Assassinations

Blog #78 - Assassinations

What in the world just happened? Our country just experienced an attempted assassination on a past President. How could this happen? Was it ineptitude? Was it divine intervention? Why did it happen? Was it justified? Was it an abomination? 

I’m convinced we will never know all the details of the attempted assignation of President Trump which occurred on July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania. The entire nation was stunned. Not since the assassination attempt on President Reagan  on March 30, 1981, had this happened. Who did it? Was it a rogue gunman? Was this a government plot? Was there more than one shooter? We’ll let the investigation work itself out before drawing our conclusions. I suspect it will be just like many other investigations - we will never know the full truth. 

In our country, this is a foreign concept to the modern mind. (However, assassinations of foreign leaders in their own country are performed more than we know!) Are assassinations judgment upon a particular country? On a particular individual? How should the church react? Let us search the Scriptures for help. 

The first assassination in Scripture is found in Judges 3:12-30. Eglon, the king of Moab, was doing evil in the sight of the Lord. No one person knew what he was doing, but God did! God raised up Ehud (a left-handed man!) to kill Eglon with a double-edged dagger. Ehud stabbed Eglon deep into his stomach. Then the story gets really messy! (I’ll let you read it!) Ehub killed his arch enemy, Eglon, the king. 

As we all know, God never condones murder. Exodus 20:13 states clearly in the Ten Commandments, “You shall not murder.” But assassins clearly don’t follow the dictums of Scripture! In Isaiah 53, we read of another who would be assassinated - this “other” is Jesus. Isaiah 53:3 prophesies, “Smitten by God, and afflicted, But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities.” In Psalm 11:5, we learn, “The Lord tests the righteous, But the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates.” He continues in verse 6, adding, “Upon the wicked he will rain coals; Fire and brimstone and a burning wind shall be the portion of their cup.” 

Let’s go a bit deeper. Leviticus 24:7 states, “Whoever takes a human life will surely be put to death.” An “eye for eye, a tooth for tooth” is the Old Covenant view of death. Leviticus 24 and Deuteronomy 27 add a warning especially to those considering murdering the most innocent - the unborn. Deuteronomy 27:24 adds, “Cursed is the one who attacks his neighbor secretly.” Whether it’s the unborn or the one lying in innocent, it is always wrong to kill an innocent life. 

How should we react?

There are a number of decisions the Christian must make. First, any taking of human life (outside the confines of capital punishment) is sin. The Christ-follower should have no part in taking of life. Matthew 22:37 turns our attention off of revenge and onto the right priorities. Jesus says, “You shall love your God with all your heart, soul, and mind.” This is impossible to accomplish when our minds are filled with thoughts of murder or even revenge. Jesus reminds believers in Matthew 5:13 that we “are the salt of the earth” and again in 5:14, “You are the light of the world.” How can we be the “salt” and “light” of the earth if we are consumed with death? Simply answered, we cannot. 

When our minds are consumed with “justice upon the innocent,” we must stop and ask ourselves, “Whose justice - is it mine or God’s?” Hopefully, the obedient believer will fixate thoughts on the things of heaven, and let God bring about His justice in His time and in His ways. Remember, Micah 6:8, “And what does the Lord require of you? But to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.” This, my friends, is God’s answer to the question of whether an assassination is ever biblically justified. It is never right to do wrong. 

In 1 Timothy 2:1-4, Paul encourages the church, not to kill, but to pray for “all men.” He writes, “Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence.” Pray for the leaders of our world. Pray safety and security over them. Pray God would move in them to bring about His perfect (and safe) will.