Are there guns in Heaven?

our second amendment rights are sacrosanct

Seriously? Sacrosanct?

Do you realize what that means?

I heard the statement – “Our second amendment rights are sacrosanct” this morning on the news. They were spoken by David Webb, a Sirius XM talk show host. I was shocked. But only for a moment. Then I remembered – people really do seem to believe this.

I can’t help but wonder, do they know what that means?

The number one definition of sacrosanct from dictionary.com is –

extremely sacred or inviolable:
a sacrosanct chamber in the temple.

In case I haven’t made the reference to sacrosanct and God clear enough – let’s look at the origin of the word –

1595-1605; < Latin sacrō sānctus made holy by sacred rite. See sacred, saint

Clear enough?

Now, as usual, let’s look at all of the definitions for sacrosanct –

extremely sacred or inviolable:

a sacrosanct chamber in the temple.
not to be entered or trespassed upon:

She considered her home office sacrosanct.
above or beyond criticism, change, or interference:

a manuscript deemed sacrosanct.

Again, we see, as usual – the word has been watered down over time. I’m actually surprised that the order isn’t different, with the first one being last.
What was originally intended as a word to represent / describe something from God, is being lowered to represent / describe something from people.

The first and third ones are the key to this discussion today.

People who claim to be religious – including the Christians who, by and large, are part of the “religious right” and support conservative / republican candidates – are the ones I really mean to address here. Certainly not all Christians are part of this group. Certainly people of other religions are part of the “religious right” as well. But since I’m Christian – those who claim to be Christian and support gun rights as part of the conservative agenda – this is the group I’m going to talk about / to.

Christians – should definitely know what the word sacrosanct means. If you didn’t already know – hopefully the info above has taught you something. And I invite you to reconsider your stand on “sacrosanct second amendment rights”.

Where did things go wrong?

What happened to the meaning of sacrosanct?

Like too many words in our vocabulary, and too many things in our lives – God has been removed.

That we can move from a word talking about God – to having that same word applied to buildings constructed by people – and then to documents written by people – it’s sad.

But it’s worse than that. Too many people still retain some thought of God with that word – and then think that these are God-given rights.

We need look no further than the Declaration of Independence to see that.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

These rights are not the key messages of Christianity. I’ve written about that previously in Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.

It gets worse though, since the next line is –

That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,

One line says the rights are God-given.
The very next line says those rights come from the consent of the governed.
We’ve already slipped from God to people – and haven’t even left the document that declared those rights to be God-given.

And so now, some (many?) think that having guns is a God-given right.
Therefore, some (many?) conclude that since an assault rifle is a gun – that having an assault rifle is also a God-given right.

Seriously?
Can a Christian really look at having a gun be a “God-given” right?

Jesus

Look at this, from when Jesus was arrested – and subsequently crucified –

Jesus Arrested

Lk 22:47 While he was still speaking a crowd came up, and the man who was called Judas, one of the Twelve, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him, 48 but Jesus asked him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?”
Lk 22:49 When Jesus’ followers saw what was going to happen, they said, “Lord, should we strike with our swords?” 50 And one of them struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear.
Lk 22:51 But Jesus answered, “No more of this!” And he touched the man’s ear and healed him.
Lk 22:52 Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, and the elders, who had come for him, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come with swords and clubs? 53 Every day I was with you in the temple courts, and you did not lay a hand on me. But this is your hour—when darkness reigns.”

Let me make a few points here, so the meaning isn’t lost.

Peter is the one who cut off the man’s ear. Peter was like many of us. Act first, engage brain second.
After Peter cut off the man’s ear, Jesus says “No more of this!”
Unlike us, Jesus always engages His brain before acting. Even more than that, He looks at the Father’s will, then engages His mouth, and often doesn’t act at all, other than to speak. In this case – His action was to heal the man.
And after that – Jesus still doesn’t act. He speaks more words. He points out that He is not leading a rebellion that would require the soldiers to have swords and clubs. Why aren’t the swords and clubs needed? Because – yes, Jesus is leading a rebellion of sorts – but it’s not the normal rebellion with swords and clubs. Today – it’s not a rebellion that uses guns, assault rifles, IEDs, bombs, Etc. It just isn’t. And where these things are used in His name – it’s a sin.

