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Psalm 44:1-3 (JDV)

Psalm 44:1[1] God, we have heard with our ears – our fathers have told us – the work you accomplished in their days, in days long ago:

Psalm 44:2 In order to plant them, you displaced the nations by your hand; in order to settle them, you brought disaster on the peoples.

Psalm 44:3 You see, they did not take the land by their sword – their arm did not bring them victory – but by your right hand, your arm, and the light of your face, because you were favorable toward them.

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The sons of Korah tell us about what was passed on to them by their fathers. The ancestral insight was that it was not the skill and advanced weaponry that conquered the land that they gave their children. It was God who did it. It was not their strength that changed things, it was God’s hand. It was not what they desired, it was the light of God’s face that made it happen.

There is a political debate going on in the world today about the right to possess weapons. Some Christians feel they are forced to take sides in that debate, so some defend weapons as if they are a God-given right, others fight against weapon ownership because they see it as ridiculous to insist on owning a toy that can take down a platoon of soldiers.

Both sides are right and both are wrong. The sons of Korah were the result of a legacy of weapon use. They got the land of Canaan because their ancestors used swords and clubs. But they also recognized that what they possessed was the work of God.

I’m struggling with this whole issue of gun control because I see it as yet another example of the disintegration of my own country. I cannot help but think that there is a third element we Christians are not bringing to the discussion.

At this stage in my exploration of the subject, I cannot come up with a clear answer, but I do have a question – suggested by Psalm 44: What is God doing among us?

Lord, please give us the wisdom to walk in your ways.

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[1] Superscript: For the choir director. A Maskil of the sons of Korah.