Why I Am A Conservative, Cavinist, Baptist, Evangelical Fundamentalist And A Pacifist

by Jeffrey mcconnell

There are few things that I find as satisfying as reading a good book or watching a morally challenging movie. Maybe it’s a good thriller that displays the ongoing struggle between good and evil, or the classic western portrayal of the sheriff who cannot be corrupted with any bribe but instead possesses within himself a divine mission to instil justice, save the helpless, and satisfy vengeance upon the lawless. I have a tendency to crave the just cause of a hero putting the hard hearted evil villain in his rightful place, even if that place is a grave. I am a proud conservative Calvinist, Baptist, and evangelical fundamentalist (I don’t mind the term) who is at serious odds with both the political and religious left. In light of my background information it may then seem rather strange to some that I am also a pacifist. I suppose it's time for me to explain.

What is pacifism anyways? Secular stances on pacifism roughly state that all forms of violence, war, and/or killing is unethical and is to be resisted. Many unfortunately see all pacifism in this light and many pacifist Christians unfortunately hold to this view. I however disagree for the simple fact that in the Old Covenant violence, war, and imprecatory writings harmoniously coincided with the will of God in that particular covenant (Deut 20:16-17; 1 Sam 2:6; 2 Sam 17:14; Jer 13:14, 19:7; Hab 1:5-7).

Since Christ, we have been released or freed from the law and He brought about the end of the law (Rom 10:4), rendering it outdated and obsolete (Heb 8:13). Now we look to Christ and His apostles of the new
covenant for teaching and wisdom. With this emphasis between the nature and understanding of the old and new covenants as being pivotal I tend to call my position “covenantal pacifism”, and would then define my understanding of biblical pacifism as the theological and ethical conviction that violence is incompatible within the new covenant Christian faith. Pacifism is therefore related specifically to the church era.

When I tell people of my position for peace the responses arise immediately. What about a Christian’s use of self-defense against a murderer coming into your home, or enlisting as a soldier, or staging a career in the police force? What about our participation in just wars, or sports such as football, MMA, and boxing? These are all great questions however space fails me to write on all these issues at the moment. For now let us remember to let the scripture lead us to the truth giving us the final say on our ethics and work out the practical details later. So briefly, I want to lay out the scriptures and arguments that support this specific type of pacifistic understanding.

1. The Sermon on the Mount explains in Matt 5:38-48, and Luke 6:27-36 that our enemies are to be loved, served, blessed, and prayed for. How could violent actions be justified with these commands in view. How could anyone kill their enemy and be consistent with the heart behind these words?
2. The book of Romans give a great description of the church’s ministry to our enemies (12:14-21) and heavily contrasts God’s ministry of wrath as belonging to the secular government in the next chapter—Romans 13.
3. 1 Peter 3:8-17 lays out our calling into a life of persecution as well as unjust treatment. We are to suffer as our Lord suffered and not inflict harm even if we receive it unjustly. The Lord’s suffering is used in this passage is a practical illustration for us to follow in unjust treatments.
4. Christ and the apostles exclusively modeled peace in the Gospels and Acts. Of the thirty circumstances of violence brought upon Christ and His apostles there was no violence inflicted (with the exception of Peter, who was then rebuked for his violent action by Christ Himself) but rather actions consistent with a pacifistic nature.
5. The gospel is to be lived out. How can violence play a part in any missional living where we literally live among God’s enemies, who are our former people? The gospel teaches, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” (Eph 4:32). Therefore just as Christ modelled forgiveness for His enemies in the gospel, I am likewise called to forgive mine, even forgiving them as they persecute me. The gospel preaches, “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Eph 5:1-2). Shall I not then likewise walk in love and give myself up for my enemies whom I am called to love?
6. The early church was pacifistic. This is almost without question for the church before Constantine. While there were some soldiers in the first three hundred years they were relatively small in number and violence of all sorts, including warfare, were seen as an impossible task for the Christian to commit by the most influential writers and pastors of the time.
7. Pacifistic love maintains the characteristics of the unique and supernatural love that the scripture seems to record. If we love the world as everyone else does (only loving those who love you, loving your friends, family, etc.) then how is it divine (see. Matt 5:46-47 and Luke 6:32-35)? The world ought to see our love and it's unlikely candidates as a miracle of God’s grace.

I’ll be honest there are practical scenarios and aspects of pacifism that I must work through. I do not claim to have the best answers to these questions but through careful dialogue I believe many of these things can be ironed out.

Its unfortunate that the conversation of pacifism is fringe and avoided. The view that was once almost universally believed in the church has now come to produce war in the church; ironic isn’t it? The subject of pacifism ends up doing the very thing that it sets out to avoid. I do not think that this needs to be true among the mature in the context of a healthy discussion. Despite our positions in this discussion we can all agree that as Christians we are called to seek the rich depths of God’s oracles for answers, for peaceful resolutions in conflict, for tools of reconciliation, and ultimately ask the age-old question: how should I live?

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Jeffrey McConnell is a former atheist turned devoted Christian, husband, father, and former lay apologist writer for gotquestions.org. He currently resides in Leduc Alberta attending Grace Life Church in Edmonton, with his wife Nikki and three children Austin, Elias, and Macie. You can contact Jeff at: jamcconn@gmail.com and check out The Beaten Sword: A Covenant of Peace

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