Tag Archives: war

Are you going to kill me?

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In exploring our allegiance to our Christian nation versus our allegiance to an earthly kingdom, it might help to view a case study. I know that there is a danger in the use of hypothetical situations, but maybe they can help us stretch our thinking a bit.

Last year, Governor Rick Perry of Texas suggested that Texas might be better off seceding from the United States. I doubt that he was serious in the least, but let’s play with that idea a bit. What if Texas seceded from the Union, followed by some of the other southern states? If a civil war broke out, would you advise Christians to participate in that war?

I guess I’d like to know, just for future reference, which of my brothers would choose to kill me under those circumstances. I doubt I’d be a primary target, but I could be “collateral damage” if Dyess Air Force Base were attacked. Would you kill me?

Should Alabama Christians be bearing arms against their California brethren? Would Christians who have locked arms in fellowship now take pot shots against one another?

Which of you plan to kill my son? He’s of military age. Who will kill my nephews? I’ve got one that is in the military. It would help me be better prepared for that time to come if I knew which of my brothers would be willing to pull the trigger on my family. In similar discussions, I’ve been told that it really doesn’t matter if opposing soldiers are Christians or not. So why don’t we get it out in the open beforehand?

It happened before. It could happen again.

It wouldn’t hurt to decide beforehand where our loyalties lie. Which kingdom takes precedence? Which loyalty is greater? Which master will we serve?

Feel free to comment below, choosing one of the two positions:

  • Sure, I’d kill any of my Christian brothers who were on the wrong side.
  • No, my Christian nation is more important to me. No kingdom of this world can tell me to kill my brothers.

A House Divided

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In the last post, we explored a bit the concept of the Kingdom of God as an actual nation. I want to continue to discuss this idea. In a recent post, Patrick Mead discussed some of the implications of rebellion and Christians taking part in such. He wrote: “I cannot imagine a situation in which it would be right for me to call upon my congregation to take up arms and fire upon our own soldiers or policemen.”

As some who commented on the last post pointed out, this same reasoning needs to be applied to our Christian nation. Isn’t it even more inconceivable that members of the same family, the same body, the same holy nation should take up arms against one another? “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another…” unless you find it necessary to shoot one another. Really? Is that what we really believe?

If we understand the fact that we Christians form a single nation, the idea of us taking up arms against one another becomes unthinkable. A house divided against itself cannot stand. We cannot demonstrate love for one another while attempting to kill one another.

Our highest allegiance must be to our true citizenship, to the heavenly nation that we form a part of. The world will never see that as long as we place earthly nationalism above heavenly loyalty. Christians must refuse to place themselves in a situation where they could be called upon to attack fellow Christians.

Holy war

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When discussions of war come up, people often point to Old Testament military action on the part of God’s people. Men like Joshua and David were godly men who led God’s people in battle. Then we turn over to the Psalms and see David and others praying for the destruction of their enemies. How is a Christian to understand such things?
I think we understand them within the promise made to Abraham. God promised Abraham that his descendants would inhabit the land of Canaan. The battles that Israel fought had to do with that promise. God gave them land and told them to drive out the inhabitants of that land. Along the way, the Israelites were attacked and were allowed to fight off their attackers. But once Israel reaches the Promised Land, the military action they carry out is within the confines of that land.
It’s good to keep this in mind when reading the imprecatory psalms, for example, those psalms that call down judgment on enemies. The enemies that David fought were usurpers within the land of promise. As leader of God’s people, it was his responsibility to drive out those people. No imperialism. No preventive strikes. No playing policeman in the area. God never called on his people to invade Egypt, nor Assyria, nor Babylonia. They weren’t even told to resist those attackers when they came to punish God’s people.
When Christians look for justification for modern military action, they had best look elsewhere. That justification doesn’t lie in the actions of men like Joshua or David.