Christianity does not use violence to promote its cause…. it does not promote evil.
Christianity uses love and tolerance to win people’s confidence and trust.
Christianity does not seek to conquer; it seeks to win friendship.
Violence produces pain and sorrow. Violence kills and destroys.
People hate violent people. They can’t trust violent people.
You can’t use violence to make people love you. The peace loving God calls in peace. A peaceful person preaches and practices peace.
Abraham Lincoln said that he conquered his enemies when he made them his friends.
When we make an enemy become a friend we actually have succeeded in converting that person from being a hostile enemy into a loving friend. In doing that we eliminate violence.
Fighting against each other breeds animosity. By doing that we are nurturing hate in the minds of our children, and training them to grow to hate others. We end up creating violent and unforgiving societies.
Do not use religion to promote hate and anger.
When we use our religions to spread anger, fear and hate against people who disagree with us, or who do not share our beliefs, we make them see our religions as violent. Preaching by violence does not instill the love of God in our children and followers. It makes them become violent and hateful.
Jesus taught us to love … not to hate. Jesus told the story about the Samaritan helping the Jew in a context that His listeners understood very well. The Jews and Samaritans were enemies; each desiring the complete annihilation of the other.
(See…http://www.peacemakersteam.com/)
We remember the encounter Jesus had with the Samaritan woman by the well in John chapter 4. When Jesus asked the Samaritan woman to give Him water to drink, the Samaritan woman was surprised that a Jew could be bold to ask a Samaritan for water.
She said,
“How is it that you, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan?” The passage ends emphatically with the statement… “For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.”
When it was getting to the time that Jesus would leave this world, a few things remained for Him to do in Jerusalem before He departed. Luke writes that He set His face to go to Jerusalem; meaning He would not have time to interact with the Samaritans. However, He and His disciples had to pass through a village of the Samaritans. His disciples decided to prepare a place for Him in that Samaritan village before they proceeded to Jerusalem. The Samaritans refused to receive Him because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem. When the disciples, James and John, saw that, they became angry and said to Him, “Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?”
The disciples wanted to use anger and hate to pay for anger and hate, instead of love against anger and hate.
Jews and Samaritans, being enemies, each misinterpreted the actions of the other. The Samaritans were not happy because Jesus had made Jerusalem His priority over them. Influenced by the historical problem between them and the Jews, the Samaritans misinterpreted His intention, and so refused to receive Him.
Jesus’ disciples, too, being Jews, interpreted the actions of the Samaritans in line with their Jewish way of thinking; the Jewish-Samaritan conflict that existed. Since Jews regarded the Samaritans as inferior, they asked Jesus to allow them to call fire to destroy them. Jesus refused, and told them to go to another village. He told them He came to save lives and not to destroy lives. God’s mission (always) is to save, and not to destroy lives, (Luke 9:51-56).
Jesus advised them to follow the path of peace no matter the provocation.
Some people use religion to gain control over people.
They are not promoting the God of peace. They attack everyone, including their own fellow believers. Their aim is to kill and put fear in people. They want to bring people under their control. They seek places where people gather, because those places are where they can get many people to intimidate and to kill. They attack churches, mosques, market places and malls. You would think that they would not attack their own places of worship; but they do.
Using violence portrays you and your cause as evil
Expressing your grievances by killing innocent and helpless people does not win sympathy. Rather people will see you as violent and evil. People despise your cause when you attack and force them to accept your beliefs.
Jesus, the Prince of Peace, came to promote peace. He did not wage war on people. He waged a spiritual war against Satan, sin and sickness. The angels announced at his birth, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” (Luke 2:14.)
God sent Jesus Christ to be the Peacemaker in a world full of hate, violence and evil.
In Isaiah 9:6, we read,
“For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Jesus asked all of us who love the God of peace (and follow Him) to exhibit love and peace even to our enemies, (Luke 6:27-36).
God does not send killers to kill unbelievers. He sends peace loving people to preach peace, love and reconciliation. God is Peace, Compassionate, Ever Merciful. Peace lovers preach peace and love.
Convince by articulating your views and providing the right answers …
You may want to read more on how to promote a cause without violence… VISIT… http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01DH3MJBE
Learn to win by persuasion; not by force.
You may want to read “Winning Without Attacking: Persuasion Is Better Than Force”...http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ELOSYDQ
