Spirit listener

So we've seen a biblical defense for self-defense illustrated by situations Abram, David, and Nehemiah were in, situations that focused on relatives and possessions versus nations and armies.  But what does this have to do with C.S. Lewis, Isis, and the Police? There was something Lewis said in Perelandra that always struck me.  In the climax of the book, when Ransom is conversing with God (Maledil) about Ransom's purpose on Perelandra, Ransom comes to realize that physical resistance, a physical fight between Ransom and The Un-Man, would be the means by which Ransom overcame evil.  Ransom had always thought in terms of "spiritual warfare," but he realized that the line between spiritual and physical warfare on Perelandra was blurred. I apply this thought to resisting evil, resisting oppression.  I've thought about this when I make the distinction between defending myself according to my faith vs non-resistance according to my faith.  This is where my thoughts a...

 DAVID "...David's two wives had also been taken captive..." 1 Samuel 30:5 In this scenario, the wives and children of David's men and David's two wives had been taken, along with possessions.  David strengthened himself in the Lord and did indeed inquire of the Lord.  Yet what I see again in this situation is that wives, children, relatives, and possessions had been taken.  Abram had "trained men," and David also had a significant number of trained men or seasoned warriors with him.  Five kings were responsible for the captivity of Abram's relatives, while a band of raiders was responsible for the captivity of David's wives and the wives and children of his men.  In other words, these scenarios with Abram and David didn't directly involve wartime scenarios for Abram and David but instead involved scenarios where family members and possessions were taken captive.  This is even more explicit in my final example with Nehemiah. NEHEMIAH ".....

I've written on this before, yet I'm thinking about it again as it relates to me being a Black Christian in this country specifically, but also for Christians in general.  I'm thinking about when believers can and should defend themselves according to our faith, versus when we should not defend ourselves because of our faith.  I believe Abram, David, and Nehemiah (and C.S. Lewis) give me a biblical defense for Christian self-defense, while Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego show me when Christians should yield their lives for their faith (and how this relates to Isis and the Police.) ABRAM "When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he called out the 318 trained men born in his household and went in pursuit as far as Dan.  ...He recovered all the goods and brought back his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the other people."  Gen. 14:14,16, NIV In reading this I notice that Abram did not stop and pray about this situation ...