Contemplating the Death Penalty: Navigating Grace and Justice

Contemplating the Death Penalty: Navigating Grace and Justice
Question:
So we got this question from a student. It says, "What is the Christian view on the death penalty, and where does grace begin to breach justice?"
Answer:
This is an interesting question because we look at the systems and government of man and the authorities of this world, and there are different views.
There have been different systems over the history of the world, but I think we have to come back to the root of things like why there is death in this world.
First and foremost, the Bible says that death exists because of our sinful nature. The Bible tells us that all have sinned and fallen short of God's glory, and the result of that is death. And so we all face that. Death is a part of the world that we live in.
But then we have to start thinking about the authorities that God placed in our lives as well. And I'm thinking about Romans chapter 13:1-2, where Paul says:
“Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.”
We look at this, and you know whether it's a godly government system or not, the Lord has placed authorities and laws in our lives that we are called to submit to. Depending on society and the crime, authorities put in place the death penalty, and that's the law, and so we think about that, there's an aspect of, okay, we need to submit to the things that are going on in our land.
With grace, though, and thinking about this and the death penalty, as sin brings consequence, whether it's eternal separation and death that the Bible talks about that we're all facing without Jesus Christ or it's a consequence of something else. For example, you commit a crime, and you have to spend some time in prison, or you commit a crime, and the law is the death penalty.
Where there is sin, there are always consequences to it. That doesn't eliminate grace. The grace comes. The grace of Jesus Christ is sufficient to cleanse us from our sins, forgive us, and bring us into eternal life with God.
But that doesn't always eliminate the consequences of sin. And in that case, consequences of sin don't mean God is punishing us for the injustice, but instead, it's just, hey, that's the fact of life.
We sin, and we have to deal with that sin and own up to our sins. And so it's a big question about the death penalty, but I want you guys to think about God's character and all of this.
God is full of grace and mercy, but God is also a just God. And how those two things line up comes back to the cross of Jesus Christ, that without Jesus' death on the cross, without His sacrifice of His blood being shed for us, there is no forgiveness of sin, and we're all, in fact, under a death penalty.
So we need to place our faith in Jesus Christ to forgive us; whether our sins count as big or little, we're all guilty before the Lord, and we need the grace of Jesus Christ. And He offers that freely to us, and so I just encourage you guys as you think through these questions or this question on the death penalty, just embrace the grace of Jesus Christ and run to Him that He would forgive you and save you.