A Message for all Walks for Lives

So about that March for Our Lives:

The first time I heard about it, I thought they were talking about the March for Life, the pro-life peaceful protest that has been marching annually for 45 years. I was wrong. It turns out that the person to whom I was talking had never even heard of this protest, which is a real shame. Nor would they have supported it if they had heard of it, which is ironic.

But I digress.

There is one big thing that the March for Our Lives represents. Gun control. Those who support the march are asking for gun control of some sort or another. Mostly, they are asking for a ban on “assault rifles,” but there is a growing contingent that is calling for a ban of all guns in America.

Of course, this would require a constitutional amendment, which is likely a very long time in coming. There are many guns in America, with many gun owners, which means that the required votes to pass such a measure simply are not there.

However, less restrictive measures, such as this “assault rifle” ban idea, might not need such drastic legislation, making it more feasible in the short term.

I’ve been thinking about what the Bible says about this topic. It’s a very interesting thing to think about. Except for one small snag.

Guns do not make an appearance in the Bible.

Just to make sure nobody is unclear on this, I’ll say it again: Guns do not make an appearance in the Bible.

That doesn’t mean that they can’t be discussed in biblical terms. In fact, there is a lot of talk in the Bible about weapons. Never in terms of controlling who can and cannot own them, but always in controlling how they can be used.

Even King David, prolific musician and poet from whose line the Savior would eventually come, was a warring king.

But the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘You have shed much blood and have waged great wars.

1 Chronicles 22:8a

The discussions about gun control are not about soldiers waging war, however. Then again, David was not a soldier when he first defended his kingdom. Nor was he king. He was a simple shepherd. Not even the biggest or strongest in his family.

David was the youngest. The three eldest followed Saul, but David went back and forth from Saul to feed his father's sheep at Bethlehem.

1 Samuel 17:14-15

And he didn’t do it using a then-modern weapon of war – no sword or spear, no bow and arrow. He did it using an already ancient weapon: the staff and sling (though the staff turned out to be unnecessary).

Then he took his staff in his hand and chose five smooth stones from the brook and put them in his shepherd's pouch. His sling was in his hand, and he approached the Philistine.

1 Samuel 17:40

But, the sling was a weapon that he probably needed to use on a regular basis, since he was a shepherd, and shepherds still use slings to defend their flocks from wildlife, even today. So maybe that’s not a very good example when trying to make a parallel to gun control.

What about the modern weapons of war? In the days of the prophet Nehemiah, the Jews were tasked with rebuilding the wall in Jerusalem. The book of Nehemiah took some time to explain in detail how they defended themselves while this was going on, and how they were organized.

Those who carried burdens were loaded in such a way that each labored on the work with one hand and held his weapon with the other. And each of the builders had his sword strapped at his side while he built.

Nehemiah 4:17-18

These weapon-bearers were the laymen of the day, the workers. You can notice that each held “his” weapon, and had “his” sword strapped at his side. This means that they all owned their own weapons, not relying on a military to defend them, this time even from foreign threats.

But they were under constant threat from their neighbors, so maybe an imperfect parallel, even though there always seems to be a threat from somewhere.

What about in the New Testament? Jesus and His followers emphasized love and forgiveness, after all. Not only that, but Israel was under the occupation of Rome, and so there was a military set for the defense of the land, so there wasn’t really any constant military threat.

To be honest, Jesus only really talks about weapons specifically once. Beyond that, he never told Peter to leave his sword at home as they were on their journey. And we know Peter carried his sword (it’s likely that at least some of the other Apostles did as well – one of them was even a Zealot, which does not just mean he was a very passionate person). At one point, though, Jesus does tell him not to use that sword.

Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's servant and cut off his right ear. (The servant's name was Malchus.) So Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword into its sheath; shall I not drink the cup that the Father has given me?”

John 18:10-11

Is that it, then? We can have the weapons, but not use them? Not exactly.

Jesus here is willingly submitting himself to the people who came to take him to his trial and eventual death. Notice that Jesus does not say to Peter, “Put your sword into its sheath; it is a sin to ever use a weapon to shed blood.” No, he instead uses a metaphor to say that this was all a willing transaction.

But Jesus also said that his disciples should buy a sword if they don’t already have one. If they didn’t have the money to buy one, they were to sell their clothes to get the money for one.

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.

Luke 22:36

So to break it down: David had and used weapons. Israelites had and used weapons. Jesus’ followers had weapons, but perhaps used them less frequently. Jesus even calls for people to buy weapons if they don’t already have one. It seems pretty obvious that God doesn’t have any qualms with people owning weapons.

However, Christians are to “follow the law of the land,” as long as it does not infringe upon the law of God, which would muddy the waters on this issue if actual wholesale weapon bans were put into place. Especially since we are commanded to defend the weak and oppressed.

Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.

Isaiah 1:17 (NIV)

And

Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.

Proverbs 31:9

As it stands now, I see nothing wrong with arming yourself for defense – to defend yourself or others.

But what do I know?

I’m just Thinking Blessed.