Have gun - Will shoot

I wonder sometimes if people believe God. I'm talking about all the brohaha about carrying firearms. The only time I was armed was when I was in the Navy. I carried a Smith and Wesson 38 police special in my shoulder holster. It sure impressed the other sailors when I swaggered by in my best John Wayne impression on my way to my aircraft. Even then I would chuckle to myself knowing that on certain flights we would be armed with a nuclear depth charge that would make my little pop gun  look benign.
As I said in an earlier blog, I had THE button that released the bomb if the pilot armed it.
Since then guns have never impressed me much. I know I will never shoot a gun because I refuse to own or handle a gun.
There are those who argue that the police cannot be everywhere and that we have a duty to be armed. They certainly take that to heart here in Arizona. I do not know how many other places where you stand in the check out line of a grocery store behind a thirty something mother with her kids behind her and her Glock 9mm tucked in her waist holster. And those 50 something men riding around the neighborhood on their Harleys with their choice of weapon prominently displayed. It kind of reminded me of Beirut. When I was there everybody had a gun but me.
I guess St Peter would have been a big NRA fan in the early days. That was until Jesus told him to put up his sword after he cut off the guy's ear in the Garden of Gethsemane. It sure confused Peter and it must still confuse a lot of other Christians who refuse to turn the other cheek or comprehend what Jesus was saying when he said that the meek will inherit the Earth. This understanding of who we are as God's children is a hard pill. Even those who have progressed well above the reptilian or animal nature of humans find it so hard to let go of the survival instinct. That is because they have misinterpreted what survival and repentance are all about. Survival means adopting Jesus' fullness in this life. Jesus who let the soldiers beat Him and kill Him. What he said to Peter in Gethsemane holds throughout His ministry, with one word His father could send millions of angels to wipe out all that displeased God. But He did not. He forgave them. And that's where repentance comes in. To repent does not mean to beg forgiveness for sins. Repent means change. Change to the model that Jesus presents us. That is when you and I will be readied to advance to the next level of being. Shooting people, even those who threaten you and your family and your nation will only hold you back. You will be repeating life experiences here or somewhere over and over until you can let go and be slain. Slain while praying that your slayers be forgiven. This is the beginning of eternal life. You will never die again. I think that beats revenge and heroic last stands all to hell.
Do you think that this is impossible? It's exactly what the God that was just a flickering image when you went inside yourself is looking for.
Rev. Rod McRae