https://newcommandment.org/put-your-gun-back-in-its-holster.html
New Commandment Men’s Ministries Blog
Put Your Gun Back in its Holster: Men’s Ministry and Guns
Repeated personal encounters with firearms shape this forceful reflection on guns, men’s ministry, and Christian witness. Drawing on Jesus’ rejection of violent defense, the author argues that believers receive power, protection, and freedom from God, not weapons, and calls ministry leaders to reject fear and trust Christ even in danger.
Read the full post: Put Your Gun Back in its Holster: Men’s Ministry and Guns
This post first appeared in NewCommandment.org.
8 thoughts on “Put Your Gun Back in its Holster: Men’s Ministry and Guns”
I received your email a few days ago and been feeling lead to respond. I’ve been praying about this for a few days so here is my response. I 100% agree that there is no place for a firearm when ministering to others trying to lead them to Christ. One correction, Jesus did not say, “who draws the sword will die by the sword”. He said that who, “lives by the sword will die by the sword”. There are a big difference between those statements. I am 68 years old, I am a Combat Veteran, Police Office and worked in a prison as an investigator for over 30 years. I have carried my personal firearm with me several years and not once had to draw it from my holster to defend myself or anyone else, it’s the last thing I ever want to do.
Sin has brought horrible issues into this world which will be corrected when Christ returns. Praise his name!!! Some of these issues are decease such as cancer to name one of many as well as men bent on evil only desiring to in flick pain on the innocent. We as Christians must approach these horrible issues on two fronts. 1) we must fall to our knees and go before the Lord and 2) we must get our loved one to a doctor the specializes in treating cancer so that we can try to beat this decease. We must have the same response when dealing with the criminal element. In the evening after I arrest some one I lift them up in prayer. If an active shooter comes into a church and begins to shoot people, people will die if someone does confront that person.
Without firearms we would not have earned or sustained our freedom over the years. Without our freedom we would not have the freedom to worship like we do in this county or to train up and send out hundreds of thousands of Missionaries as we do.
I truly appreciate your service to our great God and pray and hope that you accept this email with Grace and Mercy as simply my thoughts, I myself have pray fully approached the Throne in regards to this very topic. Your Brother in Christ.
Love your ministry but we will just have to agree to disagree on this one.
Loved your words. Ive often told gun-toting brothers that there is either an angel with a flaming sword in the room or there is not. What do we believe?
Im afraid that evangelical Christianity is in danger of becoming a tribe rather than a collection of people who love Jesus, and guns are part of the tribal identity.
Thanks for this Brother Herb. I never thought about the connection with Matthew 26 and modern-day weapons. I’ll have to reconsider some things in light of God’s Word.
If Jesus was opposed to defending one self/loved ones, why did he not earlier criticize those of his disciples who were carrying a sword concealed? In fact, Jesus told them to go out and buy a sword (and carry it). He knew that at least two were carrying concealed when he was headed toward the garden. Luke 22:36-38 Even in the Matthew passage, Jesus does not criticize Peter for carry a sword (Jesus knew that another disciple was carrying also), he stopped Peter, because he knew God’s plan was for him to die.
There are several instances in the old testament where people were told to defend themselves and their families (for example, in rebuilding of the wall…weapon in one hand, tool in the other). I find nothing in the New Testament that changes this perspective.
I am personally thankful for the Christian men who were willing to risk their own lives to protect me and others attending a couple of our events, when I had repeated times when I had personal threats on my life (because of the ministry I was in). That doesn’t mean that we didn’t pray a lot and trust God for safety, but we also worked with the local authorities to provide as safe of atmosphere for those who attended. We had Christian men who provided security for these events.