War and Peace

War. Some Christians believe that war is inherently evil, and that any true Christian must remain a pacifist. I disagree. In this sermon, I will attempt to give the major points of the pacifist argument and my own. Keep in mind while I do so, however, that these are both interpretations of scripture, and not the definitive word.

The first logical argument for pacifism is, of course Exodus 20:13, "Thou Shalt Not Kill." If one of the Ten Commandments forbids killing, then what counterargument could there be? However, there is some argument over what the original Hebrew for this Commandment means. Some people say it means Kill, others say it means Murder. One source I read claims that the word actually means "kill in the way an animal would," meaning letting your passions drive you to kill, or lying in wait to kill. This last claim gives other uses of the same original Hebrew word (among them Hosea 6:9, Judges 20:4, 1 Kings 20:19, and Job 24:14). I believe it is the most accurate.

Moving on to the New Testament. In Matthew 5:39 Jesus says "But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also." However, in chapter 21 of the same book, He drives money-lenders out of the temple--a story mentioned in all four gospels. According to John, he had a whip. His words and his actions seem a bit opposed here. Now, assuming that Jesus was not schizophrenic (a basic assumption to Christianity, so I'll take it as a given), the only explanation I can come up with is that Matthew 5:39 is not a blanket ban on violence, as it is usually read to be. Looking at the verses around Matthew 5:39, I see that Matthew 5:38 refers to an Old Testament law that in essence bars mercy from the legal system. Taken in this context, verse 39 is an encouragement to mercy and to grace, rather than a prohibition on war.

Ok, those are the two biggest arguments for the Doves, I think it's the Hawks' turn now. Look at Matthew 5:21-22. This is the passage where Jesus talks about the sixth commandment (thou shalt not kill). He says, among other things, "Anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgement." This goes back to the earlier point that passion is the main problem-killing is merely the effect of the real sin of anger.

In addition to this point, I'd like to point out the books of Joshua and Judges. These two books alone cover at least a third of the passages on war in the bible. Now look at Joshua 1:9. It says, "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go." God is telling Joshua that He will be with him in battle. In the book of Judges, there are various verses that state that the spirit of the LORD came upon various judges (6:34, 11:29, and 13:25). If God blesses warriors to make them better warriors, can war be purely evil?

Of course, war is not necessarily good either. Much of the dark ages was characterized by "land grab" wars within Europe, when the European Monarchs weren't allied in trying to take Jerusalem. The crusades were no better--they were merely whitewashed by the "It's the Holy Land" argument. However, I believe that there were wars that had Godly motives behind them-World War Two, for example.

Even if a war is a good thing, there are people for whom it is evil. We have been given the task of obeying God in all we do. If God calls you to a war, then you are to enlist. If He calls you to avoid a war, then you are not to enter it. If He does not guide you, then you have already been given your answer. As with everything else else in the world, the answer is "Thy Will Be Done."