When is it ok to kill?

[DrPepper]

When is it ok to kill?
Many people serving in the armed forces are christians, many of them will have killed, is it ok for them to kill?
Is it ok to kill under any circumstances?

 

[Faith In God]

Dunno. I don't think Jesus would be in the frontlines of a war or in basic training learning how to take out the enemy.

 

[Riddick]

It's ok to kill in self-defense --- just have a good excuse handy, a very good one
Notice how I dodged the wartime situation, I don't have a good answer for that one.

 

[DrPepper]

It's ok to kill in self-defense --- just have a good excuse handy, a very good one

Is it? What about turning the other cheek?

 

[Faith In God]

Is it? What about turning the other cheek?

exactly. no need to harm when GOD IS IN CONTROL! there is no reason to sin just to save your life. your life is God's, bought with a price.

 

[Riddick]

Is it? What about turning the other cheek?

what happens when the gun barrel is placed on your forehead? will it matter which cheek you present?

 

[Faith In God]

what happens when the gun barrel is placed on your forehead? will it matter which cheek you present?

Jesus looked Judas full in the face. it was not literal.

 

[Sketcher]

I personally couldn't forgive myself if I knowingly killed an unbeliever. I would have just sent someone to hell, there's no getting him back. I also couldn't forgive myself if my inaction allowed malicious people to harm the innocent. Sometimes you have to kill in order to protect. Turning the other cheek means turning your own cheek. That does not mean that you refrain from taking action to protect other people. I do not judge soldiers because for all I know, this is their motivation.

 

[TheMainException]

It is not okay to kill any time you feel like it...but you are to listen to your leader and if your leader tells you to go into war, you go...there are many things that make up a war that is okay in God's sight. Here are the things that I found that make a war "justifide" on backtothebible.org...
1. A just war can only be waged as a last resort, after reasonable attempts to bring justice have been exhausted.
2. A just war can only be waged by a legitimate authority. People, vigilantes, terrorists do not wage just wars; only a legitimate government is permitted to wage a war that can be considered justifide.
3. A just war can only be fought to redress wrongs taht have been committed. A first strike attack on a nation that has committed no atrocities cannot be considered justice; that's aggression.
4. A just war can only be fought with "right" intentions. War is not justified to gain control of another nation, it's assets or it's people. If the right intention for going to war is not present, justice is not present.
5. A just war can only be fought if there is reasonable chance of success. Deaths and injury incurred in a hopeless cause are not morally justifiable.
6. A just war can only be fought if the ultimate goal is to re-establish peace. More specifically, war is not justified if the situation in a country cannot be reasonably expected to be better after the war than before.
7. A just war must never allow the force used jto be disproportional to the need. Nation must be prohibited from using force not necessary to attain the limited objective of addressing the wrongs that have been committed.
8. A just war must employ weapons and tactics that discriminate between combatants and non-combatants. Innocent civilians are never permissible targets of war, and war can only be just if every effort is made to avoid civilian casualties.

Those are things that make it okay to kill and why war is okay. Also we are helping the needy there and need to free them, as Psalm 82:4 says. But it is also written that thou shalt not murder. So, killing outside of war must be murder, but killing if your president says so in a war that is just must be okay.

 

[TheMainException]

Dunno. I don't think Jesus would be in the frontlines of a war or in basic training learning how to take out the enemy.

That's because it wasn't his line of work.

It's ok to kill in self-defense --- just have a good excuse handy, a very good one
Notice how I dodged the wartime situation, I don't have a good answer for that one.

I don't think that it's okay to kill in self defense either. We are to turn the other cheek and not resist an evil person. Doesn't this mean, don't kill at all, and do not murder and love thy neighbor as thy self?

 

[Evee]

Is there such a thing as righteous killing? I go by the new testament and I don't think Jesus would have directed a war.
War brings on more killing.
when will it ever end?

 

[Underdog77]

I believe that killing is just if done for any of the following reasons:
1) self-defense-God said to turn the other cheek but that is assumesing you are alive to do it! You can't forgive when you're dead. I don't have any Scriptures right now to back me up but I don't believe God has any problem with self-defense even if we have to take another's life to do it.

2) war- If the war is a just war, then for the most part it is self-defense on a larger scale. God has absolutely no problem with just (meaning righteous/correct in purpose) war. Does it not say in the Bible that Lord is a warrior? God helped the Israelites when they were attacked by the Philistines, etc... And He actually commanded them to go to war.

3) punishment- Capitol punishment is a serious issue and debated widely but God recommends it. Many of the laws given by Him included death as the punishment. Without punishment laws hold no power. If the death penalty was instituted more here in America a) crime would go down b) money would be saved on prisons and rehab etc... c) I had another reason...but can't remember .

 

[Underdog77]

I personally couldn't forgive myself if I knowingly killed an unbeliever. I would have just sent someone to hell, there's no getting him back.

You haven't sent them to hell, by not chosing God they chose hell for themselves.

 

[Underdog77]

Is there such a thing as righteous killing? I go by the new testament and I don't think Jesus would have directed a war.

Jesus' purpose when He was first here on earth was to seek and to save the lost BUT Jesus Himself will lead war. When he comes back after (or is it during the very last day) the seven years of tribulation, He will lead the saints against those who oppose Him and millions will be killed. The is such a thing as a just war. Many have been held in the past. At least one more will happen in the furture.

 

[MikeK]

there are, sadly, certain situations when it would be terrible NOT to kill another man. Think of a police officer who has come upon a man who has opened fire upon a crowd of people. If you are that police officer, you have but two choices..return fire, taking the killer's life, or do nothing and watch as he mows the crowd down. Which is more sinful? Killing an evil man to protect the innocent, or standing by as th eevil man kills the innocent? Ditto th ewar situation. People at Pearl Harbor, attempting to shoot down th eattacking Japaneese planes certainly were not sinning.

 

[Henry Ross]

War is an absolute necessity there are times you have to retaliate.

No one likes war but you have to be ready to fight for your country and the rights of the citizens.

 

[brinley45cal]

Is it? What about turning the other cheek?

The reason he said to turn the other cheek is back then it was an insult if someone slaped you on the cheek with the back of there hand.So that was talking about being insulted not letting someone kill you.
Read John 15:14,so as you can see by this scripture that when protecting ones family or neighbor,a christian is unselfishly risking his or her life for the sake of others. Here are some other scriptures to check out.

Luke 22:36-38
Matthew 5:38-48
John 18:22-23
Romans 12:17-21
John 8:59
exodus 12:41, 22:2-3
Hebrews 11:30-40
Matthew 8:5-13
Luke3:14
And i can probably come up with some more if needed.God Bless

 

[Faith In God]

"Do to others as you would have them do to you."

Would you like for someone to KILL YOU?!

Then don't do it to anyone else!

To do so would be going against Jesus' teaching!

 

[brinley45cal]

"Do to others as you would have them do to you."

Would you like for someone to KILL YOU?!

Then don't do it to anyone else!

To do so would be going against Jesus' teaching!

To kill and to murder are two different things.You need to know the difference.

 

[Faith In God]

To kill and to murder are two different things.You need to know the difference.

Yes, but where is the line? Without direct commune with God, how can you know when to come close to sin? ie the Israelites killed in war, but God was their ruler. Our nation (US) is most definately NOT a nation 'under God' as it tries to acclaim.