DON'T TAKE YOUR GUNS TO TOWN- PART 1

by CharlesRobey
(Trussville, AL USA)

DON'T TAKE YOUR GUNS TO TOWN
(Please read Romans 13:1-7, in prep for this blog.)

Do you remember that old Johnny Cash lyric, "Don't Take Your Guns to Town"?

Don't Take Your Guns to Town was a 1958 single by Johnny Cash, telling the story of a young cowboy who, ignoring the down-to-earth advice from his mother, gets into a saloon gunfight and is killed. This single became his fifth release to reach the number one position on the country chart. (Taken from Wikipedia.org)

The song is quite lengthy, but the chorus goes like this:
Don't take your guns to town, son
Leave your guns at home, Bill
Don't take your guns to town.
(The complete lyrics may be found on the internet.)

Now, I realize this fictional characterization was typical of the old West depicting an "anything goes" lifestyle. But what if it happened today? Would an individual have the right of defense, outside of his rightful abode? And would this scenario be against the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution?

As we see in our introductory scripture, the apostle Paul gives Christians a certain specific direction, with respect to authority.
In (Romans 13:1) we see that all authority is established by God. In (Romans 13:2) we see Christians being instructed by God. In (Romans 13:4-6) we see that God had given the authorities the power to maintain order. Therefore, the believer is to submit to authorities (Romans 13:1,5), pay their taxes (Romans 13:6) and give the authorities the proper respect (Romans 13:7).

However, I realize too that authority will sometimes overstep this authority, as in the case of the Second Amendment.

Thus, I preempt this blog by stating, " It's people control, not gun control, that is grossly needed.

The Second Amendment (Amendment II) to the United States Constitution is the part of the United States Bill of Rights that protects the right of the people to keep and bear arms. It was adopted on December 15, 1791, along with the rest of the Bill of Rights.

The Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution states - A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

In 2008 and 2010, the Supreme Court issued two landmark decisions officially establishing this interpretation. In District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008), the Court ruled that the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to possess a firearm, unconnected to service in a militia and to use that arm for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home within many longstanding prohibitions and restrictions on firearms possession listed by the Court as being consistent with the Second Amendment. In McDonald v. Chicago, 561 U.S. 3025 (2010), the Court ruled that the Second Amendment limits state and local governments to the same extent that it limits the federal government.)

Yes, from the very beginning of human history the doctrine of self-defense has played a central role in the firearms debate.

But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever."(I Timothy 5:8)

In (Exodus 22:2-4), the Scripture addresses the Mosaic Law's edict of a thief. If a thief was killed during a nighttime theft, the homeowner was not liable. However, if the thief broke in during the daytime, and the homeowner killed him, a murder had taken place with the homeowner being guilty. This shows me the early Scriptural Jewish laws did not necessarily support all usage of deadly force by individuals to defend property. It did, however, support the use of deadly force by individuals to protect the lives of family members.

One of the strongest Biblical proofs is in (Luke 22:36,38) where Jesus instructed his followers to sell some of their clothes and buy a sword, and they indicated they had two swords among the twelve of them.

Jesus not only upheld His disciples' right to carry a weapon, but also held them responsible for its use, as when Peter cut off the ear of the soldier who had come to take Jesus away (Matthew 26:47-52). In doing so, Jesus also warned that those using a weapon took a great risk of escalating a conflict. Nonetheless, He didn't say they had no right to fight.

Realizing that the Bible was written with a mid-eastern flair, and also realizing that the Bible is just as applicable today in guiding our walk, then we must compare these mid-eastern demographics to those of today. The reference given then, when referring to the weapon of choice being a sword is just as applicable to today's weapons. In comparing the ancient swords with the weapons used today to affect injury or death, nowhere in the Jewish law did I find a rash political decision to register the swords.

The only reason there seems to now be controversy about the Second Amendment is that many highly vocal and influential modern Americans reject the two factors of the Second Amendment, that being elementary common sense and a basic principle. The words of our founders make clear they believed the individual right to own firearms was very important.

Thomas Jefferson said, "No free man shall be debarred the use of arms."

Patrick Henry said, "The great object is, that every man be armed."

Richard Henry Lee wrote that, "to preserve liberty it is essential that the whole body of people always possess arms."

Thomas Paine noted, "Arms discourage and keep the invader and the plunderer in awe, and preserve order in the world as well as property."

Samuel Adams warned that: "The said Constitution be never construed to authorize Congress to infringe the just liberty of the press, or the rights of conscience; or to prevent the people of the United States, who are peaceable citizens, from keeping their own arms."

This country did not come to its birth because a group of taxed patriots dumped British tea into Boston Harbor. It was born because a handful of colonists resisted the attempt of the mother country to impose gun control on Massachusetts. On the morning of April 19, 1775, a handful of people who understood and appreciated freedom risked life and limb to oppose the confiscation of their weapons. Their "shot heard ‘round the world" began a war of defense that became our War for Independence. What they believed and why they were willing to die for their beliefs was later summarized for us in the second amendment to our Constitution.

Your opinion, please !