Christian Warfare
Let’s examine some direct scriptures from Jesus and the apostles relating to war and enemies in general. We have all heard of the golden rule, some may not know this is a teaching of Jesus found at Mat. 7:12 which states: 12“All things, therefore, that YOU want men to do to YOU, YOU also must likewise do to them; this, in fact, is what the Law and the Prophets mean“. Jesus did not say, do unto others as they do to you, but as you would like them to do to you. Granted this truly can be hard in today’s society, but remember if you want to be a Christian then you must obey scripture.
Jesus said of enemies: Matthew 5:43-48: 43 “YOU heard that it was said, You must love your neighbor and hate your enemy. 44 However, I say to YOU: Continue to love YOUR enemies and to pray for those persecuting YOU;
Jesus, our “model for you to follow his steps closely” (1 Pet. 2:21) said this; so how can a true Christian justify behaving any other way concerning his enemies. Jesus did not say that a Christian would not have enemies, but he clearly told us how he wanted us to treat our enemies.
The apostle Paul wrote at: Romans 12:17-21 17 Return evil for evil to no one. Provide fine things in the sight of all men. Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but yield place to the wrath; for it is written: “Vengeance is mine; I will repay, says Jehovah.”
It might be noted here too that Jehovah hates war, and will bring it to an end: Psalm 46:9 * He is making wars to cease to the extremity of the earth. Read at Isaiah 34:2: 2 For Jehovah has indignation against all the nations, and rage against all their army. He must devote them to destruction; he must give them to the slaughter. By destroying the nations and their armies at Armageddon, is how Jehovah will end war.
To contrast Christians with others a couple of scriptures come to mind, first lets look at John 13:34,35:
34 I am giving YOU a new commandment, that YOU love one another; just as I have loved YOU, that YOU also love one another. 35 By this all will know that YOU are my disciples, if YOU have love among yourselves.
Did you notice how Christians would be identified, by the love they have among themselves. How does this play in with those who claim to be Christian, but kill their brothers in other lands?
Jesus said: Matthew 7:15-16 “Be on the watch for the false prophets that come to YOU in sheep’s covering, but inside they are ravenous wolves. 16 By their fruits YOU will recognize them. These that appear to be Godlike but prove false to its power (2 Tim. 3:5) can be identified by their “fruits”, that is the things they do. What fruits would identify Christians?:The fruitage of the spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faith, 23 mildness, self-control. Real Christians however display the fruitages of the spirit, there’s no room here for a Christian to engage in war.
What are Christian weapons? Ephesians 6:13-17* 13 the complete suit of armor from God: Stand firm, with YOUR loins girded about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and with YOUR feet shod with the equipment of the good news of peace. 16 Above all things, take up the large shield of faith, with which YOU will be able to quench all the wicked one’s burning missiles. 17 Also, accept the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the spirit, that is, God’s word,
Here the Bible pointed out the weapons a Christian would have, not the incomplete, but the complete suit of armor from God, no room for aggression here. Another scripture showing Christians will not fight: 2 Tim. 2:23 24 But a slave of the Lord does not need to fight, but needs to be gentle toward all, qualified to teach, keeping himself restrained under evil, 25 instructing with mildness those not favorably disposed; as perhaps God may give them repentance leading to an accurate knowledge of truth,
Consider; if you believe that we are living in the last days as many do, then true Christians would be “walking in God’s Paths” and “beating their swords into plowshares” Isa. 2:4. Also if it is the last days then satan and his hoards have “been going forth to the kings of the entire earth to gather them together” to battle God. (Rev. 16:14) Sure wouldn’t want to be in the military then; actually fighting against God, and His forces!
Some quotations from reference books:Those Known as Early Christians. Early Christians refused to serve in the Roman army, in both the legions and auxilia, considering such service as wholly incompatible with the teachings of Christianity. Says Justin Martyr, of the second century C.E., in his “Dialogue With Trypho, a Jew” (CX): “We who were filled with war, and mutual slaughter, and every wickedness, have each through the whole earth changed our warlike weapons,—our swords into ploughshares, and our spears into implements of tillage.” (The Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. I, p. 254)
In his treatise “The Chaplet, or De Corona” (XI), when discussing “whether warfare is proper at all for Christians,” Tertullian (c. 200 C.E.) argued from Scripture the unlawfulness even of a military life itself, concluding, “I banish from us the military life.”—The Ante-Nicene Fathers, 1957, Vol. III, pp. 99, 100.
