I thought we were talking about the Christian response to the question “Is Just War ever acceptable?” If you are referring to the world then anything they do is correct according to their Prince the Devil. But, if we are speaking of Christians, individually and not as a group, then my answer stands, Just War is not acceptable nor is the violent response against any enemy acceptable according to the N.T. It does not matter how I personally might respond, it only matters what the Bible says and the example of Christ, His Apostles, and how the primitive Church understood their teaching.
First, we must discount the O.T. as the final authority in this matter. The O.T. has been rewritten and only the N.T. can be used as evidence to settle the matter. Hebrews 8:7-8 “For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second. For he finds fault with them when he says: “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.” Hebrews 9:15-17 “Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. For where a will is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established. For a will takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive.” John 16:16 “The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached.” Matthew 5:39 “You have heard it said an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth but I tell you do not resist an evil person.” There are other verses I could quote but I am afraid you are tired of reading, but it clear from the verse above that the O.T. cannot be used to prove “Just War.”
All of this does not say that I would remain still and allow an innocent person to be harmed. The correct response for a Christian is to try and prevent any harm to the victim but do no harm. As lambs and doves are pictures of the Christian we can only be non-violent. As far as approving of other fighting I can only direct them to teaching of Christ. Each of us will stand alone before the Great Judge. You are not disagreeing with me you are disagreeing with Scripture. I do not portray myself as holy I am only repeating what the Bible says. Doesn’t the Bible tell us to not lean on our own understanding? And if you try and use the O.T. in your defense before God you will not have a leg to stand on. Luke 9:56 “For the Son of Man didn't come to destroy men's lives, but to save them.”
What governments and nations do has no bearing on the subject, they are of this world, Christians are subjects of God and subject to Him only. All of government and the laws of men are the products of rebellion and independence from God and anyone who puts themselves under those governments will suffer the same consequences as that government. Christians have only One Master and King.
I would like other people to reply to this, to make sure I'm not missing something, because I have asked over and over again what would you as a Christian do in that situation, and no matter the length of all of your replies, you have still not provided a single direct answer. What does "being like a dove" mean when people are being hacked to death in front of you? What does "try and prevent any harm" mean when people are literally being beheaded in front of you for their faith? Ask them to stop?
I assume you are not Catholic, but even Pope Francis said he would punch someone who insulted his mother.
And yes, the struggle of Christian peoples and nations to stand up against horrific oppression is exactly the whole point of this thread. To dismiss the centuries, sometimes millennia-long struggles of these peoples, many who have given and sacrificed all for their faith and fellow man, as the business "of this world," as if it's not an intensely Christian matter...is something I do not agree with, to put it mildly.
It seems in your worldview, or what you are trying to present as the teachings of Jesus, in theory every single last Christian can be wiped off the face of the planet, and that's ok, just as long as they don't engage in any violence to save themselves or others?
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