What would you do?

[KingJ]

Indian white tiger kills man at Delhi zoo http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-29325778

Many at work have asked me what I would do if I was in that guy's shoes. The answer is simple. Defend myself as best I can and just accept death if it comes.

The REAL question imho is....what would you do if you saw this happening to this guy that you don't know from a bar of soap?

What would Jesus do? What should we do?

This is quite a reality check!

 

[aspen]

That is a difficult question.......

Honestly, I think I would be in too much shock to respond. I can also imagine feeling paralyzed and not knowing how to respond until it was too late

 

[Enquirer]

Definitely run to get help, no point in two people dying. Besides, in this case the guy jumped the fence into the enclosure.
I think a much more difficult choice would be where you had the power of life or death in your hands, as an example;

A group of violent armed men were searching for another group who were unarmed, and had the intention of killing them.
The unarmed group fled into a basement where they were safe but to add to the scenario they had a woman with a baby
and the baby started crying.
They had a choice ... kill the baby and ALL would live or let the baby cry and ALL perish ... which one would you choose ?

 

[aspen]

I think I would be much more confident in my ability to de-escalate a gunman or a human attacker than fight off a tiger.

As far as killing a baby to save everyone else - not a chance. Killing a baby or any member of the group would be the same as killing the humanity of all the survivors - we would have to all face death together. Also, it would be impossible to know ahead of time if killing a member of the group would save the majority.

 

[KingJ]

Definitely run to get help, no point in two people dying. Besides, in this case the guy jumped the fence into the enclosure.
I think a much more difficult choice would be where you had the power of life or death in your hands, as an example;

A group of violent armed men were searching for another group who were unarmed, and had the intention of killing them.
The unarmed group fled into a basement where they were safe but to add to the scenario they had a woman with a baby
and the baby started crying.
They had a choice ... kill the baby and ALL would live or let the baby cry and ALL perish ... which one would you choose ?

In the video it does look like one could escape by jumping on the others shoulders.

I agree with Aspen. No killing the baby! The thing we need to learn about self sacrifice at this level is that it is literally jumping into heaven / we are forgiven for a multitude of sins.

1 Pet 4:8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.

Deepest love = John 15:13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends.

Friends = Everyone Matt 5:44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.

That is a difficult question.......

Honestly, I think I would be in too much shock to respond. I can also imagine feeling paralyzed and not knowing how to respond until it was too late

I don't think you will be paralyzed if it was your baby or wife that fell in. But a stranger, sure. But that is my point for this thread. We shouldn't even be paralyzed for our enemy....if we are Christians. Doing unto others as we would like done unto us = option 3. Many Christians think we must love others as much as ourselves. But that is not true.

I would probably be paralyzed with you! It is shocking that loving others is grasped but only practiced if we can remain in our comfort zone / it's convenient for us.

 

[Enquirer]

The question I posted I found on another website ... guess what, every response was kill the baby.
It's at this point that most Christians would accuse these unbelievers of having no morals or not understanding
personal sacrifice.
But that would be wrong because it is plain to see the sacrifices that so many soldiers have made in the fight against
terrorism and the World Wars or that doctors make by going into disease ridden nations etc.

The reason given for the choice of "kill the baby" was made from the viewpoint of the "greater good".

Another illustration that might illustrate the "greater good" is one where you have a choice to save 20 people or save 10
people, naturally we would save the many.

However, the death of Christ upon the cross is selfless as is witnessed by both the responses of Aspen and KingJ.

The salvation of KingJ's "tiger guy" would then be selfless, but guys how would you then view the people you leave behind
would you not consider that selfish ... just asking ?

 

[KingJ]

The salvation of KingJ's "tiger guy" would then be selfless, but guys how would you then view the people you leave behind
would you not consider that selfish ... just asking ?

Well the two scenarios we have are a bit different. Killing the baby is doing evil to avoid evil. Not doing the evil in the first place empowers God to be able to help us as we are following Matt 16:25 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me (no killing baby) will find it. Kind of inline with John 9:31 as well 'Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him'.

With the tiger, if we have a special needs kid or wife, sacrificing our life could be selfish. We would need to judge ourselves truthfully in the moment. Our wife and kids must literally be the only reason we not jumping. Not love of our own lives. Most won't jump because of love for their own lives. But then there is another issue. A Christian is / should be programmed to ''just do'' the selfless thing without much thought.

I went mountain climbing with family and friends. A group of the fittest broke off from the rest. My sister being among them (not me, I am not too fit), find herself stuck on a ledge with nowhere to go. My good friend who has dependents, helped her. They were watching his noble effort. Nobody else even tried. They mostly just watched and prayed. She was rescued by a truly 'miraculous' jump from my friend. He now has one hell of a testimony / experience with God / dependents who saw the Christian thing to do firsthand / lead by example.

I would lean toward it not being selfish. We could die in a car crash today. The best thing we can do / leave behind for our dependents is NOT money. It is Christianity / selflessness / being able to call God, our Father. Matt 6:26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?