Give No Resistance To Evil

[Sheila]

In the ways and beliefs of Jesus Christ, Leo Tolstoy,Mahatma Gandhi and all other pacifists. Give no resistance to evil.

There are some who walk our world trying to elicit pity and compassion for others in an open provocation to breed hatred and war. They delight in stirring emotions that best cause an outpouring of love and compassion for those they seek to destroy or are destroying. The evil's greatest weapon is to try to use our love against us. The more we react and give them the reaction they desire--the more they will do these things against others.

The minute we react, we cost many others their lives in trying to defend the lives of the ones they have come against------"Fighting for peace is like having sex for chastity." Stephen King.

The hardest thing for us is to stand down while atrocities are being committed, but when we react even more atrocities are committed--by us. Evil delights in such as this.

I've been reading a lot lately and have to agree with the people listed at the top. Stand down and do not lift a hand to defend against evil, if we raise a hand against, we have then become a weapon in the hands of evil. It becomes a non-ending vicious cycle of evil and pain.

Does this mean that I can stand by and watch others be slaughtered, myself or my family? My heart is torn, because my first reaction has ALWAYS been to fight back. Why would such and evil exist to begin with? What we are each given on this planet is ourselves within our own space and no one has the right to invade it. We find it nearly impossible to stand back and watch evil done to others or have it done to us and yet evil plays upon this.

These are the things that I'm having an internal fight with. I know that when a child is doing wrong, if they're ignored then they stop what they're doing because no reaction was forthcoming. I've done this many times and it never fails. But, when it's on such a large scale and lives are at stake it becomes one of the most unbearable things to witness. I am becoming a pacifist, it's where my heart is and in these things some become martyrs--as Jesus, the apostles, Gandhi and many others have. To me only a true pacifist is a martyr although others have been labeled as such.

Do you lean to the right hand of God or to the left? Do you walk boldly towards the truth or run from it? The more wisdom gained--the more pain and despair felt. HOW do we end this vicious cycle?

[ILG]

Interesting thoughts. I think there is a place to be a pacifist. But there is also a place to fight and maybe even kill. But I don't claim to know where one ends and the other begins.

[Sheila]

I have actually been close to both places. When we are placed in a situation where our personal survival is at stake, I found it impossible NOT to fight for my life. But I will never seek a fight nor fight again if I can walk away----if cornered? I would probably fight back.

[ILG]

Originally Posted by Sheila

I have actually been close to both places. When we are placed in a situation where our personal survival is at stake, I found it impossible NOT to fight for my life. But I will never seek a fight nor fight again if I can walk away----if cornered? I would probably fight back.

I don't think self-defense is wrong.

[Esaias]

By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about seven days.

In other words, by faith God eliminated the defenses of a heathen city so Israel could put the inhabitants to the sword.

And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:


Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,


Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.

In other words, many a godly man, prophets even, waged just war by faith.

There is a time for everything.

[Praxeas]

Faith and a Sword

[Disciple4life]

Sheila, thank you for starting this thread!

First I have not always been a pacifist. I was raised to respect and honor our country. As a child I was told that the greatest thing I could do was protect my country.
To make a long story short, I received the Holy Spirit over a decade ago.
I thought I was a pacifist. Then 9-11 happened. I was angry.
I didn't join up right away but as the years kept passing the wars kept raging, I made up my mind. I would join the military. The recruiter said "If you sign these enlistment papers you will be deployed to a warzone". I served in Afghanistan for one year. My contract with the military will be over soon and I will not re-enlist. I am done.
What everybody needs to know is that the media and the government is lying to you. The only reason we are in any foreign war is to feed the military industrial complex. We are there to make money. The more unstable the world is the more weapons we can sell and the more nations we can go help.

The only just war is a war of defense from invasion. We should protect our borders.
A great book I can recommend is War is a Racket by Smedley Butler.
He was a general that came to same conclusions that I have. He goes through the laundry list of excuses to go to war.

To help people. Funny we never help Africa out and there has been countless genocides there.

To spread democracy. Yeah, that kind of sounds like England and France when they were helping savages by taking over their countries and ruling over them. Sound like an Empire to me.

For the women. I actually agree that all people should be treated fairly but us going into a country does not help the situation. In Afghanistan the women are treated just about the same as before. Yeah they might have one or two schools that girls can attend, but the media hypes this and plays the same footage over and over. The culture over there has not changed. They have been invaded for thousands of years and eventually the invaders go home. The Afghanis know this. That is why they hold onto their culture.

I could go on and on. but I won't. Every tax paying citizen should read War is a Racket. IT GIVES ANSWERS TO ALL THE WARMONGERS QUEATIONS!!!

For the record I want to state that I still love my country. Just because I want us to do the right thing does not make me less patriotic.

As for being forced to fight for my own self defense? I tell you what this is a question that gets brought up time after time. Most people go throughout their whole life and never get into a fight. Every fight I have ever been in I was willing to throw down. I didn't start the fight but I was not going to let somebody talk trash to me. This was decades ago. I have since grown up. I don't care what anybody says or thinks. BUT if someone broke into my house and I could not retreat with my family, yes I would protect myself and them without a second thought. BUT really I am not worried about it. It hasn't happened yet.

Sorry this was so long. I will stop. I think I am ranting.

Oh and if you know anyone who wants to join the military please, please try to talk them out of it.

[ILG]

I would hate to fight for our country. Innocents killing innocents for who know what reason.

[Sheila]

Evil can't fight evil or it's like the blind leading the blind. Thanks for the answers.

Fighting for peace is like having sex for chastity--Stephen King