Mailbag is a tool I utilize with students of Scripture and theology anytime I have the opportunity to teach. The questions that are sent in are ones that we did not have time for in the moment, or the scope of our passage did not directly answer them.
Students email me their questions, I reply with either my own answers, or trusted sources, and then I require that they engage the responses and sources cited before scheduling a meeting with me to discuss further. I am sharing these here for an archive of such questions and responses. Here are the questions...
These are big questions, both in complexity and in that they are discussing life and death. There are two large camps within Christianity on how to answer these questions. There are those who hold to what may be called “Christian non-violence” and those who hold to what is often called “Just War Theory.” As in many cases, when you have two “camps” on either ends of a pole, those who are the loudest tend to be the most extreme, and in an effort to differentiate themselves from others, take their view to such an extreme that it no longer resembles the original idea. I often find that those who like the idea of pacifism do not understand what Jesus wanted among His people, and that those who believe in lethal force in self-defense and in Just War often hold these beliefs because of the time and place they were born in rather than because they have truly wrestled with Scripture and asked for wisdom in prayer.
The two articles I have linked above will point you to the key passages of Scripture that discuss self-defense, as well as to the key contributors within Christian thought throughout Church history. One error that is commonly made in looking for “proof texts” is that they often pit the words of Jesus against those of the apostles, or the Old Testament against the New. This error comes from looking for absolutes in a flexible world. While there are black and white issues in Scripture, there are other positions that are not as easy to arrive at, and we need to leave room for people to practice wisdom. Wisdom is not the same as knowledge. If you know the Bible says stealing is wrong, you are not practicing wisdom per se when you choose not to steal. Wisdom is being so familiar with what is clear in Scripture that you can navigate what is unclear. That all being said, here are some thoughts on self-defense.
First, defense is different from “avenging.” Defense is protecting, whereas avenging is “getting even.” One is a spontaneous response in the moment, the other premeditated and calculated. Even in the Old Testament, Moses never says that one is to make things right on their own. Leviticus puts it this way,
17 “Whoever takes a human life shall surely be put to death. 18 Whoever takes an animal's life shall make it good, life for life. 19 If anyone injures his neighbor, as he has done it shall be done to him, 20 fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; whatever injury he has given a person shall be given to him. 21 Whoever kills an animal shall make it good, and whoever kills a person shall be put to death. 22 You shall have the same rule for the sojourner and for the native, for I am the Lord your God.”
Because the book of Leviticus prescribes the law to the whole community, and particularly how it relates to the Tabernacle and the priesthood, I do not think the execution of this kind of justice was to be taken into the victim’s own hands apart from the community. So, when it comes to being wronged, whether that be physical harm or financial loss, the proper avenue to seek restitution is by appealing to the community to act justly. Here are some sources from a variety of perspectives to help you discern how God would have you think and live in these areas–
On Political Disagreements in the Church
Christian Nonviolence and Church History
Should Christians Defend Themselves?
The history and purpose of just war doctrine
Can Christians Employ Violence in the Defense of Justice?
Do Not Avenge Yourselves, but Give Place to Wrath
What was the view that you said where Christians should not be in authoritative positions that may ask them to take human life? How would it be wrong for Christians to be in those positions because if they hold them they have been given the authority to enact justice by God?
This question flows out of the previous one. If Christians can (or cannot) use lethal force in the pursuit of justice or defense, then they either can or cannot serve as civil servants (judges and police officers) who have the authority of the state to take life. Is it just that a serial killer is executed by the state for his or her crimes? I believe so. Is it the role of the Christian to pursue the roles in government that make those decisions and ultimately administer the lethal drugs in the execution? I believe the first question is more of a straight line issue (see the 9marks podcast above), and the second one a jagged line. I have Christian friends who are police officers. I am less interested in the question of whether or not one day in a moment of high stress they feel the need to use lethal force against an active shooter to protect the innocent. I am much more interested if all the other days of their careers they are shaping their mind and heart, and by extension their understanding of justice and love of neighbor, around the Gospel. I shared more “pro-defense” resources above, so here I will share some that lean more in the non-violence direction.
The Case for Meekness: Can Violence Be Good?
Beyond Pacifism: Seven Theses on Christian Nonviolence
Should Christians Be Encouraged to Arm Themselves?
Are You Opposed to People Owning Guns?
Ten Cents for Gun-Carrying, and a Million Dollars for Joy in Suffering
How Should Christians Use Guns?
God, Guns, and Biblical Manhood
How Should Christians Think About Gun Control?
For When We Finally Get Around to Talking About Guns
We are told to live peaceably with all as far as it depends on us. If there is conflict between me and another believer and I have done everything I can to resolve the issue, how am I supposed to act towards that person? I know that is a very broad question but is it wrong to avoid them or is that ok?
This is a different kind of confrontation than those above, because the conflict in question does not seem to be one that includes physical harm, and therefore there is no need for a physical or lethal response. What do we do when there is a conflict, and we try to resolve it according to Scripture, and the other party will not take the steps necessary to restore the relationship? Are we ever allowed to cut people out of our lives?
I am going to say up front that the advice I am about to give is different than if someone was the victim of abuse or a crime. I think that if something criminal is in view, the answer to the question looks something like the answers given for the justice questions above. If this question is about personal and relational conflict, the answers are much clearer in Scripture than the issue of self-defense. The text that is cited most often for these kinds of questions is Matthew 18:15-20,
15 “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. 16 But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. 17 If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. 18 Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19 Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”
So, to put it concisely, if there is a sinful conflict between brothers and sisters in Christ, they are to try and handle the fault between the two of them and restore the relationship. If that does not work, one part needs to take witnesses to help, and if that does not work, take it to the elders, and if that does not work, the local church body is to no longer consider the offending individual as a brother or sister, and treat them as an outsider. In short, treat unrepenting sinners as unrepentant sinners.
So, if your friend will not seek restoration in your relationship, you are to follow the practice prescribed by Jesus, and treat your friend as someone who needs the Gospel. With all of that in mind, if the relationship is with someone who does not claim to be a believer, the task is to forgive and pursue reaching them with the Gospel. Whether the other person claims to be a believer or not, they need the Gospel, but that does not mean that you need to be the one to share it with them on an ongoing basis.
There are people in my life who claim to be Christians who refused to talk to me about the conflicts in our relationship, and they did not want to seek restoration in the Gospel. After a few years I had to come to the conclusion that it was harmful for me to remain in the relationship, and that there were plenty of other people who could reach them with the Gospel. I exited those relationships. That does not mean I ignore them if I see these people in public, but that I am no longer actively going to places and events where I know I will see them, and I no longer carry the weight of feeling that I am the one to reach them with the Gospel. As Scripture says, “If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead,” and if they will not listen to Moses or someone raised from the dead, they will not listen to me. Here are some resources on confrontation and conflict with Christians.
How to Move from Forgiveness to Reconciliation
What Persevering Love Makes Possible for Broken Relationships
A Word of Hope for Strained Relationships
When Should You Confront Someone About Their Sin?
7 Tips for Confronting a Friend in Sin
Church Discipline Is Not a Dirty Chore
Be Courageous! Don’t Avoid Hard or Awkward Conversations
When Do You Practice Church Discipline? And How Do You Confront the Sin?
How do I lovingly confront someone who claims to be converted but who lives like a non-Christian?
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