This is a tough question for the Christian gun owner. Romans 13 and 1 Pet. 2 tell the believer to obey government.
How about in this case?
As a Christian I am not called upon to obey laws that run counter to freedoms that were endowed to me by my Creator.
If I were a LEO or in the military and my government told me to fire on protesters, I would not comply.
It's a real dilemma for inerrancy advocates, literalists and Sola Scriptura followers, isn't it.
“This is a tough question for the Christian gun owner. Romans 13 and 1 Pet. 2 tell the believer to obey government.”
Sure!
Worship this golden calf statue, or this golden effigy of Nebuchadnezzar as it goes by and you hear the flutes pipes and drums.
Embrace sin and evil because government told you to, after all you must obey the government, right?
Sorry, you’ll be hard pressed to find peole to bow to Molech with you out of obeyance.
UM, no,they dont tell you that. When this country was founded certain legal documents defining the govts role etc were agreed upon by the govt and people. Fast forward to now that agreement is (and has been) broken by the govt. We’re in no way compelled to obey a govt thats overstepped its authority.
The former is based upon a complete misreading of Paul's letter to the Romans. In the Roman enclave of the day, per the Treaty of the Maccabees, the leaders of the Jewish people, "appointed by G_d" were rabbis. They had their own laws, their own judges, and their own policing separate from Roman civil authority.
Welll, our Revolutionary ancestors were by a large firm Christians, but that did not deter them in rebelling an oppressive government. They were, after all, loyal subjects of the King at that time “When in the course of human events ...” and all that.
A Christian question? There are many single passages that preachers like to pull out of their hats. Give them a new one.
Try Luke 22:36-38.
{22:36} Then said Jesus unto them, But now, he that
hath a purse, let him take [it,] and likewise [his] scrip: and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one.
{22:37} For I say unto you, that this that is written must yet be accomplished in me, And he was reckoned among the
transgressors: for the things concerning me have an end.
{22:38} And they said, Lord, behold, here [are] two swords.
And he said unto them, It is enough.
Yet the martyrs of imperial Rome were killed for refusing a government order ... to burn a pinch of incense to the emperor.
His Execrable Majesty Baracula will get no incense from me.
“This is a tough question for the Christian gun owner. Romans 13 and 1 Pet. 2 tell the believer to obey government.
How about in this case?”
The Bible does not command believers to do anything illegal or immoral. In my opinion the New York gun law is both of those things and believers are not obliged to obey an unjust law.
St. Augustine addresses this point in his famous comment: “An unjust law is no law at all.”
No one has an obligation to obey injustice. To the contrary, both Peter and John preached The Word after the Romans made Christianity illegal and I can think of no better example of Christians resisting injustice than this.
“This is a tough question for the Christian gun owner. Romans 13 and 1 Pet. 2 tell the believer to obey government.”
No tough at all. U.S. is a constitutional republic. Tyrants and Emperors are in violation of the law.
“This is a tough question for the Christian gun owner. Romans 13 and 1 Pet. 2 tell the believer to obey government.”
Not tough at all for me. U.S. is a constitutional republic. Tyrants and Emperors are in violation of the law.
The government itself is breaking the law by abridging citizens’ Second Amendment rights.
I know of three guys whose government told them that they had to bow down and worship a statue whenever they heard music.
They didn’t do it.
The constitution enshrines the notion that the people are the government. The 2nd Amendment states that the right to keep and bear arms “shall not be infringed”. It becomes then easy as to what choices a Christian gun owner should be make.
Could you lose your salvation for surrendering your gun? How about if you kill someone that is infringing on your ability to defend your home or family? I don’t think so. Although we will be judged, in neither case would we lose our salvation. We always have a choice. My God cares more about motives than actions.
From a purely theological perspective, disregarding the current violatons of constitutional law; that’s not what Romans 13 says anyway. This text is specific to “powers” ... “for there is no power but of God”. If you choose to believe that this government has POWER over the PEOPLE, then you’re actually in the wrong book. You should be reading the charter for this nation, the Constitution, instead. Romans 13 is very clear that this tribute is to be paid “to whom tribute is due”. 1 Peter 2 must be read in context as well; it is specific to submission to your “masters” , which isn’t the way this country is organized.
Have you ever heard of the Doctrine of the Lesser Magistrate?
Our Founding Fathers did, and they used it as the Biblically correct way to throw off the tyranny of the English Crown.