Most stories about Christian persecution end with the persecution. This one should begin there.

From The Daily Wire:

Nigerian Christian Pastor Rev. Ezekiel Dachomo isn't afraid after the Islamic Fulani militia killed nine of his family members and sent him a letter saying he's next.

"A few days ago, Fulani herdsmen sent a threatening letter to me and to members of my church … Its message was terrifying. They vowed to attack me and kill me soon, just as they killed nine of my relatives," Dachomo said last week. "I know what it means to stand before grieving families whose only crime was refusing to deny Jesus Christ."

Dachomo has buried more than seventy Christians murdered in Nigeria.

But it wasn't his perseverance or defiant courage that grabbed my attention in this story. It was one quote:

"I would be stupid and cowardly to kill someone because he insults Jesus," Dachomo said. "Jesus is a supernatural being. He can defend himself."

Hidden inside those two sentences is one of the clearest explanations of what makes Christianity fundamentally different from so many other religious systems. Consider first what he didn't say.

• He didn't say Jesus wasn't insulted.

• He didn't say blasphemy was acceptable.

• He didn't minimize the evil that had been committed against his own family and congregation.

He simply rejected the idea that God requires human beings to violently avenge His honor. It's a profoundly Christian declaration to state, "Jesus can defend Himself."

• When Peter drew his sword to protect Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus told him to put it away.

• When He stood before Pilate, He didn't call His followers to rescue Him.

• When soldiers mocked Him, beat Him, spit on Him, and nailed Him to a cross, He didn't command His legions of angels to retaliate. He prayed, "Father, forgive them."

Christ consistently refused to advance His kingdom through coercion or violence. He conquered by laying down His own life, not by taking someone else's, which is why Dachomo's statement carries so much weight.

He isn't advocating a radically new idea. He's simply echoing Jesus.

The men threatening to murder Dachomo believe they are defending Muhammad and Allah's honor. They worship a god who needs bodyguards.

Dachomo worships God as the Almighty King He is.

That doesn't mean Christians are indifferent when Christ is mocked. Far from it. Christians should grieve when Jesus is ridiculed, respond with truth when He is misrepresented, and defend the faith with conviction and reason.

But there is a world of difference between defending Christianity with words and attempting to defend Christ with violence.

Jesus asked us to take up our own cross and follow His path of servitude, not to preserve His honor by shedding someone else's blood. That's why Rev. Dachomo's statement is so compelling.

God doesn't need bodyguards.

He calls disciples.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Not the Bee or any of its affiliates.