On December 29th, a gunman opened fire during communion at a church in a small Texas community. In less than 10 seconds, the gunman killed two congregants before being killed by members of the church’s security team. Before police had left the scene of the crime, various opinions about the shooting began to spread.

One of the most pronounced but certainly minority opinions about the tragedy addressed the question of whether or not churches should have armed security teams. This particular opinion tends to be rooted in an understanding of Matthew 5:38-42 that forbids self-defense or defense of others by lethal means. For those that are not immediately familiar with Matthew 5:38-42, it reads

You have heard that it was said, “Eye of eye, and tooth for tooth.” But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

Matthew 5:38-42

In verses 38-42, Jesus is correcting a misunderstanding of God’s law regarding how we ought to relate to others. Specifically, Jesus is addressing the matter of lex talionis, that is, “an eye for an eye” approach to punishment. On a personal level, Jesus commands us to abandon an “eye for an eye” approach to conflict and insult. Instead, Jesus calls us to selflessness. When we are insulted, which is the most likely meaning of the phrase, “when someone slaps you on the cheek,” Jesus calls us to not return insult for insult. When we are personally oppressed or defrauded, our inclination should not be to oppress or defraud in return, but rather, to entrust ourselves to God who watches over us. Furthermore, we are called to be generous to those who are in need. At the heart of this selfless response from Jesus’ disciples is a belief in a big God who can care for me. The greater our understanding of God is, the bigger vision that we have of his mercy and grace, the more selfless we will be as disciples of Jesus.

However, we must recognize that Jesus is not repudiating the idea of lex talionis on a civic or government level. The Bible teaches that on a civic level, the punishment should fit the crime and governments have an indispensable role to play in this punishment. Romans 13:1-7 and 1 Peter 2:13-17 make it clear that the government is ordained by God to “punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.”

How, then, should Christians understand the presence of an armed security team in the church? While acknowledging that some dear friends and fellow brothers and sisters in Christ will disagree with my assessment, I would suggest that Christians should understand a security team in the church as a legitimate and limited delegation of certain government powers to citizens to defend themselves in a manner that is consistent with the principles of Romans 13 and 1 Peter 2.

In other words, if a congregation is willing to call the police when a shooting begins at their church, then they are essentially saying, “We want the government to show up and do whatever is legally necessary to stop the threat against us.” Yet, in the case of the US, the government recognizes that citizens might be the first line of defense against evil in a community. Therefore, the US does not require citizens to wait for someone else to defend them, but instead, acknowledges that law-abiding citizens possess the right to protect themselves and others with lethal force. In this sense, then, citizens may act as agents of the state in limited situations with specific power (rights) to help the government fulfill its God-ordained roles in society.

What this means is that while the application of Matthew 5:38-42 certainly applies to our personal relationships on issues that do not include criminal offenses, it does not grant a person the freedom to ignore evil and allow it to be perpetuated unhindered. In fact, it would seem reasonable to believe that Jesus’ instruction regarding murder in Matthew 5:21-26 would obligate Christians to stop murder when they have the opportunity.

In conclusion, then, a Christian can rightly regard and obey Matthew 5:38-42 on personal matters that do not include criminal offenses while also supporting and even participating on their church’s security team as a legitimate, recognized extension of the government’s power to restrain evil and praise good.

While the tragedy in Texas is still a great tragedy, many lives were saved as a result of the split-second decision of the security team, which acted as an agent of the government to stop the advance of evil. There is no need to pit Matthew 5:38-42 against Romans 13:1-7. They are complementary for the glory of God and the good of the church in a fallen, broken world that will one day be made new by Christ. Until that day, we mourn over sins like the shooting in White Settlement, Texas while being vividly and soberingly reminded that “whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves” (Romans 13:2).

CBH

P.S. – In this brief article, I have acknowledged that in certain situations the government extends its power and authority to citizens to help restrain evil and praise good. I also believe that it is important to note that when the government does delegate such power and authority, it is always limited. While the government has granted a degree of authority to its citizens to defend themselves in life-threatening situations, such authority must be understood as limited and not extending beyond the specific scenarios that the government has spelled out in its laws and ordinances. For more on the question of how Christians should handle reports of abuse, please see my article with the ERLC.