Today we have a guest post, an author published by Prepper Press named John Elliot. John writes about Christianity and self-defense. This is a subject I covered a couple years ago, please see the comment section for my thoughts on John’s article, and on the subject in general.
Christianity and the Bible’s Case for Self-Defense
As the author of books having to do with self-preservation and, far more importantly, as a Christian, I have had to answer some rather deeply personal questions that require a considerable level of introspection. At the forefront of those questions is the one that asks, “What does God say about Believers protecting themselves from criminals, terrorists, or anyone else who may wish to harm us?”
Since my last book came out, Don’t Be A Victim!, I have been asked that question no less than six times. Well, part of the answer can be found in various books of the Bible. Was Moses condemned by God for going to the defense of a fellow Israelite and killing an Egyptian? The answer is no. In the book of Acts, chapter 7:24, it clearly demonstrates that the act of killing that Egyptian who was mistreating an Israelite was in fact part of Moses’ acceptance by the Israelites.
Nowhere in the Bible does it show that Christians are to be the doormats for the evil people of the world; but are we as Christians called upon to turn the other cheek? Well, yes. Matthew 5:39 instructs us about just that thing. There is even a time when Believers in Christ may have to suffer and die. We can read about that in Matthew5:11, Philippians 1:29, 2 Timothy 2:3, and in some other passages found in the Bible. All of that is true; there is no argument here at all.
What is also true is the Christian doctrine of self-defense and preservation, of preparedness and good common sense. The Apostle Paul implied that Christian men ought to defend their families. In 1 Timothy 5:8, after speaking about how the law applies to criminals and other violators of the trust God gives to men and women, it reads, “But those who won’t care for their relatives; especially those in their own household, have denied the true faith. Such people are worse than unbelievers.” We are told by those words, and so many other passages, that we as Christians have a right, a duty and an obligation to protect the innocent amongst us.
If you are lying in bed at night and you waken by the sound of breaking glass, what do you do? You dial 911 right away, but what happens if an intruder is then heard climbing the stairs to where your wife and children are sleeping? The police may be on their way, but they are still several minutes away. You are a Christian, you are told to love your enemy, but you also know that the burglar in your home is probably capable of unspeakable violence. What now? If you are like me, you reach for that Sig Sauer semi-automatic pistol, and before the burglar makes it to the top of the stairs, you send him off to meet his Maker.
We live in a violence-prone world, gone mad with horrible crime each day, with horrific acts of terrorism across the globe, with the knowledge that eventually we may all have to face our worst fears in life. Being a born-again Believer in Christ helps to relieve so much of that fear and anxiety, but being prepared for the unexpected is what God expects from each of us.
John Elliott is the author of Don’t Be A Victim!: An Officer’s Advice on Preventing Crime, published by Prepper Press. He is a law enforcement veteran who worked for police agencies in Virginia, Rhode Island and Florida, as well as for the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Customs Service. He also spent many years working with Interpol, and was a bomb disposal technician conducting land mine and unexploded military ordnance disposal in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Asia and North Africa.
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