“A careful review of all the information available goes to show that, until the time of Marcus Aurelius [121-180 C.E.], no Christian became a soldier; and no soldier, after becoming a Christian, remained in military service.” (The Rise of Christianity, by E. W. Barnes, 1947, p. 333) “It will be seen presently that the evidence for the existence of a single Christian soldier between 60 and about 165 A.D. is exceedingly slight; . . . up to the reign of Marcus Aurelius at least, no Christian would become a soldier after his baptism.” (The Early Church and the World, by C. J. Cadoux, 1955, pp. 275, 276) “In the second century, Christianity . . . had affirmed the incompatibility of military service with Christianity.” (A Short History of Rome, by G. Ferrero and C. Barbagallo, 1919, p. 382) “The behavior of the Christians was very different from that of the Romans. . . . Since Christ had preached peace, they refused to become soldiers.” (Our World Through the Ages, by N. Platt and M. J. Drummond, 1961, p. 125) “The first Christians thought it was wrong to fight, and would not serve in the army even when the Empire needed soldiers.” (The New World’s Foundations in the Old, by R. and W. M. West, 1929, p. 131)
“The Christians . . . shrank from public office and military service.” (“Persecution of the Christians in Gaul, A.D. 177,” by F. P. G. Guizot in The Great Events by Famous Historians, edited by R. Johnson, 1905, Vol. III, p. 246) “While they [the Christians] inculcated the maxims of passive obedience, they refused to take any active part in the civil administration or the military defense of the empire. . . . It was impossible that the Christians, without renouncing a more sacred duty, could assume the character of soldiers, of magistrates, or of princes.”—The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Edward Gibbon, Vol. I, p. 416.
Look at a parallel prophecy of Mat. chap 24 found at Revelation Chap 6. Jesus gave the signs of his enthronement in Mat. 24; the horses of Rev. 6 shows the fulfillment of this and what to expect. Notice v2, the rider of this horse a white horse signifying purity (Strong‘s G#3022) was given a bow signifying a weapon of warfare, also he was given a crown which means he was made a king. The prophecy at Gen. 3:15 revealed that God’s seed (Jesus) would eventually crush satan and his seed, easily this king can be identified as Jesus at his crowning as king. Notice what he went on to do as king, he went forth conquering and to complete his conquest. What was the result of this Rev. 12:7-9, 12 shows us.
Now with satan cast to the earth, the rider of the red horse begins his ride. Is this rider a good person? No! He takes peace away from the earth; how, by an implement of warfare, the sword. As we seen earlier Christians have beat their swords into plowshares, so if a person hasn’t then obviously he is a servant of this horse. Who is the rider of this horse? Rev. 12:12 identifies this one as satan, do we want to follow satan? Not me!
Reiterating again that the demons are gathering the kings of the earth for battle against the one sitting on the throne of God, Rev.16:14-16. And obviously then these armies will be wiped out Isa.34:2. Which side will you choose? As for me and my household we shall do what Jehovah asks! Josh. 24:15.
In conclusion then what have we learned? Initially God sanctioned some wars, when nations stood in the way of God’s people Israel doing the will of God. After God sent His son to the earth Jesus gave us a new commandment, namely “you must love your neighbor as yourself” found at Mat. 22:38. Jesus said to love your enemies, do to others the way you would have it done to you, especially to those in the faith. The apostles did not participate in the world’s wars, in fact they were no part of this world (John17:14) they put their faith in God and His kingdom as being the only solution to war, and all of man kinds problems, as do true Christians today. Paul summed it up best when he got right to the point of Christians and war when he wrote at 2 Corinthians 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not wage warfare according to [what we are in the] flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not fleshly, but powerful by God for overturning strongly entrenched things.
Yes if a person wants to be a real Christian, not just a claimed one, he will truly follow scripture and not “wage war according to the flesh”.