ʾelohiym

Using Jesus’ name like that is a sin because from way back in Exodus, we read –

Ex 20:7 “You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.

To use the name of God – or even the implication of His name, which would and is intended to make others think His name is associated with something – is that not a sin? Is that something that – as Christians – we should be doing?

Are we not giving God a bad name when we try to claim that we have God-given rights to own guns?
And how much worse is it when we claim we have a God-given right to own assault rifles?

Yes – people kill.
Guns don’t kill – in and of themselves – without a person pulling the trigger.

Paul

However –

Ro 14:13 Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother’s way. 14 As one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am fully convinced that no food is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean. 15 If your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy your brother for whom Christ died. 16 Do not allow what you consider good to be spoken of as evil. 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, 18 because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men.
Ro 14:19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. 20 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. 21 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother to fall.

What we read here is an impassioned plea from Paul to others who are following Christ. He’s talking about not eating certain kinds of meat. At that time, there was much discussion and concern over the different beliefs between the Jewish people and those following the teachings of Jesus. Paul was telling the other followers of Jesus (today’s Christians) not to put any stumbling blocks in the way of the Jewish people who also wanted to follow Jesus.

Look at those last few verses again –

20 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. 21 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother to fall.

This was “only” about meat. Although meat wasn’t going to kill anyone, it was a major issue for the Jews when it to came to following Jesus. Why? Because the previous commandments about what to eat came from God in the Old Testament – and the Jewish people were trying to follow that commandment.

Jesus (again)

Jesus changed that – and said that all meat was OK to eat.

Mk 7:14 Again Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen to me, everyone, and understand this. 15 Nothing outside a man can make him ‘unclean’ by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of a man that makes him ‘unclean.’’”
Mk 7:17 After he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about this parable. 18 “Are you so dull?” he asked. “Don’t you see that nothing that enters a man from the outside can make him ‘unclean’? 19 For it doesn’t go into his heart but into his stomach, and then out of his body.” (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods “clean.”)
Mk 7:20 He went on: “What comes out of a man is what makes him ‘unclean.’ 21 For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. 23 All these evils come from inside and make a man ‘unclean.’ ”

Again – Paul wrote about meat. Nothing that could kill.

How much more important is the topic of guns? And even more so – assault rifles?

If Paul wrote that about meat – what would he say about guns and assault rifles?

If Jesus told Peter not to use a sword on the man who was with the Roman soldiers who were about to arrest Him and begin the process that would end with His horrible death on the cross – how much more would He say about guns and assault rifles?

Notice that Jesus did include “murder” in His statement about what makes a man unclean in Mark 7:21. Yes – they had swords and clubs in His time. Does anyone honestly think He would have excluded guns and assault rifles from that statement about murder?

Have you gotten it yet?

Hopefully – I’ve made you think.

But if you need more, here it is.

Isaiah (from Yâhovah)

This is from Isaiah, talking about his prophecy – given to him by The LORD – concerning the end times.

The Mountain of the LORD

Isa 2:1 This is what Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:

Isa 2:2 In the last days
the mountain of the LORD’S temple will be established
as chief among the mountains;
it will be raised above the hills,
and all nations will stream to it.
Isa 2:3 Many peoples will come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the house of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways,
so that we may walk in his paths.”
The law will go out from Zion,
the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
Isa 2:4 He will judge between the nations
and will settle disputes for many peoples.
They will beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will not take up sword against nation,
nor will they train for war anymore.

Isa 2:5 Come, O house of Jacob,
let us walk in the light of the LORD.

Again – here’s what we’ll see in the end –

They will beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will not take up sword against nation,
nor will they train for war anymore.

At that time, people knew swords and spears. And they were told these instruments of death would be converted to plowshares and pruning hooks. Do you think it was just coincidence that the tools of death would be turned into tools used for life? What was used to kill people, people who God created – would be turned into tools for growing plants, plants that God created.