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WELCOME & TESTIMONY ON NONVIOLENCE
| THANK YOU FOR VISITING OUR PEACEMAKERS PAGE ON THIS PAGE INTRODUCTION TO THIS STUDY MY PERSONAL JOURNEY TO PEACEMAKER IN THE MENU ON THE LEFT A word for word record of a discussion on PEACEMAKING <><><><><><><><><><><><><> |
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The Bible giveS the government the right and responsibility to protect the righteous and punish the wicked. However, God has a higher calling for those who have chosen to live under the authority of the PRINCE OF PEACE. They are called to be PEACEMAKERS. WE ARE CALLED TO BE PEACEMAKERS, NOT PACIFISTS JESUS said, ----------------------------------------------- "Blessed are the peace makers for they shall be called the sons of God." ------------------------------------------------ While it is true that God has given authority to the State (all governments of this world) for the purpose of protecting the righteous and punishing the wicked, the people of God are called to be peacemakers. This site is dedicated to the truth that we are called to peace and not to war or violence. This is not a site which promotes pacifism or "Peace At Any Cost." This is a site which recognizes that; there is no peace between God and man until man yields to God, there is no peace in the heart of man until God is in the heart of man, there is no peace between man and man until the only thing between man and man is God. Though there will be wars and violence, God has called His children to follow their Prince of Peace in taking the message of peace to a world lost in sin, violence, bloodshed and darkness. As Jesus told us, His kingdom is not of this world, if it were of this world, His servants would fight. |
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><> This was taken from a discussion I was having with some other Christians who do not hold to the nonviolent position. ------------------------------------------------ PERSONAL JOURNEY TO PEACEMAKER Dear Friend, thank you for allowing me to share with you concerning this very controversial issue. I appreciate the opportunity to discuss important issues with others of the faith. I also appreciate that we can disagree agreeably. I am very passionate about my foundational beliefs and will present them without apology. When it comes to discussing an issue, I certainly do not expect anyone to swallow what I say, but I do hope folks will at least chew on it. Obviously, if it is anti-Christ or anti-Bible (one and the same), then we do not even need to chew on it. The verses which I offer you will not individually convince you of this simple but rejected truth. However, I believe there are enough verses and New Testament principles to establish that Christians are called to peace and non violence. It isn't that the verses aren't convincing, but generally it is nearly impossible to convince someone of something once their mind is made up. This is especially true when a person has been led to believe they are totally lined up with the Word of God. I would like to give the background for my taking this position in this article. I was pretty much where most people are today in my thinking during my Bible college days. Not because I had so learned the Word, but because that was my background and upbringing. I was a typical product of the baby boomer genereation. I was raised to be a Red Blooded American. We had just beaten the Japanese and the Germans and we were king of the hill. This is not said with "tonque in cheek." From a human point of view, America saved the worlds hyde. I was raised on Roy Rogers, Gene Autrey, The Lone Ranger, with a helping of John Wayne. In the 1950's and early 60's I went to all of the War movies and fought the Japanese on the Sands of Iwo Jima with the Fighting Sea Bee's. I flew and sailed with the allies as they hunted down and sank the dreaded Bismark and was there for the Longest Day. The good guys wore white and we were the good guys. We didn't start a fight, but we were ready, willing and able to finish one. (And just in case you are wondering, I was not raised in a holiness or even in a Christian home). I was raised to stand up for myself. I was taught not to start a fight, but if I was brought into one, I was to finish it. If I could not finish it, I should at least give it my best shot. If I did not defend myself, I would not only get whipped by my antagonist, but Daddy would whip me too (and no, Daddy was not an abuser and I hardly ever got in trouble because I got saved at an early age and I was therefore an obedient child. Also, I never got in trouble with Daddy for backing down or running from a fight). I did not start fights as a child, but I certainly did finish enough of them. I would suffer a defeat before I would either run away or back down from a conflict. This mentality (which is not altogether wrong) carried over into my adult world as well. I went to Bible college in 1965 while the Viet Nam war was going on. At first I was glad to have my 4D (ministerial deferment) and get on with my life. However, as time passed, and I saw the body bags coming back and