Should Christians fight national wars?

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Should Christians fight national wars?

Post by email » Wed Oct 28, 2009 3:42 pm

A thought to consider. Should Christians fight national wars? Isaiah 2:2-4 indicates to me in no uncertain terms that in the LAST DAYS, in which we now live, Christians will have NO part in wars. Christians fight a SPIRITUAL war, not fleshly. (2 Corinthians 10:3, 4) If a religion allows its members to join the armed forces, could that religion honestly and genuinely claim to be following Christ? Can such a religion really be true? What did Christ teach?

Matthew 22:39 = love your neighbor as yourself
Matthew 5:44 = love your enemies

Also: Romans 12:20 = do good to one's enemies.

Are religions obeying these commands when they go to war?
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larry
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Re: Wars

Post by larry » Fri Nov 06, 2009 12:34 pm

Thanks for visiting insearchoftruth.org. I will make a few comments regarding your questions.

You have asked a question that has been written about and discussed many times. Based on the scriptures you have cited, you have reached the obvious answer. Just reading those scriptures would lead one to conclude that he/she could not serve in the armed forces of any nation. When all other scriptures are read, many still reach the same conclusion that you have. And that may be the correct conclusion to reach.

However, there are other Christians who have an excellent knowledge of God's word who reach a different conclusion. They feel that Romans 13 and other passages authorize a Christian to scripturally function as a punitive agent of the state. For instance, they state that a society must have law and order to function or there would be anarchy and thus chaos. They feel Romans 13 authorizes the state to have agents to keep the peace.

Thus, you have local police in communities to enforce the law and arrest those who disobey. Force is sometimes necessary to enforce the laws. They contend that a Christian could function as a policeman as an agent of the government. By extension, they say a Christian could function in the army as an agent of the nation. They contend that a Christian cannot seek personal vengeance, but they can be an avenger of the government (Rom. 13:4).

A book was written by Allan Turner, a gospel preacher, in 2006 entitled "The Christian & War". He takes the position that a Christian can participate in s just war. You should be able to purchase that book at one of the bookstores linked to on our web site if you are interested in another view. You might also want to go to the web site executableoutlines.com and look at the Single Textual Sermons section. The second column, 10th item down entitled "Neither shall they learn war anymore" may be of some help.

I provide this information not to cause you to change your mind, but to offer some other thoughts on the subject for you to consider. I have found that this is a very personal decision and each one must make their own decision based on their understanding of the Bible and their conscience. I would not try to change one's views.

I hope this is of some help to you.

Larry
http://www.insearchoftruth.org

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Re: Wars

Post by email » Sat Nov 07, 2009 8:40 pm

Hi Sir,

Thank you for your reply. Yes, I agree that each one has free will to choose what he/she does. Interestingly, Isaiah 2:2-4 is clearly saying that in the LAST DAYS, in which we are NOW living, those who take up God's pure worship will NOT fight wars.What does reliable secular history indicate as to the early Christians and warfare? Consider the following:
"A careful review of all the information available goes to show that, until the time of Marcus Aurelius [Roman emperor from 161 to 180C.E.], no Christian became a soldier; and no soldier, after becoming a Christian, remained in military service." - The Rise of Christianity (London, 1947), E. W. Barnes, p. 333.

"They refused to take any active part in the civil administration or the military defence of the empire. ... it was impossible that the Christians, without renouncing a more sacred duty, could assume the character of soldiers." - History of Christianity (New York, 1891), Edward Gibbon, pp. 162,163.
Yes, according to Romans 13:1, God allows human governments to exist so that they can keep order and provide necessary services, until His (God's) Kingdom ( or Government), takes over full control of earth's affairs. (Daniel 2:44) Until then,Christians are to subject themselves to the governments of the nations. However, when the governments, or anyone else, require that they do something that conflicts with God's laws, then Christians follow the example of the apostles who said that "we ought to obey God rather than men."(Acts 5:29) Thus, obedience to God comes first.
The above presented views do not necessarily represent any specific individual, registered on this forum or otherwise.
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larry
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Re: Wars

Post by larry » Sat Nov 07, 2009 8:40 pm

Dear email,

There are several arguments that are made to answer your comments. But since I am not one to advocate that Christians fight in wars, I will not make the arguments. We can put this issue to rest.

Larry
http://www.insearchoftruth.org

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