Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Gun Control || What is Biblically Correct?


gunandbibleSo... gun control. A big topic that never seems to come to a climax or conclusion. I have a solidly thought out opinion that we as U.S. citizens should be entitled to bear arms, concealed or not. But, since I live in a safe [to say the least] neighborhood/town, I have never felt the need to personally wield a firearm to ensure my safety or the safety of my friends and family. That being said, and putting any and all political correctness aside, I must raise the question of Biblical correctness. Is it right to threaten other humans for your own well-being?

As I have said already, my opinion is that if trouble arises, I think I should be able to defend myself. But, I have to be able back it up with the second amendment the Bible!

So, Romans 12:19 says,"Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, saith the Lord."

[Not a very good verse to start out with in favor of my opinion!] This particular verse is talking about after the fact though, so does it even still apply to whether or not we should "fight fire with fire"?
I don't believe it does. Here, God is saying that we shouldn't take revenge, not that we shouldn't prevent the crime from happening in the first place. Let's move on to a different verse shall we?

Matthew 5:38 and 39,"You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also." 

Well what are we supposed to do, just stand there and take it while the burglar digs through our purses?! No, I don't believe so. I believe this passage 1. Is a parable, and 2. Doesn't mean we should just give everything we own to thieves because they already took some. To me, it means that sometimes hurt people hurt people and we shouldn't return their harm towards us with scorn, but with love.

Proverbs 26:26,"Like a muddied spring or a polluted fountain is a righteous man who gives way before the wicked." 

This could mean a man who gives way in a spiritual matter, or in a literal sense I believe. Picture this: you're walking out of the store with your husband/father/brother and suddenly a man appears out of nowhere, grabs your purse and yells,"You weak Christians! Why don't you give me your car keys too! I guess your God isn't strong enough to protect you!" While this is a completely exaggerated account from my imagination only, what opinion of our Mighty God would that criminal leave with? That is not what David the shepherd boy would have done is it? No, he declared the name of our Great God with passion and defeated the giant in His name! Too often we as Christians are of the opinion that we should be quiet little field mice who show God's love to all, forgive and forget, accept everyone as they are. But we serve a righteous God of love and judgement! If we live as meek, defenseless, lambs we will be treated as such. Our God is not to be mocked freely because His children are too afraid to stand up for Him!

 [I know I am getting a little bit off track here but it will come full circle, bear with me.]  So, one more word picture so you will better grasp what I'm saying. Imagine you're a little kid again, and overhear some adults talking down about your Dad, saying what a coward He was, not able to defend His family, that He was just full of hot air. What are you going to do? Keep on playing and brush it off? No! You'd probably get mad and start defending Him in a childish, yet effective, kind of way. How much more should we be upset by all the people on this earth who practically spit on God's feet, saying He is just a figment of ancient mankind's fear to be in control. Or, if they actually believe He is real, they call Him names! An ego-maniacal , eccentric, murderering, petty, control freak are just a few things a certain person on my Pinterest Creation Vs. Evolution board have called Him to me personally. Doesn't that just make your blood boil?! All I have said thus far does in fact have a point. The point being that the fact that we're Christians should have nothing to do with whether or not we get angry at injustice and want to fight back.

 Does this mean we should become crazed, hateful human beings who's life goal is to "protect" our God? Definitely not. But we should be able to harness that fury, keep it under control, direct it at another source in such a way that the world sees not only how loving our God truly is, but also His power, might, majesty, and absolute righteousness. Now, back to what is supposed to be this post's main topic.

Luke 22:36,"He said to them, “But now let the one who has a moneybag take it, and likewise a knapsack. And let the one who has no sword sell his cloak and buy one."


Now, I could easily take this verse completely out of context and tell you that "See??? God says that it's important for us to have weapons!!!"  But I will not be doing that. The real meaning of this verse [In context of course] is that they {The disciples} were well provided for on their first missions, but after Jesus was arrested, they would have to provide for and defend themselves, they would no longer be received in every town and village with open arms. While researching this "biblical gun control" topic, sadly, this verse was used in nearly every pro-gun article, weak cases to say the least. While I don't believe this verse should be used to sway Christians to arm themselves, a good thing to take away from it is that we should not expect to fit in with the rest of the world or be loved by it if we are truly following the Messiah.


