How to respond when someone says: The Bible is Violent

At North Village Church, we are always talking about the importance of Jesus, but what about all those arguments for how Jesus is a waste of time?

In our new blog series, ‘How to Respond When Someone Says’, we are providing you with Biblical ways to respond when some argues against your Faith in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Part 3: How to respond when someone says: The Bible is Violent.

In our last discussion we discussed how to respond when someone says that Christianity is outdated.  In this discussion we will explore the validity of the claim that the bible is full of violence.  After all, isn’t the bible full of horrible stories and bloodshed in the name of God’s glory?

The bible is full of violence.

• What about Noah’s ark is about the flooding of the earth? 
• Or, Jonah’s story is about God’s judgment on a city?
• Old Testament stories are fun stories for children but they are filled with heartache, blood and pain.  How’s that good for children?
• And what about all that bloodshed so God’s people could enter into the promised land?
• And what if followers of Jesus today used these stories to justify hurting or killing other people today?

These are all great concerns about the bible, but:

• There are stories of judgment in the Old Testament but judgment isn’t the primary focus.  The majority of the Old Testament is God being patient with His people. Really!  If you read the bible on your own, you will find yourself thinking, “Why hasn’t God given up on these people yet?”  He is incredibly patient!    
• This is important: Judgment isn’t a bad thing.  On the surface everyone thinks judgment is wrong but deep down the average person will acknowledge that accountability is needed and healthy, therefore, judgment comes with accountability.  
• This is even more important:  God’s judgment isn’t a bad thing.  If God were to let injustice take place throughout humanity without judgment, that would be horrible. 
• The whole arc of the bible points to God (Jesus) taking the greatest judgment of humanity upon Himself at the cross.  
• And just in case someone wanted to justify violence in the name of God, we never see a command for people to inflict God’s judgment on any one person in the New Testament.
• Ultimately, the most violent judgment carried out by people was given to one generation for one time.  It has never been given again.  There is nothing even remotely like that in the New Testament.  So if someone thought they received a message from God to kill someone it would be extra-biblical and from a false spirit, not the Holy Spirit. 

These are just a few quick responses to questions that might come up about violence in the bible.  The larger question we must wrestle with in humanity is, “What do we do with pain and suffering in the world?”  Here are the most common responses we will hear in our world today:

• Monistic View:  Monism is an Eastern philosophy that sees the world as an illusion, therefore, suffering is an illusion, and the best response is just denial.  It is mind over matter.  It is cognitive behavior.  But, the problem is that our suffering is trivialized.  
• Stoic View:  A stoic says, “Suffering is real, but all suffering is by chance.”  Therefore, all of life is just a roll of the dice, therefore, endure suffering because there is nothing you can do about suffering.  But, this numbs us to suffering and separates us from humanity so that we are without compassion toward ourselves and one another.
• Dualism:  There is good and evil, and there is nothing we or God can do about our suffering.  The dualist believes in God, but he believes God can’t do anything about our suffering.  The problem is that this means our suffering goes on for eternity, and there is never an end.  
• Existentialism:  The world is cruel, but I will rise above the evil in the world.  But, that just points us to humanism and self-help to overcome our suffering and pain.
• Hedonism:  The hedonist just pursues pleasure, and tries to limit as much suffering as possible by being as disconnected as possible.
• Romanticist:  The romanticist looks at life and says, “Good people have good lives and bad people have problems.”  Our suffering must be because of something we are doing in our lives.    
• Politicist:  The political approach is to blame suffering on something else in our world.  It is to deflect our suffering.  
• Masochistic:  They say, “Bring it on!’  It makes them feel more committed and deep and complicated.  It is a way to elevate ourselves over someone else.  

None of these responses work in life practically.  You can’t build your life on them.  You can’t absorb the challenges of life with them.  It is only Jesus who comes to take our suffering and pain upon Himself at the cross and promises that one day all suffering and pain will be removed.  Our hope is in Jesus alone!

Did this help?

Check out the rest of this 6 part series. Perhaps you have some objections you would like to recommend.  If so, please email those objections to [email protected].

You might also want to watch our sermon, What About, People Who Haven’t Heard?

 

North Village Church

This article was written by Pastor Michael Dennis, Lead Pastor at North Village Church; a non-denominational church in Austin, TX, established in 2009 and built around Jesus and Bible teaching.

Are you looking for a church in Austin? At North Village Church we put Jesus at the center of our church family. We worship together every Sunday at 10:30am, encourage Christ centered fellowship through groups, and host special events such as Bible studies and Theological Training, to ensure that we are rooted in in God’s Word. We also serve our local community in association with several Austin based organizations.

North Village Church is made up of professionals, married couples, singles, and families who are wanting to experience the life-transforming power of Jesus. If you are a family with children or teens, we can support you with either or both our Kids Ministry and Youth Ministry.

Check out our North Village Church calendar highlights such as our Christmas Eve Service in Austin and Easter Sunday Service.

You are welcome to contact us if you would like more information, please call (512)-623-9272 or email [email protected]