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Should a
Christian go to war?
This question has caused a lot of division in the
body of Christ. Should a Christian go to war where he might kill
other people when the Bible says to "turn the other cheek" (Luke
6:28)? Is it right to do war against others or does the Bible forbid
it?
War is a state of declared, open, and armed
conflict between two or more nations. It is sometimes undertaken in
self defense as when the U.S. entered WWII as a result of Japan attacking
Pearl Harbor. Other times, however, nations unjustly go to war to
take spoils from other countries. Murder, on the other hand, is an
unlawful taking of life and is always wrong. When nations go to war,
it is declared lawful by the countries going to war -- sometimes for moral
reasons and other times for immoral reasons. Therefore, and immoral
war could be considered a form of murder where a moral war could be in
self defense. But not all war is wrong.
It is difficult to determine when war would be a
righteous endeavor given that leaders of nations are not Christian and
could easily have ungodly reasons for going to war. Nevertheless,
war is an unfortunate reality in this world and it causes great
destruction, misery, and loss of life. It should be avoided if
possible and undertaken only as a last resort.
The Bible teaches that we have the right to self
defense Exodus 22:2: "If the thief is caught while
breaking in, and is struck so that he dies, there will be no blood
guiltiness on his account." The Bible also tells us to protect
the innocent, Deut. 19:10, "So innocent blood will not be shed in
the midst of your land which the Lord your God gives you as an
inheritance, and blood guiltiness be on you." Also, see
"Fathers shall not be put to death for their sons, nor shall sons be
put to death for their fathers; everyone shall be put to death for his own
sin," (Deut. 24:16). If we were to apply these principles to
war, I would conclude that war is justifiable when it is in self defense
and/or when it is to protect the innocent. Therefore, a Christian
could rightfully engage in war given those conditions.
More on war
We
can see that war is not a sin in itself since in the Old Testament God
sends people into war:
- "Then the Lord spoke to Moses
in the plains of Moab by the Jordan opposite Jericho, saying, 51"Speak
to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When you cross over the
Jordan into the land of Canaan, 52then you shall drive out
all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their
figured stones, and destroy all their molten images and demolish all
their high places; 53and you shall take possession of the
land and live in it, for I have given the land to you to possess
it," (Num. 33:50-53).
In fact, God uses war
as a means of disciplining nations.
-
“I sent a plague
among you after the manner of Egypt; I slew your young men by the
sword along with your captured horses, And I made the stench of your
camp rise up in your nostrils; Yet you have not returned to Me,”
declares the Lord," (Amos 4:10).
Also, the Lord is called a warrior.
From this we can easily conclude that going to war is not a sin.
That is, if it complies with the biblical instructions of self-defense and
protection of the innocent.
Furthermore, Christians are instructed to be in
subjection to the governing authorities whose establishment is from
God. This establishment has the right to declare war and to punish
its citizenry, even by capital punishment.
- "Let every person be in
subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority
except from God, and those which exist are established by God. 2Therefore
he who resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they
who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves. 3For
rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you
want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good, and you will have
praise from the same; 4for it is a minister of God to you
for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear
the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who
brings wrath upon the one who practices evil," (Rom.
13:1-4).
- "Submit yourselves for
the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the
one in authority, 14or to governors as sent by him for the
punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right," (1 Peter 2:13).
Finally, notice that
when some soldiers approached John the Baptist and inquired about
repentance. John did not tell them to stop being soldiers, but to do
their jobs properly, honestly.
- "And 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).
From all of
this, we can see that going to war is not wrong it itself and that a
Christian can go to war under the right circumstances.
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