How should we react to Osama bin Laden's death?

Question from Molly:

I truly do support our brave troops and pray for their families in this tough time for our country ... BUT something did not feel right to me seeing the people in D.C. screaming and celebrating the death of a human being. The first thing I thought to myself is "Would our loving God find glory in this?"
I know somewhere in Proverbs it says that we should defend ourselves (can't think of the verse off the top of my head, I'm sure you know though) but Romans 12:17-21 also says:

Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord. On the contrary: "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head." Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Romans 12:17-21)

So, I really am confused and wanted to know what you thought about this situation...

Answer from Pastor Bob:

It is a difficult issue, because you are correct, as Christians it is not ours to avenge, but to leave it to the Lord. However, most Christians agree that there is such a thing as a "just" war when a greater evil is prevented. A good example is World War II and the ultimate death of Adolf Hitler.

There was a great German pastor in World War II named Dietrich Bonhoeffer who opposed Hitler. Bonhoeffer even participated in a plot to assassinate Hitler, and he was a Christian pastor! Why would he do that? Because Bonhoeffer knew that it would stop a greater evil.In the Old Testament, Moses was sent to Pharaoh and told to demand justice for the Hebrew slaves. God even sent a "death angel" as a final plague upon the Egyptians to set the people free. When the Hebrews fled across the Red Sea and Pharaoh chased them, God allowed the Egyptians to drown in the sea, and Exodus 15 records the song of rejoicing that Moses sang at their defeat. That is why Proverbs 11:10 says that when the wicked perish, there are shouts of joy.

How do we reconcile this with Jesus' words in the Sermon on the Mount about turning the other cheek and loving our enemies? I think we need to make a distinction between personal offenses and social justice. While it is a virtue to overlook a personal insult, it is not a virtue to overlook a tyrant who is oppressing a people. The former act would be consider an act of grace; the latter would be considered a gross negligence of justice.
I cannot judge the hearts of those who shouted and jumped for joy at the news of Osama bin Laden's death. I'm sure for many, it was a hateful rejoicing at a man's death. However, for others, it may have been more of a celebration of justice being done, as we find in some of the psalms, such as Psalm 69:19-25. This psalm is quoted by Paul in Romans 11:9-11, and is applied to the death of Judas Iscariot by the early church in Acts 1:20. You will notice in Psalm 69 that the psalmist does not ask for an opportunity to personally harm his enemy, but he asks God to bring about justice, which is actually the same thing we read in Romans 12:19, where we are told to "leave room for God's wrath." Thus as a Christian, I do not rejoice that a man is dead, but I do rejoice that God executed His justice to end an evil terrorist who will never be able to blow up another building or murder any more defenseless people.

Where did the spirit of Jesus go between His death and resurrection?

Question from Danny:
Does the Bible say where the spirit of Jesus went between His death and resurrection?

Answer from Pastor Bob:
Christians have different opinions about that, but the best explanation I can find is from 1 Peter 3:18-20, which says of the time of His death and resurrection, that Jesus "went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, because they formerly did not obey, when God's patience waited in the days of Noah..."
This passage may mean that at His death, Jesus' spirit went to preach the gospel to those who lived before Him, to give them the opportunity to believe in Him. This interpretation seems to be affirmed a few verses later in 1 Peter 4:5-6, where Peter says that everybody will face Judgment Day, which is "why the gospel was preached even to those who are dead..." apparently meaning Jesus' trip to the land of the dead before His resurrection. Otherwise, it would not be necessary for Jesus to preach to the dead, because Hebrews 9:27 says it is appointed unto mankind once to die, and then face judgment, implying that now that Jesus has come, after death it is too late to make a decision for Christ.
No wonder the apostle Paul says in Romans 3:25-26 that God patiently waited to judge the sins committed before Christ, leaving them unpunished until "the present time." But now that Christ has come, all people must be judged by their response of faith to Christ, even those who died before Christ.

Is it correct to tell someone their loved one went to heaven?

Question from Lianne:

I have been wondering lately is it biblically wrong or correct to tell someone that has lost a loved one that they have went to heaven or to a better place? And if you can, can you please back your answer up with scripture? I have been saying this but I am wondering if we should be saying this. The reason I say that is because we really do not know where our loved ones are going after they pass on or do we? I mean we can believe that they are going to heaven, but we do not know for sure, do we?

Answer from Pastor Bob:

Lianne, when speaking to a person who has lost a loved one, you always want to be encouraging and comforting, but you do not want to say something that is beyond what scripture says.
The key to answering your question is: do you know that your friend's loved one has given a clear testimony of having trusted in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord?
Scripture says in 2 Corinthians 5:8 that we are confident that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord, and in 1 John 5:13 that if you believe in the Son of God (Jesus), then "you may know that you have eternal life." Paul himself speaks with confidence about going to heaven when he dies (Philippians 1:21-23), and he talks to Christians about going to be with the Lord, using the plural "we" in 1 Thessalonians 4:17. So if you know that your friend's loved one has trusted in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, then yes, it is very appropriate to say that the person has gone to heaven.
But what if you are uncertain whether or not your friend's loved one was a believer? Maybe you have not heard, or their testimony was unclear. In that case, I would suggest that you focus on the hope that we have in Christ, without being specific about the individual who is deceased. In other words, you can say, "What a comfort it is to know that when we believe in Christ, we will see one another again in heaven."
Finally, if you are fairly certain that the deceased was not a believer, you may want to say something like, "I'll be praying for God to give you comfort during your time of loss," and if the grieving person is also an unbeliever, you can ask for an opportunity to share the hope that you have in Christ and how they can know that they can go to heaven.