Guns don’t kill people. Haters kill people. And if they don’t have guns they’ll do it with knives, box cutters, pressure cooker bombs, vans of fertilizer, poison Tylenol, tire irons, or anything else they can get their hands on. When guns are confiscated or banned for law abiding citizens, law abiding citizens will be victimized in even greater numbers by those haters.
Some ask, “But if Jesus promises to protect us, why do we need guns?”
The same question could be asked another way: If one is saved by Jesus, why fight against cancer or any potentially terminal illness, grieve victims of car wrecks, or fret about any death? Just accept death and move on. Faith in Christ does not protect us physically from the consequences of evil choices, our own or those of others, or the brokenness of the world in general. But it does assure that if God’s will has been fulfilled in our lives, IF we are physically threatened in life, God may choose to allow us to come home rather than miraculously spare us (although sometimes he does exactly that!) . Ultimately, God’s will for us is salvation and restoration to eternal relationship with him. If God allows it and is ready for me to come home, I’m ready, but I’m not putting myself or those I love in a position to be taken out tragically because of unwillingness to protect myself or my loved ones from evil.
I grew up around guns in my own and family’s and friends’ homes. It was the norm in rural areas, and still is. I never knew of anyone other than one person killed by another hunter who accidentally dropped a gun while walking up steps and of one college age young man who foolishly played Russian Roulette on a dare and was permanently disabled for his youthful folly of presumed invincibility.
As an adult I can recall three individuals, all older adults, who have committed suicide with their own handgun. Two were alcoholics in recovery. One of those two I would have had concern for if I had had any idea of access to a gun. The third was an elderly WWll veteran who struggled in his later years with paranoia. Few people in the 1970’s understood the dynamics of PTSD or it’s mental health risks…… These are sad situations for everyone, but inability to cope with one’s struggles, usually by denying them or hiding them from others who could help can lead to very dark places in the mind.
“Cain killed Abel with a rock. It’s not what’s in the hand…… it’s what’s in the heart.”