Which side do you want to be on? [email protected]
Let’s examine some direct scriptures from Jesus and the apostles relating to war and enemies in general. We have all heard of the golden rule, some may not know this is a teaching of Jesus found at Mat. 7:12 which states: 12“All things, therefore, that YOU want men to do to YOU, YOU also must likewise do to them; this, in fact, is what the Law and the Prophets mean“. Jesus did not say, do unto others as they do to you, but as you would like them to do to you. Granted this truly can be hard in today’s society, but remember if you want to be a Christian then you must obey scripture.
Jesus said of enemies: Matthew 5:43-48: 43 “YOU heard that it was said, You must love your neighbor and hate your enemy. 44 However, I say to YOU: Continue to love YOUR enemies and to pray for those persecuting YOU;
Jesus, our “model for you to follow his steps closely” (1 Pet. 2:21) said this; so how can a true Christian justify behaving any other way concerning his enemies. Jesus did not say that a Christian would not have enemies, but he clearly told us how he wanted us to treat our enemies.
The apostle Paul wrote at: Romans 12:17-21 17 Return evil for evil to no one. Provide fine things in the sight of all men. Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but yield place to the wrath; for it is written: “Vengeance is mine; I will repay, says Jehovah.”
It might be noted here too that Jehovah hates war, and will bring it to an end: Psalm 46:9 * He is making wars to cease to the extremity of the earth. Read at Isaiah 34:2: 2 For Jehovah has indignation against all the nations, and rage against all their army. He must devote them to destruction; he must give them to the slaughter. By destroying the nations and their armies at Armageddon, is how Jehovah will end war.
To contrast Christians with others a couple of scriptures come to mind, first lets look at John 13:34,35:
34 I am giving YOU a new commandment, that YOU love one another; just as I have loved YOU, that YOU also love one another. 35 By this all will know that YOU are my disciples, if YOU have love among yourselves.
Did you notice how Christians would be identified, by the love they have among themselves. How does this play in with those who claim to be Christian, but kill their brothers in other lands?
Jesus said: Matthew 7:15-16 “Be on the watch for the false prophets that come to YOU in sheep’s covering, but inside they are ravenous wolves. 16 By their fruits YOU will recognize them. These that appear to be Godlike but prove false to its power (2 Tim. 3:5) can be identified by their “fruits”, that is the things they do. What fruits would identify Christians?:The fruitage of the spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faith, 23 mildness, self-control. Real Christians however display the fruitages of the spirit, there’s no room here for a Christian to engage in war.
What are Christian weapons? Ephesians 6:13-17* 13 the complete suit of armor from God: Stand firm, with YOUR loins girded about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and with YOUR feet shod with the equipment of the good news of peace. 16 Above all things, take up the large shield of faith, with which YOU will be able to quench all the wicked one’s burning missiles. 17 Also, accept the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the spirit, that is, God’s word,
Here the Bible pointed out the weapons a Christian would have, not the incomplete, but the complete suit of armor from God, no room for aggression here. Another scripture showing Christians will not fight: 2 Tim. 2:23 24 But a slave of the Lord does not need to fight, but needs to be gentle toward all, qualified to teach, keeping himself restrained under evil, 25 instructing with mildness those not favorably disposed; as perhaps God may give them repentance leading to an accurate knowledge of truth,
Consider; if you believe that we are living in the last days as many do, then true Christians would be “walking in God’s Paths” and “beating their swords into plowshares” Isa. 2:4. Also if it is the last days then satan and his hoards have “been going forth to the kings of the entire earth to gather them together” to battle God. (Rev. 16:14) Sure wouldn’t want to be in the military then; actually fighting against God, and His forces!
Some quotations from reference books:Those Known as Early Christians. Early Christians refused to serve in the Roman army, in both the legions and auxilia, considering such service as wholly incompatible with the teachings of Christianity. Says Justin Martyr, of the second century C.E., in his “Dialogue With Trypho, a Jew” (CX): “We who were filled with war, and mutual slaughter, and every wickedness, have each through the whole earth changed our warlike weapons,—our swords into ploughshares, and our spears into implements of tillage.” (The Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. I, p. 254)
In his treatise “The Chaplet, or De Corona” (XI), when discussing “whether warfare is proper at all for Christians,” Tertullian (c. 200 C.E.) argued from Scripture the unlawfulness even of a military life itself, concluding, “I banish from us the military life.”—The Ante-Nicene Fathers, 1957, Vol. III, pp. 99, 100.
