Reflections on ISIS Beheadings

Dear friends:

Can you see the evil hand behind all these cruelty acts of ISIS? If you have hard time to believe in the existence of God because of all the evil things on earth, perhaps you can believe the devil and fallen angels existing? Yes, our world is not yet rid of the terrible influences of the devil through those evil empires and their dictators...etc. Actually,  the whole world lies in the evil one as 1John 5:19 told us.

Do you think the relatives and friends of those recently crucified ISIS victims would put up a cross at their front yards to remember their lost loved ones? Of course not! Common sense dictates that they won't do such a stupid and senseless thing to remind themselves how their loved ones had been crucified by ISIS. 

Think again, why the very shameful symbol of cross has been lift up and put on top of most Christian churches today? It has stirred up so much hatred that nowadays China is pulling the church crosses down in Shanghai and other provinces. And Christians are commanded by Jesus to remember His death in Holy Communions every Sunday,( once a month, or once a quarter, depending on the policy of different churches and denominations.) Isn't that very odd and strange, that Jesus wanted Christians to remember His death, not His birth?? The reason is His death has taken away our sins and He has risen from death and lives forever to be our Lord God. It is because of Jesus' resurrection, His cross has become a glorious symbol. ( Since Jesus preexisted before His birth in the past eternity, His birth as God incarnate was not the beginning of His life at all. He is an everlasting God and He self exists from past eternity to future eternity! That is why Jesus our Lord God is so unique! )

Here below is my sharing in my Sunday School class last Sunday, an instant inspiration that morning out of CNN news report about the 3rd beheading by ISIS. .

Just share my thoughts associated with ISIS 3rd  beheading with you. Any comments from you are very welcome! (BH)

Recent horrible beheadings of American journalists and British Aid worker by ISIS brought the beheading of John the Baptist to my mind.

So we looked up Matt 14:1-12 that recorded John the Baptist was beheaded by the request of Herodias' daughter Salome who followed her mother's wicked request of John's head out of her deep hatred towards John's open denouncement of her marital affairs.

（ note: Since John the Baptist openly denounced Herod for having left his lawful wife, (the daughter of the Arabian king Aretas), and then cohabiting with Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip (Luke 3:19-20). On his birthday, Herod made a feast for dignitaries, the elders and a thousand chief citizens. Salome, the daughter of Herod, danced before the guests and charmed Herod. In gratitude to the girl, he swore to give her whatever she would ask, up to half his kingdom.

The vile girl on the advice of her wicked mother Herodias asked that she be given the head of John the Baptist on a platter. Herod became apprehensive, for he feared the wrath of God for the murder of a prophet, whom earlier he had heeded. He also feared the people, who loved the Jesus' Forerunner. But because of the guests and his careless oath, he gave orders to cut off the head of St John and to give it to Salome.）

Then the narration moves forward to Jesus feeding 5000 people, Verse 12 is easily neglected by our hurry reading, right?

How I'd like to hear Jesus' comment and explanation about the beheading of John the Baptist, yet Jesus was silent.( I am disappointed but perhaps Jesus as a human being also was overwhelmed by sadness so He couldn't talk let alone comment at all??) In Jesus' earthly life, He did weep twice publicly. That means our Lord shares our human pains, He does care. However, God didn't rescue John the Baptist from being beheaded. Why? Only God knows. We don't have perfect answer. Isaiah (53:3) tells us that the suffering Messiah would be "a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief", so there could be tears in Jesus' private life.

(John 11:35 "Jesus wept." This is arguably the shortest verse in the Bible. It records the anguish of the Lord over the sorrow of his friends at the death of Lazarus.   Another incident is recorded in Luke 19:41 when regarding Jerusalem from afar, Jesus wept over it knowing what would befall the inhabitants of the city because of their rejection of him.  The bottom line  is that it is recorded specifically that the Lord wept twice.)

When the tower in Siloam fell and killed some people, Jesus didn't explain the reason why either but warned us to repent or else we all likewise perish.

Jesus said :"...Or do you suppose that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem? 5"I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish." ( Luke 13)

So  911 by Al Qaeda  and  beheadings, crucifixions by ISIS are all wake up calls for us to repent.

Hebrews 11, the chapter of faith does list those who were killed, yet their faith is still speaking even though they were dead. Perhaps the assumption to expect rewards for our good deeds in this life is a wrong assumption, at least it is only a partial true assumption. Bad things do happen to good people, right? Many righteous people do suffer and lose their lives just because they are outspoken against the evil, immorality and injustice. Bible encourages us to suffer for Christ's sake and Christians should be prepared to enter the kingdom of God with many hardships. With this kind of understanding and anticipation, we won't be easily knocked down by hardships or persecutions whenever we encounter them.

Indeed, Daniel was saved from the Lion's Den, yet God did allow many early Christians to die in the mouth of lions and to be burnt alive on the stacks during roughly 300 years of Roman persecutions. Those early Christian martyrs' genuine and pure faith in God shined through those burning fire and Lion's mouths. That kind of pure precious faith is the foundation of Christianity. God hasn't guaranteed us miracles all the times. Daniel's 3 friends have the highest level of faith in God, they believed God would save them from the highly heated furnace, yet even if God didn't save them, they would still determine not to bow down to the golden statue King Nebuchadnezzar II had set up and ordered all his subjects to bow and worship. 

Well, here comes my favorite Bible verses, Romans 8:35-39 ( of course, dear friends, I understand if you haven't accepted Jesus into your life, this wonderful love of Christ doesn't apply to you. Smart you, don't you want to have this eternal guarantee that God's love will be with you forever, even beyond this life? This surely is the best offer from God I hope you don't miss to get in this life time. Just turn around and accept God's eternal offer in Christ would suffice. Time is running out, better hurry!! )

35Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long;

we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”^j

37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,^k neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Hallelujah! No one and nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Death is not the end point, we need to stretch our horizon beyond the death--looking forward to being with our Lord forever. Praise the Lord!!

Dear friends, don't you want to have this kind of eternal blessings--never separating from the love of our Creator God and Jesus Christ our Lord ?

( note: A Call to Repentance Luke 13

1 Now on the same occasion there were some present who reported to Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. 2And Jesus said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were greater sinners than all other Galileans because they suffered this fate? 3"I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish."Or do you suppose that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem? 5"I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.")