At this point, I am stopping for a moment and wondering what exactly I want you readers to take away from this post. Do I want you to immediately go out and buy a gun so you are ready for the time when Christians are an oppressed minority? Not necessarily. Do I want you to think,"Wow. She's crazy." Definitely not. What I think I want you to walk away from this blog knowing is that El Shaddai has not left us a legacy of lambs, but of lions. He is the one who delivered the Israelites, He is the one who split a sea, He is the one conquered Jericho for His children. Does He really sound like a God who would have you stolen from, left beaten and bruised in some back alley just for the simple reason that you didn't have the gumption to literally protect yourself from evil? Not to me He doesn't.


The world has quieted down some recently concerning guns. There haven't been any school shootings, there haven't been any especially gruesome murders. But when the media gets hold of some fresh crime that involved a gun, will you let the well-meaning pacifists continue to take away the very rights our country was founded on? The right to protect ourselves?! It's all well and good to say that guns kill people and should be outlawed until you're the one walking alone down a deserted street in a bad part of town. Words don't mean much in that situation, and as they say, actions speak louder than words.

I'm afraid most of what I've said was merely me trying to work things out for myself while letting you in on my thoughts. But the purpose of this blog is not to convince you of any one opinion, but to explore possibilities and topics that otherwise go without voice. I really don't have a conclusion to come to as I close this post, but, in the words of James Madison:

"Americans have the right and advantage of being armed, unlike the people of other countries, whose leaders are afraid to trust them with arms."

 If our government wants to refuse us the right of individual protection, what does it say about them?

"To disarm the people is the most effectual way to enslave them."
- George Mason

I close with this quote, from the Father of our Country:

"A free people ought to be armed."
- George Washington

~Rebekah~
~~Armed for Christ~~

Please share your thoughts below! And if your want to see more inspiring quotes from the founding fathers, click here.

16 comments:

  1. Upon reading these verses, I would not say that they are particularly applicable to modern firearms. However, the Bible does say this:

    Exodus 20:13, "You shall not murder."

    Leviticus 24:17, "Anyone who takes the life of a human being is to be put to death."

    I have a question for you. If you are pro-life, does that concept end once a child has left the womb? Why are you in favor of guns when their purpose (ending lives) directly opposes your other beliefs? I am truly curious why you feel this way.

    -Rose

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    1. Rose: What would happen to you if a Muslim man entered your home, and raised a gun to your head? If you didn't have a gun, too, you'd be dead, unless you surrender your beliefs in God.

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    2. Also Rose,
      Having a gun doesn't mean that you are using it to protect your self by actually killing someone, if you know what I mean, you can protect yourself without a gun. Besides the person who is going crazy and shooting should be prepared that he didn't have to do that and could be shot, what are you supposed do? Just let the man keep shooting or defend the people?

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    3. To Rose: I had typed out a paragraph using those very verses but then decided that it wasn't where I wanted to go in this post. But, the Bible also says,"Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him." [1 John 3:5] To your question of me being pro-life and pro-gun, that is simple. The babies that are being killed because of the pro-choice movement don't have a choice in the matter. They deserve to have lives. I really don't see how being pro-gun affects defending the unborn at all. I never said I want a gun so I can kill anyone. I just want to be able to protect myself, which does not necessarily even include harming the person who is threatening me, just scaring them off.
      What I can't comprehend is how the same people who vehemently wish to ban all guns from public ownership are usually the same people who mercilessly slaughter the helpless infants brought into existence by [usually] poor decisions.

      We truly do live in a messed up world.

      ~Rebekah

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  2. There is a quote from Albert Einstein that reads, "You cannot simultaneously prevent and prepare for war." If one strives for a more peaceful world, they do not contribute violence to it. So, perhaps I would be dead. I could also be dead if the man shot me first, or if I were hit by a car or if I fell and broke my neck. There are many ways to die, and owning a gun doesn't really change that. I understand that one may wish to have a gun for peace of mind. However, by having a gun, what are they contributing to the world? Certainly not peace, love, or compassion.

    If a man had raised a gun towards Jesus, would God's Son have shot him? I think not.

    Rose

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    1. Well, we live in a fallen world, therefore, to anyone who has ever read the Bible, it should be perfectly obvious that striving for more peaceful world is an almost pointless task. This world isn't going to just melt out of existence, it is going to be the most violent time in the history of ever. I am not saying we should readily contribute to the coming violence, but I certainly do not agree with Mr. Einstein on the opinion that you can't prevent and prepare for war at the same time. We most certainly can. You can be a pacifist all day long but you should know that we do not serve a passive God.

      ~Rebekah

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    2. Some Christian groups (Amish, Mennonite, Quaker) are pacifists.

