Do you remember the concert massacre in Russia back in March? 139 dead, 182 wounded. The Islamic State claimed responsibility. A terrible tragedy to be sure.
The United States actually warned Russia of the possibility of this terrorist attack before it occurred. Our intelligence service got some information and passed it along to the Russians, whom many consider to be our enemy. Why did we do that?
The Duty to Warn.
What is it?
"A duty to warn is a concept that arises in the law of torts in a number of circumstances, indicating that a party will be held liable for injuries caused to another, where the party had the opportunity to warn the other of a hazard and failed to do so."
Did you know that this "duty to warn" concept is biblical? It is.
"When I say to a wicked person, ‘You will surely die,’ and you do not warn them or speak out to dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save their life, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood." - Ezekiel 3:18
When we see a brother or a sister in sin the Bible says that we are supposed to confront them with their sin. Lovingly. That can be pretty uncomfortable to do. And yet we are commanded to do it.
"Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted." - Galatians 6:1
A typical example of this would be a young couple living together before they get married. This is clearly a sin in God's eyes, yet most of us simply shake our heads and pray for them when we encounter something like this.
What should we do?
I recently saw a video on the news of a man who was stuck in a burning car. Some people stopped, ran to the car, and pulled the driver out. I suppose they could have just yelled, "Hey Dude, your car's on fire!" But they took action instead. They did what was right in the eyes the Lord. They could have just watched the car burn and said, "I'll pray for you," but they saved the man's life.
"If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead." - James 2:16-17
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