Click on following links for earlier articles: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4.
What’s wrong with the left ditch?
Now, there’s little doubt that America’s political and military leaders made a multitude of mistakes handling the Vietnam War. Countless books have been written on the subject.
And yes, the American Church as a whole sat on its prophetic trumpets and did little to proclaim that our leaders were steering the nation in wrong directions.
And yes, the Body of Christ needs pacifists. We need every individual part working properly so the Body is being built up in love.
But we individual parts of the Body, pacifists and others, tend to wear blinders when we check out our agendas (political or otherwise) with the Bible, especially when fervent motions are involved.
Sadly, this is what I believe happened to the Christians who ended up in the left ditch during the Vietnam War.
The thinking that God hates all wars, Jesus is against all wars and all wars are sin is scripturally wrong from a New Testament viewpoint, and of course, from an Old Testament one.
Where did the first war occur? In heaven.
And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war. (Revelation 12:7)
If the Lord is totally against war, why didn’t He have a peace conference with Satan? You know, just to clear the air and thereby listen to Satan and his group’s grievances. Maybe a compromise could have been worked out. But no, there was war!
What restrictions did Jesus place on the centurion when the soldier asked for a miracle for his servant? None.
And Jesus said to the centurion, “Go; it shall be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed that very moment. (Matthew 8:13)
Most likely, the centurion had earned his rank in battles. And thus if war were sin, then Jesus would have said much the same thing He did to the woman caught in adultery and the man lowered down through the roof tiles. He would have first pardoned the soldier’s sin.
Did the man who was filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb mention war when he was asked what soldiers needed to do? No.
Some soldiers were questioning him, saying, “And what about us, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Do not take money from anyone by force, or accuse anyone falsely, and be content with your wages. (Luke 3: 14)
Just think, John the Baptist said his words in front of numerous Jews who hated the Roman soldiers. Maybe some of the Jews had even lost relatives or friends in battles with the soldiers. Yet, not one word was mentioned about war.
Who leads the armies of heaven? Jesus.
And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. (Revelation 19:11)
How many times did Jesus mention war was a sin? Never. Zero. Nada. Zilch. To make war a sin, you have to extrapolate meanings out of a few verses and ignore hundreds of others throughout the Bible.
What about the early church? The first century church with Peter, John, James and Paul made no claims that war was sin. A hundred years later, Augustine came up with his Just War Theory but even he and the other church fathers did not oppose war in all circumstances.
There is absolutely no scriptural evidence that God hates all wars, Jesus is against all wars and all wars are sin. The Christians in the left ditch staked out an extreme position and were deceived.
So, what was wrong with the right ditch?
(Continued in Part 6)
Larry Who 
Larry, this is an interesting series…will follow it to the end. Great learning for me!
God bless you.
gladwell,
Thanks. I hope its a blessing to you.
Oh, boy. You handle the hot potatoes without flinching, huh?
Just wanted to stop by and say thank you for the honor of being on your blogroll — and appreciate your comments.
God bless you — in the everyday … and here on your blog.
bonnie,
Thanks. I enjoy your blog.
Hi Larry,
I have much to learn still but the issue of war is one that I keep going round in circles about.
I just cannot entertain the thought of Christians being war supporters and of some displaying patriotism to the point of radicalism whilst Jesus’s words to love our enemies and turn the other cheek echo so loudly in my mind.
It seems to me, there is a tendency to manipulate the scriptures to suit our own pride and need a lot of the time.
“Love your enemies”, it doesn’t come clearer than that, does it?
Hi Larry
anewcreation said,-
“I just cannot entertain the thought of Christians being war supporters and of some displaying patriotism to the point of radicalism whilst Jesus’s words to love our enemies and turn the other cheek echo so loudly in my mind.”
When Jesus looked at the pharisees, who hated him and were plotting his death, he loved them and also died for them. Nevertheless He still sent them to eternal death in the lake of fire because they persistently rejected God’s free gift of life.
If we insist that the pacifist doctrine is extended to our armed forces, (an oxymoron), ie that loving our enemies means we can never harm them, then we must also extend it to the concept of heaven and hell.
We must insist that God discards this evil notion of eternal damnation. We must insist that all those who hate God are accepted into the presence of His Holy Throne room
Frank,
Judgement belongs to God, and God alone.
You said: “When Jesus looked at the pharisees, who hated him and were plotting his death, he loved them and also died for them”.
That is the “quid” to the question: as He died for them, he showed His amazing love. How many Christians are prepared to die instead of fighting back so that by our unconditional love we can be known as his disciples? Most of us are not even prepared to sort out a dispute with a neighbour, swallow our pride and seek forgiveness, so I realise I am being a dreamer to think that we can avoid wars, but surely Jesus came as the prince of Peace. The war I hear about in the bible, takes place not against flesh and blood but against powers and principalities in the spiritual realm and it is a war won through prayer and sacrifice, and not the survival of the fittest, or better armed.