“A careful review of all the information available goes to show that, until the time of Marcus Aurelius [121-180 C.E.], no Christian became a soldier; and no soldier, after becoming a Christian, remained in military service.” (The Rise of Christianity, by E. W. Barnes, 1947, p. 333) “It will be seen presently that the evidence for the existence of a single Christian soldier between 60 and about 165 A.D. is exceedingly slight; . . . up to the reign of Marcus Aurelius at least, no Christian would become a soldier after his baptism.” (The Early Church and the World, by C. J. Cadoux, 1955, pp. 275, 276) “In the second century, Christianity . . . had affirmed the incompatibility of military service with Christianity.” (A Short History of Rome, by G. Ferrero and C. Barbagallo, 1919, p. 382) “The behavior of the Christians was very different from that of the Romans. . . . Since Christ had preached peace, they refused to become soldiers.” (Our World Through the Ages, by N. Platt and M. J. Drummond, 1961, p. 125) “The first Christians thought it was wrong to fight, and would not serve in the army even when the Empire needed soldiers.” (The New World’s Foundations in the Old, by R. and W. M. West, 1929, p. 131)
“The Christians . . . shrank from public office and military service.” (“Persecution of the Christians in Gaul, A.D. 177,” by F. P. G. Guizot in The Great Events by Famous Historians, edited by R. Johnson, 1905, Vol. III, p. 246) “While they [the Christians] inculcated the maxims of passive obedience, they refused to take any active part in the civil administration or the military defense of the empire. . . . It was impossible that the Christians, without renouncing a more sacred duty, could assume the character of soldiers, of magistrates, or of princes.”—The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Edward Gibbon, Vol. I, p. 416.
Look at a parallel prophecy of Mat. chap 24 found at Revelation Chap 6. Jesus gave the signs of his enthronement in Mat. 24; the horses of Rev. 6 shows the fulfillment of this and what to expect. Notice v2, the rider of this horse a white horse signifying purity (Strong‘s G#3022) was given a bow signifying a weapon of warfare, also he was given a crown which means he was made a king. The prophecy at Gen. 3:15 revealed that God’s seed (Jesus) would eventually crush satan and his seed, easily this king can be identified as Jesus at his crowning as king. Notice what he went on to do as king, he went forth conquering and to complete his conquest. What was the result of this Rev. 12:7-9, 12 shows us.
Now with satan cast to the earth, the rider of the red horse begins his ride. Is this rider a good person? No! He takes peace away from the earth; how, by an implement of warfare, the sword. As we seen earlier Christians have beat their swords into plowshares, so if a person hasn’t then obviously he is a servant of this horse. Who is the rider of this horse? Rev. 12:12 identifies this one as satan, do we want to follow satan? Not me!
Reiterating again that the demons are gathering the kings of the earth for battle against the one sitting on the throne of God, Rev.16:14-16. And obviously then these armies will be wiped out Isa.34:2. Which side will you choose? As for me and my household we shall do what Jehovah asks! Josh. 24:15.
In conclusion then what have we learned? Initially God sanctioned some wars, when nations stood in the way of God’s people Israel doing the will of God. After God sent His son to the earth Jesus gave us a new commandment, namely “you must love your neighbor as yourself” found at Mat. 22:38. Jesus said to love your enemies, do to others the way you would have it done to you, especially to those in the faith. The apostles did not participate in the world’s wars, in fact they were no part of this world (John17:14) they put their faith in God and His kingdom as being the only solution to war, and all of man kinds problems, as do true Christians today. Paul summed it up best when he got right to the point of Christians and war when he wrote at 2 Corinthians 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not wage warfare according to [what we are in the] flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not fleshly, but powerful by God for overturning strongly entrenched things.
Yes if a person wants to be a real Christian, not just a claimed one, he will truly follow scripture and not “wage war according to the flesh”.
Which side do you want to be on? [email protected]