      I disagree that striving for peace is pointless. You could also say, why try to make someone smile when you can never make the whole world happy? Why dress modestly when there are immodestly dressed women right beside you? Why feed one homeless person when you can't afford to feed more?

      Even if you aren't able to make the entire world peaceful and happy, you can make a difference in the people's lives around you, just like anything else. Are you in favor of war? Personally, I do not think that physical fights are good for solving any problems. If someone has 'won' a war, does that mean their opinion is right? Of course not. There are much better ways to sort out problems. I don't believe that our country should become involved in wars that it doesn't have to fight. It is one thing to be attacked and defend yourself, it is another to willfully choose violence.

      Rose

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  3. Rose, please do not ever call the police in your life. Not for anything. Because they carry guns and are meant to help protect the lives and property of citizens who are endangered by others. So, even if someone breaks into your home, you are out shopping and there is a gunman in the stores shooting everyone, or whatever, DO NOT CALL THE POLICE!!!! Also, Albert Einstein may have made many wonderful inventions, but due to his beliefs about God and Christianity, I think you will want to research the Bible on this issue and not Albert Einstein. Also, Jesus' life and purpose on earth was much different than that of any of ours, so we can not and should not compare situations as you mentioned to His. Even if you did, Jesus left the city at one point to avoid arrest as it was not yet His time.
    ~Lindsay M.
    P.S. Also, how would you feel if the U.S. had no military? You would not live in a free country and you would be long dead by now since that Muslim man would have come to see you early.

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    1. Lindsay M.

      I believe that you have completely misunderstood my point-- you seem to think that I am saying there is never a situation in which guns can be/should be used to protect citizens.

      What I was trying to say is that, from what I have read in the Bible, it does not agree with killing people. The point of my whole message was questioning why some believe that babies should not be aborted due to Biblical and ethical concerns, yet feel that it is perfectly okay to own a gun (which is for the purpose of killing).

      Many people own guns for self-defense and similar reasons. You seem to think that I don't understand the point of gun ownership. I can see why people choose to have guns, I am simply saying that the Bible does not seem to support the idea of murder. The whole discussion was based on Christianity. If one is not trying to follow the Bible, then what it says about killing people should be of no concern to you.

      One more thing-- I included the quote from Albert Einstein for its message, not its author. The point I was trying to make here is that if you wish for a peaceful world, you do not perform violent acts- and for some, that means that they may die for the cause, just as Jesus died for one-- our sins.

      I am sorry if anyone was offended by my comment about Jesus' reaction, You are right, I cannot know what He would have done. From Christ's example, however, of compassion and unconditional love towards others, I would not come to the conclusion that He would try to violently harm others. However, I am not in charge of you and you may think as you wish-- I ask that you allow me to do the same.

      Have a blessed day.
      Rose

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    2. The Bible is filled with accounts of God killing people who were evil. We are not God, so it is safer not to try to judge evil from good for ourselves to such an extent. On the other hand, not every killing is a murder. If that were true, than we serve a murderer.

      ~Rebekah

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  4. Hi Rebekah,
    Thanks for sharing your perspective. Gun control, might sound like a good idea to some, but what would likely happen is the law abiding would give up their guns while the criminals would not. Guns are just a tool anyway, if we got rid of all the guns, then maybe knife control would be next?

    As you know God told the Israelites to wipe out whole groups of people, yet the same Bible says love your enemies. To me it is a matter of balance and discernment and what or whom we place our trust in. Treating every situation the same in life I am learning is not always the best course of action.

    Eccl 3:1-8 sums it up:
    To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

    Blessings, -Tim C.

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    1. Thanks for commenting Mr. Campau, I agree. And I was going to include the verses you quoted in the post but forgot!

      ~Rebekah

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    2. Awesome Mr. C and Rebekah! Nailed it you two!!!!
      Katy

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  5. "If a thief is caught breaking in at night and is struck a fatal blow, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed; but if it happens after sunrise, the defender is guilty of bloodshed."
    ~Exodus 22:2

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  6. Anonymous, you quoted the commandment correctly, but applied it incorrectly. It truly is do not to murder. Murder is different than kill. To murder is to take innocent life, as opposed to kill which may happen to a guilty party. As in protecting your family from someone who is intent on doing harm to you or otheres.

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    1. I agree. The only reason I didn't say just what you did in my post is because I thought everyone would understand I wasn't talking about whether or not it is okay to murder someone to protect yourself. ;-P

      ~Rebekah

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