In a world that corrupted, where shootings, robberies, intrusions, and so much more have become something we see daily, how are you choosing to protect yourself? With a gun, knife, sword, or weapon of any kind? If a studied follower of Islam were to step on your porch and threaten your life would you shoot them right there?
I am not against owning a gun nor am I against using one, but I am against using it to kill someone who obviously won’t go to heaven because of it. I CANNOT send someone to hell when I know for a fact that I am going to heaven, and I don’t even know how people can justify doing so.
Ephesians 6:12 NKJV For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, and against rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in heavenly places.
Genesis 9:6 NKJV Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man his blood shall be shed; For in the image of God He made man.
Our fight as followers of Christ is not against the people who are threatening us and trying to kill us. It is a fight against the demonic. God created everyone in His image and Satan is wanting to do everything he can to steal that image, that identity away from mankind and he is succeeding. Whether it be that creationism is taken out of schools (Where that revelation of identity is taught), transgenders and homosexuals, terrorism, abortion, the list goes on. There is one thing though that belongs on that list that people don’t realize. Satan is stealing people’s God-given identity by using God’s very own children. Yup, we are allowing Satan to use us as pawns in his little game taking out our own brothers and sisters who were created in God’s image. He is using us as instruments of hate and slander towards them.
Matthew 12:36 ESV I tell you, on the day of judgement people will give account for every careless word they speak.
You might be thinking that this verse surely isn’t talking about me. I think before I speak. You may think before you speak but do you think before you post on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram? I am so tired of people posting things on Facebook that is talking bad about world leaders. When did we as Christians turn into a people who would rather bash our president on social media than take five minutes out of our day to pray for him? News flash, your bashing on social media whether it be saying “We don’t need gun control we need Obama control.” or something just stating how you hate what he’s doing as president, isn’t doing anything productive about it and if you pray and post these things, I will tell you don’t. If you prayer for our president but constantly go around sharing every post and talking bad every time something happens you are cancelling out your own prayer. That is just one small way that Satan is using us as pawns for his game.
Now, onto why I really wanted to write this post, I am sick and tired of seeing Christians running to guns instead of to God. As I stated earlier on in this post our battle is not against the person but against the demonic. I have had many encounters with demonic spirits whether it be oppression or simply just them in my house causing distress. Did I run them out by a gun or did I pray and use my faith and my dominion to send them away? It’s obvious that I used prayer and my God given dominion. It would be pretty silly if I tried to shoot a demon with a gun because earthly weapons can’t kill the demons. So why do we think that when a person is demonized that the only way to protect ourselves is an earthly weapon when Ephesians 6 clearly states that we need to be using spiritual weapons? I recently was told by a friend on Facebook, “I choose to trust God and carry a handgun. I am believing God that I never have to use it but if the need arise I WILL…..Even the disciples carried swords.” And this is my response to that statement. I choose to have faith in God, faith is a whole heart thing or it’s nothing, so I also choose to have no plan B because if the need arises I will use my spiritual weapons that we are told to use to rebuke the devil that is in whoever is attacking because I have that authority. Also the word for sword there is ‘machaira’ which is translated as a knife used for hunting or to cut tough pieces of meat. I believe that the disciples were told to have those knives so they could provide for themselves. Why would Jesus tell them to have a sword to protect themselves and then rebuke Peter for using it in self defense?
Matthew 26:52 NKJV But Jesus said to him, “Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword..”
So yes, the disciples had swords but how many times in scripture did they use them when they were being threatened with their life? Even in the old testament you never once see those who WHOLEHEARTEDLY trusting in God draw a sword to protect them from death. I believe they see death not as a bad thing but as a transition to paradise.
1 Samuel 19:20 NKJV Then Saul sent messengers to take (kill) David. And when they saw the group of prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as leader over them, the Spirit of God was upon the messengers of Saul and they prophesied also.
1 Samuel 19:23 NJKV So he (Saul) went there to Naioth in Ramah. Then the Spirit of God was upon him also, and he went on and prophesied until he came to Naioth in Ramah.
Saul has sent many groups of messengers to murder David but the presence was so strong around David and the prophets that the spirit of God fell on them, they prophesied, forgot why they were sent, and did not kill David. Then Saul probably being frustrated decided he was going to go after David himself but it says that even he was overcome with the Spirit of God and prophesied instead of killing David. David had God’s anointing, God promised his protection and God kept that promise.
Daniel 3: 16 NKJV Shadrach Meshach and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O King.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego were taken out of there home and brought into captivity but you never see it in the scriptures that they chose to fight against their captors. Even when faced with death they had faith that their God would protect them. They didn’t run when they had the chance because they were scared of death, instead they were strong in their faith because they knew God could deliver them.
Next example I will give you is Daniel. He was thrown into a den of hungry lions. These lions probably hadn’t eaten in days so at the first sight of Daniel they should have ripped him to shreds, but they didn’t. Why? Because Daniel was faithful and the circumstance around him didn’t move him or his faith.
Now onto the new testament!!! Paul and Silas were casting out devils and next thing you know they were taken to beaten and thrown in prison because of it. So wait, they were doing what God called them to do, probably having swords on them, but didn’t use them to protect themselves? Paul and Silas instead took the beatings and were thrown in prison. Now while they were in prison they weren’t complaining about how it wasn’t right and about how persecution sucks. Instead they were praying and praising God, then were released because of their obedience to God. (This story is found in Acts 16!)
God even delivers people from harm nowadays without the need for weapons. Here is a small exert from Kenneth Copeland’s book, The Blessing of the Lord. ‘One time Gloria and I were in Los Angeles with a minister friend of ours, touring a really tough neighborhood where that church had some outreaches. Right in the middle of part of the city filled with drug dealers and crack houses, he pointed out a little lady who was sweeping the sidewalk with her broom. “That woman isn’t afraid of anyone,” he said. “She keeps the whole block clean. There’s not a drug dealer in Los Angeles who will touch her. If anyone tried to peddle drugs near her house, she’ll point her finger in his face and say, ‘I’m telling you right now, you aren’t touching this place in the Name of Jesus! I plead the blood.'” Jesse Winley, one of the great faith men of the 20th century, did much the same thing when he began a ministry years ago in the middle of the worst part of Harlem. The area was so dangerous that one time some chain-carrying, knife-wielding gang members came after him while he was preaching. They scared the congregation so much that everyone ran off except Jesse Winley. He jumped off the platform, charged right up to those gang members and stuck his bible out at them like a sword. When he did, the power of God fell on them and they all threw down their weapons.’
That same power that was used by the old lady and Jesse can be accessed by us today if we wholeheartedly trust God with no plan b. We as Christians have placed guns on a high place where God should be and have placed God on the shelf. Our statements that say “I trust God will protect me but I carry a gun just in case.” is demeaning to the power of God and takes you out from under His covering because you are relying on something other than him.
So to end this I ask you, What is your weapon of choice? You can’t choose the sword of the Spirit, the shield of faith, and a gun just in case those first ones don’t come through for you, because 100% of the time if not all your faith is in God and some of it is in that secondary thing you aren’t walking by faith and won’t get the benefits of faith. Which will leave you thinking God didn’t do as he said when in reality He couldn’t because you chose not to wholeheartedly have faith that He would deliver you.
So what is your weapon of Choice? Is it going to send someone to hell one day or will it further the Kingdom of God?
