Not that many years ago a guy driven by a demonic compulsion to discredit me stood in the middle of a group of friends of mine, accused me of things of which I was not guilty, and goaded me to fight him on the spot! Yes, fight, as in punch it out!

His motive wasn’t vengeance or even anger. I had done nothing to warrant his ire. He knew it, as did everyone in the room. He didn’t hate me per se. What he hated was what I stood for. He just hated pastors, and in a way, you could say, for good reason. After his own pastor had run off with his wife, he was on a mission to hurt someone, just anyone that carried the title and I was the one nearest who fit the bill.

So, he ranted a while, called me a few choice names, and when that didn’t bring his desired result, he stood up and gave me the “bring it on” sign with the beck of a hand. Now I’m no fighter. Never have been, at least not with my fists. I can use words pretty well, but never found much joy in slugging it out with someone to prove my manhood. But I do have a smidgeon of pride, and when a man stands up and, as they say, “calls you out,” it’s near impossible for a guy to just sit there and take it. I guess one could, and maybe I should’ve, but at the moment it seemed unavoidable. So, I stood. It all happened so fast I didn’t have a chance to plan my next move, but I stood. That’s when all you-know-what broke out!

As soon as I stood, before any blows were thrown––nary a push––another guy just outside the room saw what was unfolding, threw open the door and barged in with a vengeance. He leapt between us and made a beeline at my antagonizer’s throat. Within a split second, the other men in the room pulled him back from my would-be assailant and when the mayhem subsided they forced both of them outside and sent them on their very separate ways. Afterward, we all sat there in stunned silence at what had just happened. Did I mention that all this occurred in a Sunday School room in our church building after a worship service?

Why tell this story now, which was one of a few harrowing incidents in the life of this pastor? (Yeah, anyone listening who is considering a career in ministry might want to take a little more time to rethink your plan before heading off to seminary.)

I tell it now because I think we’re watching in real time what our country’s chief executive and those who block for him do pretty much every day, goading people who disagree with them into a fight. By a never-ending flood of insults and threats, he antagonizes anyone who crosses him into standing up to duke it out. Just recently he bloviated at Charlie Kirk’s memorial that in contrast to Charlie and his wife, “I hate my opponents, and I don’t want the best for them!”

There you have it from the horse’s mouth! He hates them and does everything he can to prove he’s the toughest and meanest hombre in the room. He reduces others (within our borders and without) to increase himself. He routinely pushes them down in order to raise himself up. And it works nearly every time. He gets a rise out of them and then discredits them when they try to match swagger for swagger.

Like a wounded animal, leading a pack of so-called patriots parasitically attached to him biting and clawing anyone in his way. Reminds me of the insecure schoolyard bully compensating for his self-doubt and picks fights to prove he’s bigger, badder, and better than anyone on the playground. Who is the responsible party for his being so broken and wounded is anyone’s guess. Or was he born a bully? Quién sabe!

Problem is, his opponents unwisely take the bait. The further he goes to the distant “right” it smells of fascism, they rush to the extreme version in the opposite way to the left and sound like socialists. His hate and vengeance seduce those on the “other side” to match the insanity in the other direction. That’s the crazy to which our country has arrived. It’s where the murderer of Charlie Kirk and would be assassin of Trump himself came from. It’s also how we get some of our outrageous “progressive” morals and policies meant to counteract the absurdity of what used to be the party of family values and small government. They’ve been baited into standing with clenched fists, handing him and his cronies a moral, not to mention a morale, victory.

If you would continue running interference for him even if he shot someone on 5th Avenue, none of what I say here will convince you to jump off the train of Trump. You’re not my intended audience. I learned a decade ago that I might as well be speaking the “wah-wah-wah” language of the adults in a Charlie Brown TV special. Rather, I appeal to those of you who’ve either jumped off the train or never were on it to begin with.

Please, don’t take the bait. There’s a hook in it! My friends helped me that day and I’m trying to do the same for you. Yes, definitely take a stand if and when you must, but don’t stand up to fight using the tactics made available by the world, the flesh, and the devil. Don’t let them choose the weapons like the “second” party in advance of a “gentleman’s” duel. Avoid the impulse to match their hate and calls for violence. Refuse to be pushed so far to the left that you fall off the edge of the earth! Think critically, not combatively. Fight on your knees instead of your fists.

Especially if you’re a follower of Jesus, reject the inclination to wallow in the mud with them. “You can fight a porcupine and win, but if other folks get a look at you they may think it’s a bad idea to mess with porcupines.” Remember, it’s not “an eye for an eye” anymore­­––not since Jesus came and flipped the script and showed us the kingdom way to resist evil. Even Gandhi knew that “an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.” Threats and/or acts of violence are simply not an option. Make it your goal to win people, not win arguments. Pray with passion, protest in peace, and promote the truth without losing your mind and your integrity, not to mention annihilating our collective testimony for Christ.

 “Though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world.” (2 Corinthians 10:3-4)