----- Original Message -----
Sent: June 24, 2004 07:19
Subject: [TruthTalk] Christians and
violence
Good Morning All:
Terry - I've given your question a lot of
thought over the years since we were a military family when the Lord got my
attention once more on Adak AK and I began to seriously study His Word in
order to learn His ways.
We know that He hates divorce, yet he allowed Moses
to give a bill of divorcement under the Old Covenant because of the hardness
of men's hearts. So God is a realist and He knows our frame. We
will not be free from wars and rumors of wars until Jesus returns and from
that point on He (Jesus) will be the one ruling with a rod of iron - at
which point in time there will be peace.
When we commit to follow Jesus and choose
His Kingdom over the kingdoms of this world we do not become perfected
immediately. Salvation is actually a walk of grace during which our
minds are renewed and our behavior changed until we are conformed to the image
of Christ (not just metaphorically, or figuratively, but literally) because He
will not have a bunch of people who think like devils ruling with Him
during the new millenium.
There are no exhortations to free slaves in
scripture, and yet we can be sure that God does not endorse slavery. As you
(Terry) point out there were also no lectures to Centurians to get out
of the Roman Army by Jesus, Paul, or any of the
other apostles. Our responsibility here
(from what I understand) is to judge ourselves and to deal with our own
issues, (so that He will not have to judge us in that day); and to be a
light for Him to those around us. God (who knows the beginning from the
end) can handle the world system; He has
not made us responsible to fix it or to judge it... just to be lights in it,
love people, and stay free from debt to both God and man.
Grace and Peace,
Judyt
From: Terry Clifton <
[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Good morning
family:
Let me start by saying that there are things I know to do and when
I do
them God is pleased.
There are things I think that I should do
because I think God would be
pleased.
There are things I dare not do
because I know it would not please God.
This is called fundamentalist by
some. Others call it legalism. I call
it denying self and
following Him.
Whatever it is called, it works well when you have the
answers. It even
works fairly well when you think you have the
answers. The big problem
comes when you have a desire to live a life
pleasing to the Lord, but
you are not certain how to do it. He
plainly says "I hate divorce". He
commands us not to steal. or
covet. or commit adultery. No gray areas.
Easy to follow
instructions. Do what He says. Don't do what He hates..
Then we go to war!
Bill reopened this can of worms for me a couple of days
back. Judy
responded to it. Both made some points, some good
points, yet I was
left wondering, as I have been for a long time, as to
just what God
expects of His people in time of war. Jesus and Peter
and Paul all
dealt with military men . A couple of centurions and a prison
guard as I
remember. None of them were told to give up their careers
as a
condition of salvation, so it would seem that there is a place for
Christians in the military. Still, I cannot picture Jesus leading a
bayonet charge. He said,"Love your enemy-do good to those who hate
you-turn the other cheek.
Somehow, this all has to fit together or it makes no sense.
Your
thoughts please, with verses if possible.
I would appreciate hearing, even
if, like me, you don't have the answer.
Terry
----------
"Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt,
that you may know how you ought to answer every man." (Colossians 4:6)
http://www.InnGlory.org
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