The meaning of important Bible passages has been twisted over the years to support all kinds of nonsense, and left-wing pastors have led the charge. I don’t know the biblical theology or doctrine of this pastor or church, only that they are of the Baptist persuasion. The last two Baptist pastors I have had have both encouraged me to carry my sidearm to church.
The sixth commandment (Exodus 20:13) is translated into English in the King James Version of the Bible as: “Thou shalt not kill.” Now that sounds pretty black and white. Don’t kill. Anything. Anytime. For any reason, even to save your sorry rear end, or your pastor’s life.
The Hebrew word translated in the King James translation of the Bible (KJV) as “kill” is actually a word that denotes the taking of life in an illegal, immoral or criminal manner. The meaning of the word “kill” in modern English is quite broad and does not necessarily indicate a criminal act (“The vegetarian killed a head of lettuce for his salad”). A more precise and correct translation of the sixth commandment reads in modern English: “You shall not murder” (New International Version, NIV, and other translations). The word “murder” in modern English is quite different from the word “kill.” Murder requires criminal intent, and is the criminal, willful, unjustified taking of a human life, something that is clearly wrong. “But if a man schemes and kills another man deliberately, take him away from my altar and put him to death (Exodus 21:14).” God apparently doesn’t have any problem with the death penalty for murderers, either.
In other passages, the Bible instructs us that killing in defense of self or our family is fully justified. “If a thief is caught breaking in and is struck so that he dies, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed.” (Exodus 22:2).
Nehemiah records that workers routinely carried weapons for protection during the rebuilding of the wall around Jerusalem. “…Those who carried materials did their work with one hand and held a weapon in the other, [suP]18[/suP] and each of the builders wore his sword at his side as he worked... (Nehemiah 4: 17 – 18).”
One of the most direct passages in the Bible supporting our right and duty to defend ourselves is found in Luke 22:36. Here, just before Christ was arrested, He told His disciples “He who has no sword should sell his coat and buy one.” This is no small instruction. Most people living in this time didn’t have closets full of coats and shoes and clothes like we do today. Telling someone to “sell his coat” could very likely have entailed a significant sacrifice, particularly for Christ’s disciples, who generally left behind everything they had to follow Him. Christ appears to be telling His disciples that having and carrying a sword, a personal weapon, a means of self-defense, is important enough that, if necessary, they should sell the clothes off their back in order to do so. It is perhaps equivalent to being told today to “sell your only car and go buy a gun”.
My prayers are with the pastor’s family, friends and congregation. An armed person in the congregation might or might not have had time to make a difference. But they would have had a chance.