I thought of Communism not only killing our men and the many innocents in Viet Nam, I also saw the Red Menace as the enemy to the Church and the Gospel. I saw the US as the good guys who would resue the oppressed and set the Gospel free in a godless society. I was raised on the coast of North Carolina, not far from Cherry Point Marine Air Station and Camp Lejeune Marine Base. My Dad had been in the Navy during WWII and my uncle had been with a tank corp during the Korean Conflict. I had every reason in the world to be pro-Navy or pro-Army, but when you live near Marine stations, you do not have the Marine Recruiters view of the Corp, you know the truth. The Marines are known for their toughness, but when I was 14 years old at only 125 #'s body weight, I use to play with the grunts like they were toy soldiers. I had no false impressions of their invulnerability. I had no particular admiratoin for their capablities. However, (don't leave me now), in spite of all of my understanding about the Corp. I was seriously considering joining up and shipping out to Viet Nam to set those poor people free from the darkness of Communism. I would gladly go with a Bible in one hand and an M-16 in the other. I would love my enemy and send him into eternity while I prayed for his poor lost soul. After all, it would be better to kill a few to save the many, right? I prayed hard about going. I prayed often about going. I was ready, willing and able to go, but God did not let me go. I figured that it was because He just wanted me to stay and develope my ministry skills and gifts. I attended a holiness Bible college which was a total change of experience for me. Though my first six weeks were really terrible, I finally got sanctified and everything changed. I was determined to allow God's Word to be the final authority in my life. Over the next four years I was led into His truth and had to make changes in my pre-conceived ideas about the Bible and Christian living. I dumped my secular/sacred concepts and realized that all of life is sacred. There is no "secular" for the Christian. I accepted the infallibility and inerrancy of the Scriptures and trashed the junk science of the so-called academic community. I accepted the truth and life of Entire Sanctification. I sought God on issues such as eternal security, tongues, healing, spiritual gifts and others. I would imagine that we in this forum would agree pretty much down the line on all of the things just mentioned (if we hold to a Wesleyan-Arminian position). There were some Quakers who attended our Bible college. I would engage them in discussions about capital punishment and war and self defence. Actually, I didn't need their help on the issue of self defence. Having been Entirely Sanctified, I no longer had a spirit of retaliation and self assertion. My "violent streak" was gone. I would often find myself in situations which threatened my physical well being, but I never even thought of responding violently. (By the way, the thing that finally brought me to full surrender was my anger which would readily display itself in violent reaction to others). In all of my discussions with my Quaker friends (no I didn't stutter), I was never convinced by them to abandom my belief in the responsibility of Christians to support their government in war or executions. I finished my Bible college experience after a massive overhaul of my belief system...I was determined to abandon all that was not consistant with the New Testament. But I had not changed my beliefs about war and execution. During the second or third year of my pastoral experience, my wife was going to be called for jury duty. Early on I had decided that I would be the best pastor I could be and that I would live my life as close to the New Testament standard as I knew how. I had decided to let God's Word and will determine my beliefs and behavior. Now I was faced with the question of, "What is the Christan response to jury duty?" I know, maybe that seems like a no-brainer to you, but I did not take anything for granted in my Christian walk and my pastoral responsibilities. I started to search the New Testament concerning my responsibility as a citizen. I came to understand that a RESPONSIBLE CHRISTIAN has responsibilities. We can't just obey any authority without question, unless the authority is God Himself. The Church must be obeyed when it is in line with God, parents must be obeyed when in line with God, husbands must be obeyed when in line with God and the government must be obeyed when in line with God. BUT NOT WHEN THEY ARE OUT OF LINE WITH GOD. I do not surrender my will or responsibility to anyone nor do I excuse my own behavior by placing blame on anyone else. I am accountable for my actions and no other entity will answer for my following the wrong way. In all of my studies I found out more than I had planned, though it was exactly that for which I had bargained. I found out that "coming out from among them" and "being separate" meant more than giving up smoking and drinking and bootscooting (I never did smoke or drink anyway). I found out that my own accountability meant that I would live by a