"Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil" (Ecclesiastes 8:11).
Christa Pike was scheduled to be the first woman executed in the state of Tennessee in more than a hundred years. The lethal injection attempted failed, not once but twice. Still alive, Pike was rushed to a nearby hospital. Now filling social media is what should be done next? Some say release her. Some say try it again. Some say enough, just put her back in prison.
The right for a government to execute is found in Romans 13. What is so often overlooked is our passage from Ecclesiastes. The crime that Pike committed and was sentenced to death for occurred thirty years ago. A generation later, the evil that she had committed was still being dealt with. Much of this lies with our court and justice system. Appeals upon appeals drag out the process and in time most forget about what was done. Now, if I'm not careful, this could easily turn into a rant about our political and judicial system. That's not my intent. Long, long ago, Solomon understood, when justice drags its feet, wicked hearts believe that they can get away with crime. Crime does seem to pay. Solomon saw it.
Now, through all of this, there are some lessons for us:
First, the justice of God is not built upon the American court systems. We need to get that out of our minds. God is a righteous judge. But the Scriptures also tell us that it is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God. There is no system above God that can override His decision. There is no one else to appeal to. There is no reversing what God says. Clemency only comes from the mercy of God and nowhere else.
Second, the times when God used death in punishment it was immediate. Nadab and Abihu didn't die a generation after their unholy worship of God. Ananias and Sapphira died the day that they lied. Uzzah died the moment he touched the ark. Achan died soon after his theft was discovered. A cloud of fear surrounded the people when they saw how quickly and final the judgment of God was upon the disobedient. God's judgment is absolute. He knows.
Third, laws become weak and useless if there are no teeth behind them to enforce them. This is true in parenting. Kids quickly learn that they can get away with things until dad counts to "three." There is a system of discipline built in the N.T. church that brings accountability and responsibility. When a congregation doesn't want to do that, then a message is sent that what the Bible says really doesn't matter. The Corinthians understood that a little leaven leavens the whole lump. If a man can live immorally, then why can't another live as a drunk? Why can't another live as an idolater? There is no stopping once the door has been opened.
Far too many times when a member is living more like the world than like Christ and discipline must take place, family members will support the wayward, make threats and even leave. Not only are such actions immature, they lack faith in what the Bible teaches. We must stand with God.
I don't know what the outcome will be with Christa Pike. Some day she will die. The righteousness of her soul is what matters the most. Our Lord was executed by the government. So was Paul, John the Baptist, James.
How one dies is not nearly as important as how one has lived.