Christians and firearms.
May a Christian defend himself using deadly force?
The Bible shows the answer to be a resounding yes! In fact, I believe that God will be displeased with us if we don't defend ourselves and those God has entrusted to us, and that such defense might even require the use of deadly force.But, what about biblical commands such as "Thou shall not kill", "Turn the other cheek", "Love your enemy" and "Resist not evil"?
These are indeed commands Christians must obey, but they must be properly understood in their biblical context. If you carry a firearm or other instrument of deadly force and think of yourself as a Christian, you need to know what these commands mean!God has provided the information necessary for us to understand these commands in His written word, the Bible. My belief is based on what the Bible says. I presented a lesson based on my study of this topic at the regular Sunday assembly of the church of Christ that meets in West Columbia, South Carolina, March 3,2002. I've provided my lesson notes and audio file (22MB) of my 45 minute lesson to assist you in understanding how a Christian might confidently use deadly force in accordance with God's will.
The lesson notes contain all the biblical references used in my lesson and the gist of my comments. The audio in some areas contains considerably more comments than are in the lesson notes.
If, after studying my lesson, you can't carry a firearm in full confidence of being obedient to God's will, then please don't carry one!
I would be pleased to receive your constructive criticism or comments.
Edward J. Kelleher
1730 Augusta Road
West Columbia, South Carolina 29169
803-796-8858
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