different standard than that which is followed by the State. I cannot trust anyone with my soul or my choices. If you are still with me, you may be asking, "What does this have to do with jury duty?" Well, I pay attention to the world in which I live and I could see that often times, innocent people were found guilty. They were sentenced and sometimes executed because of a mistake made by a jury. Regardless of the excuse, it was possible for a Christian to falsly punish a person, their whole family and even the rest of society because of a mistake in judgment. Too many times the jury was deliberately not given all of the evidence, which would have resulted in a different verdict. I figured, other Christians can do what they want to, but I for one would inform the court of my convictions against killing the innocent and against being used as their tool of injustice. If I could serve without going against my own beliefs, I would serve; if they put me on the jury knowing my position, then that would be their problem. I would serve in the light of the Light I had. Pretty much, my position would exclude me from duty. Our courts are not always that interested in justice anyway. This line of thinking led me to question the idea of obeying the State in other areas which were against my personal convictions and Bible standards. I decided to see what the New Testament said about Christians and killing for the State. Again I was brought to a 180 turn in my thinking. When studied in the light of Its own teaching, the New Testament makes it perfectly clear that Christians are not to kill in any situation. All of the arguments I am reading and hearing against nonviolence are pretty much the ones I held to myself. But they are not New Testament arguments. They are not even early church arguments. They are cultural and they are religious and erroneously based on Old Testament, but they are not New Testament arguments. By the way, one of the most important factors in my changing my mind about this issue was my belief in holiness, perfect love, separation from the world. Holiness does not practice uncleanness and then blame the State. Perfect love does not do evil and then blame the State. Separation does not follow the world and then blame the State. My belief is based on Scripture, but it is supported by reason. Reason does not allow a wicked man to determine whether I will kill an innocent man, whether in uniform or not. Reason does not allow for a wicked man to use anyone to kill the innocent, whether in uniform or not. The absurdity of two Christian men, from two differnent countries, taking up arms, facing each other and killing each other to satisfy the greed, bloodlust, political pursuits or any other demonically born reason is beyond REASON. When you kill the soldier, you rob his family of a son, a brother, a husband, a father, a grandfather. Claim you are doing it with a clear heart, you are still a robber and a killer. Your clear conscience does not replace that loved one to his family. Your clear conscience does not allow the unsaved for whom Jesus died, to hear the gospel and save his soul from hell, your personal attitude does not stop him from dying eternally. And the principle holds, we do not allow others to determine that we will kill any man. (Some statements had been made which indicated Christians are to always obey the State, regardless of its directives, to which I responded.) If Christians had always taken your position, there would be no social holiness. Prisons would still be hell holes, mental hospitals would still be snake pits, slavery would still be torturing men, raping women, dividing families, killing the innocent; children would still be getting abused, women would still be treated as chattel. As a matter of fact, most reforms that have taken place have taken place through Christians who resisted the immorality of the State, and usually through Holiness people who chose to suffer persecution for righteousness rather than enjoy or support the pleasures and easy way of sin. Your brand of Christianity doesn't cost very much if you feel it is your responsibility to obey your government except in so-called spiritual areas. By the way, for the follower of Christ, all areas are spiritual and therefore all areas are basically subject to the verses which I offer from the New Testament. Again, I do not expect my testimony to change your mind, but I thought it might be good to see where I am coming from and how I arrived at my present beliefs. I realize that this can either open up several different threads or shut off all communications altogether. I am open to either. I am available for email communications if you prefer that. If you have not searched the Scriptures with an open mind and freed from preconceived ideas, maybe you should. If you were to read the New Testament as if for the first time or without all of the input from collateral sources you may find that it looks totally different. At least, please don't discount that which many learned and righteous saints have espoused. Thanks again for listening, Promiselander |
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