The Only Way to Truly Accomplish Good in the World is With a Truly Good Weapon

A difficulty that has hounded Christians for many centuries has been determining what power is right to be used by the Church and what power is right to be used by the government. Along with this are questions of church and government relationships. I have come to believe firmly that the Church is not to use the same powers as the government to gain victory over its opponent. It is not my intent here to give a detailed defense of non-resistance. Rather to consider what power and weapons God has given to the State and what to the Church.

Jesus told Herod very clearly that His Kingdom was not of this world. His Kingdom was of a different world, and it uses a different weapon. Jesus stated that if His Kingdom were of this world, His followers would fight. But since His followers were not of this world, they used a different kind of weapon. I am going to continue as though this point is verified because this is not the point I wish to advance here.

The struggle for Christians has been what to do with the weapons of the state. If it is bad for the Church to use weapons of the sword or of coercion, is it bad for the state to do so as well? Many Christians seem to think so and they attempt to force the government to stop using the sword to punish evildoers by using another form of coercion, protesting. They hold forward that the government should not use violence, or at least should use it very sparingly. I find in Scripture that the government has been used by God as a mechanism to maintain life and social order in a sinful world. He uses the State and its use of the sword for good. Many people look at this and say, “Great, God ordains the state as His minister and it is used to accomplish good, and therefore, I can be a part of this.” The problem with this is that even though God is using the sword to accomplish good, He does not condone its use by men. It is an instrument of death and God is to be the one who gives and takes life. God is an expert at taking that which is not good and using it for good. Killing and death are not good, still God takes this evil and uses it to accomplish good on earth (The punishment of criminals).

One reason the Church is not to use this weapon of coercion is that the weapon is still a weapon of coercion and the death it causes is associated with the fall no matter how much good it does. Instead the Church is to use a weapon that is good and they are to use it to accomplish good. The weapon of the Church is love. This weapon seems weak and insignificant when compared to the illusion of power that comes from holding a sword or gun in your hand, but over and over the gun and the sword have been conquered by the power of love. Love is the weapon of the Kingdom and it the only way to truly accomplish good is by using a truly good tool.

(Scriptural base is Romans 13 and Jesus discussion with Herod in John 18.)

P.S.-I apologize for not informing ya’ll of my plans to visit South Carolina for a week. I did this and had no internet there. I am back with a good tan and a new post.