I realise this is an extremely complex issue and I for one do not have any of the answers, but what I do know is that I do not have peace in my spirit about marrying the license to kill our enemies with Jesus’ teachings. That’s all! If we continue to live by the “An eye for an eye” how are we different to unbelievers?
Help Larry!!!!!
anewcreation,
At one time in the 2nd and 3rd century church, Christians were not allowed to be soldiers. It was ruled a major sin and if believers disobeyed, they were banned (or excommunicated) from the church.
So, the war issue is not a new one for us believers.
There is nothing wrong for you wanting to be a pacifist. Be one. There is a special blessing for being a peacemaker.
But the left ditch is filled with Christians who believe all wars are sin, God hates all wars and Jesus is against all wars. It’s impossible to justify this viewpoint from a scriptural basis. It cannot be done.
Thus pacifists, like yourself, have to shove their deep-seated opinions aside and at least admit, “I’m a pacifist and against all wars though God and scripture may not be against all wars. This is who I am.”
Remember: The fulfillment of the Law and Prophets is loving God and your neighbor…not your enemies. This is an important point, especially in today’s world.
For instance, let’s say that I own a rife (I don’t) and I look outside my upstairs’ window into my neighbor’s backyard. I see a terrorist, holding my neighbor’s wife in one hand and a gun in another. He’s ready to kill her. There’s only a few seconds to make up my mind.
What do I do? Love my neighbor or love my enemy, or do I yell out to her, “Turn the other cheek.”
For me, I’m going to shoot him. I’ve already made my mind up on these issues a few years ago.
Okay, let’s make a little change in the scenario. Let’s say it’s not a neighbor’s wife, but rather my child or grandchild. Then what?
The left ditch is extreme. It would have allowed Hitler to destroy Europe. It would have allowed Napoleon to overrun Europe. It would not have allowed America to be a nation. And it would not have allowed Israel to be a nation.
In those scenarios you describe (an intruder coming into your house, etc), I am sure I would act or wish to act exactly as you describe.
But what about many of the conflicts/wars taking place today which are simply a result of man’s greed, political and economical interests? We can’t always justify war behind the “Fighting for freedom” banner.
You say: “Thus pacifists, like yourself, have to shove their deep-seated opinions aside and at least admit, “I’m a pacifist and against all wars though God and scripture may not be against all wars. This is who I am.”
I detect in the tone of your words a disdain and condemnation which I have not seen before, which really saddens me, after all the exchanges we have had.
Firstly, you talk about the left ditch being filled with Christians like myself who would hope to fight for peace before breaking into war, and then a few words later you say that people like us would have allowed Hitler to destroy Europe. I thought you knew me better than that. That is a very serious thing to say and it really hurt.
Peace to you,
Very interesting thoughts in your post Larry, and in these comments.
anewcreation, you posted this:
“The war I hear about in the bible, takes place not against flesh and blood but against powers and principalities in the spiritual realm and it is a war won through prayer and sacrifice, and not the survival of the fittest, or better armed.”
I wholeheartedly agree. The only thing I would add is that war in the spiritual realm always PLAYS OUT in the physical realm. “Let Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” And sometimes a big upheaval is exactly what needs to happen, spiritually and physically, to accomplish His will. Because we live in a fallen world, around people given to their own lusts/darkness and actual evil from the enemy, this upheaval may include actual war. I think it’s God’s way of allowing human nature to run its course.
anewcreation,
Forgive me. That may be how it reads to you but it is not how I meant it. I took your statements as being all inclusive when you were not really being that way.
If you are really saying that some wars are justified and some are not, I agree. One of the best examples in the Bible of God not backing a war was the one fought by the last good king of Judah, Josiah (2 Chron. 35:20 -25). Josiah’s disobedience caused him to die at a young age.
Frank,
As usual, I enjoy your insight. Because actually many of the believers in the left ditch have gone so far as to believe that God would not really send people to Hell. After all, He’s a God of love.
And Anna,
Thanks. You last paragraph sums up my thoughts in an awesome manner, much better than I put them.
anewcreation,
Hello. It’s just dawned on me. I called you a pacifist which I took from your comments and you assumed that pacifists – according to my definition – belong in the left ditch.
That’s not how I view pacifism. My thoughts are that pacifists are firmly on the correct path. It’s just that they have decided to be peacemakers.
The left ditch are for those believers who go beyond pacifism and declare all wars are wrong. All wars are hated by the Father and Jesus.
Now, if I did not come across as saying that, then I was in error. Forgive me.
annaldavis,
Thank you very much for your insight which I found helpful.
Larry,
Don’t worry about it!. I had a really bad day yesterday with a few relationships turning sour (mainly family ones), and your comment just added to the stress.
It is all forgotten now. It is a brand new day with new mercies from the Lord.
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