A Look Inside
Cross Driven Athletics
Building Champions for life, one athlete at a time.
There is something more than just the playing field and playing sports, and that is the field of life. The joy, the fellowship, and the life lessons one can experience through sports. Sports can be a tool that God uses to work in us to reveal and build one's character. Cross Driven Athletics (CDA) is committed to strengthening the potential of the youth and adults, by promoting healthy living and Biblical responsibility that will produce lasting personal and spiritual change. The mission of CDA is to put Christian principles into practice through athletic training and sport. CDA is cultivating Christian principles in our athletes by encouraging, equipping, and empowering others to serve as examples in their families and community and to make a difference in other people's lives. It is my hope that through a shared passion for Christ and athletics, lives will be changed for current and future generations to come. For God's glory and our own good.
CDA
For God's glory and our own good.
"As Men we are mandated by God to be Protectors. Contrary to what many professing Christians teach today, what does the Bible really say about Biblical manhood and self-defense?"
To permit murder when one could have prevented it is morally wrong. To allow a rape when one could have hindered it is an evil. To watch an act of cruelty to children without trying to intervene is morally inexcusable. In brief, not resisting evil is an evil of omission, and an evil of omission can be just as evil as an evil of commission. Any man who refuses to protect his wife and children against a violent intruder fails them morally, and in my humble opinion is no man at all.
Without close study, the Bible can seem to give conflicting instructions on self-defense. The times nor the societies beliefs can change what God has declared Himself to be. The Scriptures might not have been written to us, but it was written for us. Contrary to what many men in pulpits preach today, there are many passages that talk about Biblical manhood, war and the kind of violence that God approves of, such as David slaying Goliath (1 Samuel 17). Not to mention the fact that God commanded the Israelites to completely destroy everyone and everything in the Promised Land! So what is the conclusion? Is God for violence or not? Under what circumstances is self-defense appropriate?
As with many questions in our lives, self-defense has to do with wisdom, understanding, and tact. One of the major Bible verses that is often ignored by many Pastors today is in Luke 22, Jesus tells His disciples to get a sword. Jesus knew that now was the time when Jesus would be threatened (and later killed) and His followers would be threatened as well. Jesus was giving approval of the fact that one has the right to self-defense. Now, just a few verses later, we see Jesus being arrested, and Peter takes a sword and cuts off a Roman soldier's ear. Jesus rebukes Peter for that act. Why? Because Jesus was agsint self defense? No, of course not. The context of that Scripture is because Peter was trying to stop something that Jesus had been telling His disciples was in fact going to happen. In other words, Peter was acting unwisely in the situation. He was trying to stop something that was not supposed to be stopped which was His arrest, crucifixion, death, and resurrection. We too must be wise as to when to fight and when not to. but no where are we called not to act like men.
As far as self-defense when one’s life or property is threatened, there is not a whole lot that God tells us about concerning this. Exodus 22 does show quite a bit about God’s attitude towards self-defense. "If a thief is caught breaking in and is struck so that he dies, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed; but if it happens after sunrise, he is guilty of bloodshed. A thief must certainly make restitution, but if he has nothing, he must be sold to pay for his theft” (Exodus 22:2-3). Obviously, here we see that when a thief breaks into someone’s house at night and that person defends his home and slays the thief, God does not hold that death over the defender’s head. However, God does not wish for anyone to take the law into his or her own hands. This is why it is said that if a thief is struck down during the daylight the defender is guilty of bloodshed. Now, this is speaking of thievery, not an attack. So if the thief were to attack the defender even during the day, self-defense would be justified.
The proper use of self-defense has to do with wisdom, discipline, meekness, understanding, and tact. In many boxing or martial arts classes, one of the principles that is taught is “Restrain your physical abilities by spiritual attainment.” This is a fancy way of saying that since one has the ability to bring great harm that doesn’t mean he or she needs to use it. Just because we can break someone’s arm or leg, that doesn’t mean we need to use that ability. Just because we have a gun doesn’t mean we need to fire on someone without using wisdom and self control. When Jesus ordered his disciples to take a sword with them, he didn't mean to go out and convert people with the sword. It's common sense. A real man stands for what is right, even if he is standing alone.
sources: NASB Bible; www.gotquestions.org