Judging the Death Penalty
I’m putting the death penalty on trial, and I’d like to hear your opinions on the issue. Some questions to be answered:
- How do we stay ethically consistent to be pro-life and then advocate an ideology which advocates the ending of life for others? Are there degrees to which someone is deemed worthy to live?
- When Jesus fulfilled the Law, would He still advocate the laws regarding the death of those who transgress God’s Law?
- Should the state have this level of authority over human life?
- Does the death penalty call into question one of the greatest teachings of Jesus to forgive one another (Sermon on the Mount)?
Please keep your comments concise and to the point. I will not hesitate to remove comments that are un-edifying and stray from Biblical examination. Remember to keep your composure as we challenge one another.
The Bible is crystal clear about the death penalty. See: The Old Testament. :)
I want to make one point here though .. regarding your number 4: We who are in Christ are forgiven because He forgave us; and He told us to forgive those who trespass against us. You are quite correct. However, even though He forgave us, He also paid the penalty for our sins. In other words, our sins have not gone unpaid for. I think a strong argument can be made that, likewise, a crimes must be paid for (even when the criminal is forgiven by the one who suffered because of him).
Romans 13:4 “…for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer.”
Genesis 9 predates the Mosaic Law and here God authorizes the death penalty. I don’t think that the Sermon on the Mount overrules this in anyway ’cause it primarily deals with personal ethics and not the role of government in a society. Romans 13 is a better passage to consider in this regard.