A challenge to Christian pacifists
I have been contacted by many Christian pacifists since I first wrote Christianity and Pacifism after the events of September 11, 2001. Some claim that I am going to hell, some beg me to learn how to love my enemies and others voice their concern in a reasonable manner. All of them, I presume, have good intentions, even if some are a little misguided.
The Bible calls us to “Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy. Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked.” (Psalm 82:3-4) According to a Jewish translation, Leviticus 19:16 reads, “You shall not stand by [the shedding of] your fellow’s blood. I am the Lord.” We can’t sit idly by while people suffer. Prayer is essential, but we must also take action.
Absolute pacifism is an easy solution. Believe me, I wish things could be simple like that. I like black and white. Yet, if God is a pacifist, we have a problem: God commanded the Israelites to go to war, but Jesus said we should “turn the other cheek.” Apparently we have a contradiction. So far, I have received the following solutions from pacifists (I’m not making these up):
1. The God of the New Testament is not the God of the Old Testament
2. God experimented with the Israelites and came to the conclusion that pacifism is best (in other words, God himself has matured into a more loving being)
3. The Israelites were not ready for the deep commitment required by pacifism, so God incorporated war when dealing with them even though he actually despised it
My challenge to Christian pacifists is this: Explain why one of the above solutions is not heresy or provide a fourth one that resolves the contradiction without the use of heretical ideas.
Incidentally, my interpretation does not involve any contradictions. The Bible says that “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forevermore” (Hebrews 13:8). If this is true, then there cannot be any contradictions between the Old and New testaments. The non-pacifist understands that the Old Testament was written mainly for governments, while the New Testament was written for individuals. Where they overlap, they express the same ideas.
For example, Leviticus 19:18 says that individuals are to love their neighbors as themselves. In Deuteronomy 32:35 God says, “Vengeance is mine.” Exodus 20:13 says, “You shall not murder.” Yet, none of these commandments prevented God from telling the Israelites in Numbers 35:31, “Moreover you shall take no ransom for the life of a murderer who is guilty of death, but he shall surely be put to death.” In the New Testament, when talking about the government, Paul says, “For [the governing authority] is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil.” (Romans 13:4) The difference, as seen in both the Old and New testaments, is that the government is required to punish evildoers, while the individual is commanded not to seek revenge. There is no contradiction.
God is unchanging, and He has not changed. But your interpretation of scripture is contrary to what Jesus said of ALL scripture. He said, “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.” (John 5:39) In short, all the OT scriptures you quoted are about the relationship between man and Christ, NOT between men.
God did use the Israelites to bring in the Messianic age. It says so in scripture: speaking of the Law (of which you quote), “who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern showed to thee in the mount.” (Hebrews 8:5). The OT Israel provided for us a pattern or picture of the relationship between man and Christ, NOT man and man.
Pacifism, in and of itself can become its own God, but pacifism as an expression of love is exactly what Christ commanded of us all.
Our warfare is spiritual, not physical.
The CommonMan Commentaries