Sonic Returns

Read this first...

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/04/07/newzealand.hedgehog.ap/index.html?iref=newssearch

When I read this article I couldn’t help but think about the terrible state that our world is in today. Sin has gripped the earth like a parasitic vine that continues to grow and grow, squeezing the life out of humanity. In one sense I was disgusted by what I read, but in another I almost expected it.

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come (2 Timothy 3:1)

And then the thought occurred to me, what are we going to do if this catches on in the church? How are we as Christians supposed to respond to fellow believers if they act in such a way? Is it wrong for a believer to throw a hedgehog at someone? Is it clear from scripture how this situation should be dealt with? Fortunately for us we believe in a sovereign God who was able to plan for such an evil event no matter how far in the future, and he has given us guidelines for just such a situation.

First of all it is important to understand that God looks on the heart even though man may judge by the appearance. It is clear from Numbers that in such an instance of hedgehog throwing, the motive must be determined before judgment can be passed.

And if out of sheer hatred a man pushes another or from ambush throws something at him and he dies, or angrily hits him with his fist and kills him, that’s murder—he must be put to death. The avenger has a right to kill him when he gets him. If, however, he impulsively pushes someone and there is no history of hard feelings, or he impetuously picks up something and throws it, or he accidentally drops a stone tool—a maul or hammer, say—and it hits and kills someone he didn’t even know was there, and there’s no suspicion that there was bad blood between them, the community is to judge between the killer and the avenger. Numbers (35:20-24)

It is clear from this text that it is not a good thing to throw a hedgehog at someone. However, in order for the person to be judged as having committed a sin against his brother, it must have been done with intentional harm in mind. Thus we can conclude that if a believer throws a hedgehog at someone else with the purpose and intention of harming them then it is a sin. But if that person were to accidently fling his or her hedgehog whereby another person was arbitrarily hit apart from intention or plan, no sin has been committed.

It is important for us to understand though that sin is a natural part of the human state, and though rare, this type of thing has been happening throughout history. It is clear that it was an issue that Jesus had to deal with as well, and can be seen in his prayer at the Mount of Olives.

He pulled away from them about a stone’s throw, knelt down, and prayed. (Luke 22:41)

Clearly, Jesus’ going “a stone’s throw” away was not just by chance. He knew that hedgehogs have inferior aerodynamics to stones and thus that if he was a stone’s throw away it would be impossible to be hit by a hedgehog. This is clearly a desired situation when one seeks to be undisturbed in prayer.

We also see examples in the Old Testament of God protecting the faithful from people throwing hedgehogs. Take the case of Job for instance:

Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason? Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? (Job 1:9-10)

The Hebrew here indicates that God built a “hedge” around job in order to prevent the devil from being able to throw hedgehogs at him. It is not until God removes this "hedge" that the Devil is able to act against Job.

This sin issue is one that we must be aware of in our own lives. We must constantly be reminded that our heart must be focused on God and that intentional hedgehog throwing is, at the very least, undesirable.