What is a Christian view of gun control?

from the old testament

• The Bible holds government, who is responsible for gun control laws, in high regard, and ultimately, God is responsible for government leaders because "He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding" (Daniel 2:21).
• The Bible never condemns a person for carrying a weapon for self-defense. It is noted in 1 Samuel 13:19–22 that as Israel was confronted with war with the Philistines they had no spears or swords—the Philistines had seen to that. So only King Saul and his son Jonathan had weapons for battle (1 Samuel 13:22). This makes Jonathan’s faith and the victory in 1 Samuel 14 all the more astounding. As the narrator says, “the LORD saved Israel that day” (1 Samuel 14:23).
• Pertaining to the defense of others, Ezekiel 33:1–9 speaks of the responsibility of a watchman. He is the one who remains active, at attention, looking for possible harm. The watchman is said to be guilty if he sees harm coming but does not warn others: "But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, so that the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any one of them, that person is taken away in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at the watchman's hand" (Ezekiel 33:6).
• The Bible speaks about the use of weapons in defense of self and of others. Regarding self-defense, in Nehemiah 4:15–23 we see that Nehemiah gave instructions to the people of Israel to be prepared to defend themselves in the event that their enemy came upon them. We read that during construction, "half held the spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail" (Nehemiah 4:16); "each labored on the work with one hand and held his weapon with the other" (Nehemiah 4:17); "each of the builders had his sword strapped at his side while he built" (Nehemiah 4:18); and that "half of them held the spears from the break of dawn until the stars came out" (Nehemiah 4:21). These were not guns, but they were tools, weapons to defend themselves if war was thrust upon them. The Bible may be silent on guns, but it is not silent on weapons.

from the new testament

• Government leaders create the laws of the land and Christians are instructed to abide by those laws (Romans 13:1–7; 1 Peter 2:13–17). Gun laws are just one of the many laws that Christians must obey.
• Jesus explained the necessity of self-defense, telling His disciples to be prepared as they departed from Him. He counseled them to bring their moneybags and knapsacks and also said, "And let the one who has no sword sell his cloak and buy one" (Luke 22:35–38). The disciples responded that they had two swords, which Jesus said was enough.

implications for today

Some believe that guns lead to violence; others believe that guns can prevent violence. Romans 14:1–4 helps us to understand that where the Bible does not speak specifically on a subject, there is the freedom for us to choose. Therefore, gun control is not a moral or biblical issue, rather a philosophical or political issue that can and should be regularly debated, openly, honestly, and fairly. A Christian can be a proponent of gun control, believing that removing guns from the hands of people brings about peace. A Christian can be against gun control, believing that law abiding citizens are best able to protect themselves when they are armed. Whatever Christians do believe, we, as citizens, are called to submit to whatever gun ownership and use laws the government institutes. We are called to love God and love others and to pursue both peace and justice; wherever we find ourselves in the debate about gun control, we can unite on those things.