doesn't mean I don't hear that whisper in my ear saying "look at this man, how can you believe in your God now."
So, the kids are with You, right? I can't see Heaven and Hell, but I believe in them. It's easy to believe in Heaven. It's our wildest dream. Hell's hard. It's hard for most people because when I talk about Your love, they find it hard to believe that You would condemn anyone to Hell. Hell's hard for me too. But it's hard for me because You've convinced me that You don't send anyone to Hell. They send themselves, and they lock the door from the inside. That scares me, because I don't always know what stops me from sending myself there.
So, does this man deserve death? Yes. So do I. Will you send me to the gallows with him?
Responses, comments, reflections and such are welcome. Please, keep it civil. No matter what happens, those of us left behind must share this beautiful world. Let's do so without further strife.