The Holy War

I read an interesting article written by Thomas Madden reprinted in "Christianity Today" in 2005 concerning the Crusades.  One of his main points is how the Crusades were a response to the stop the spread of Islam in the world about one thousand years ago.  I have not studied the history of the Crusades to know how accurate the article is, or what bias has affected the conclusions.  But the last sentence caught my attention.  Quoting professor Madden, "Whether we admire the Crusaders or not, it is a fact that the world we know today would not exist without their efforts. The ancient faith of Christianity, with its respect for women and antipathy toward slavery, not only survived but flourished. Without the Crusades, it might well have followed Zoroastrianism, another of Islam's rivals, into extinction."

Perhaps I am a sleepy reader, but the last sentence shocked me awake in disbelief.  What?  Is this guy serious?  Could he really say or believe such a thing?  Without the Crusades Christianity might well have been made extinct?  Never!  To say Christianity could possibly ever be extinct is to suggest Jesus is not alive or has never existed.  As a follower of Jesus, I am absolutely convinced Jesus Christ is alive.  The scripture says He is at the right hand of the Father, making intercession on behalf of people loyal to God.  He has gone to prepare a place for those who believe and follow Him.  Someday He will return, establish His kingdom, and rule with a rod of iron.  Christianity is the genuine, true, exclusive way to God.  This claim has made it wildly unpopular, even offensive.  But there it is.  I do not apologise for the words spoken by my Saviour Jesus Christ in John 14:6:  "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."  Everyone has placed before them the choice to believe Jesus and entrust Him with your everlasting soul, and I have without regret.

There is a consistent spiritual principle held forth in 1 Corinthians 15:46 which is foundational to what I am going to say.  It reads, "However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual."  The natural comes first and then the spiritual.  Hearkening back in Jewish history, God chose the Jews to be His special people.  He gave them a land flowing with milk and honey, and they with His aid were to drive out the inhabitants of the land.  Though they did not do this fully, God established them in the land of Israel.  They set up a tabernacle according to God's specifications to worship God, and ultimately Solomon built a temple for this purpose.  God gave all the tribes an inheritance of land.  To the tribe of Levi God gave no inheritance of land, for He was their inheritance (Numbers 18:20).

Fast forward to Jesus Christ, the Jewish Messiah sent by God to seek and save the lost.  Jesus came to the lost sheep of Israel, but having been rejected by them, a Way through faith in Christ was opened for Jews and Gentiles (non-Jews) to be born again and be adopted as sons into God's kingdom.  The physical temple has not remained standing to this day, and even if it is rebuilt there will be no need for the blood of animal sacrifices to atone for sins because Jesus has already done so with His own blood.  The physical temple has preceded the spiritual temple.  1 Corinthians 6:19 affirms every Christian is now the temple of the Holy Spirit because He lives within us!  The fight was a physical one when the Hebrews drove out the inhabitants of the land, but now for Christians it is a spiritual one.  The promises God made to the Jews concerning their land remain true.  Yet for believers our battle is not against flesh and blood over physical regions, but is waged against spiritual forces of wickedness in the spiritual realms (Eph. 6:12).  The weapons of our warfare are not carnal - guns, knives, fists, or political influence - but mighty in God for pulling down spiritual strongholds and everything which vaunts itself against Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 10:4), bringing every thought into captivity to obedience to Christ.  The battle is largely an internal one, dealing with my own heart first.

In the New Testament, not once did Jesus encourage His disciples to physically fight against the oppressive Romans, Muslims, or self-righteous Pharisees.  He did not fight like any man before Him fought.  He did not leverage political power, manipulate by threats, or gather an army to crush dissidents.  He demonstrated the love of God through self-sacrifice according to the leading of His heavenly Father.  Religious and militaristic groups may use physical force to accomplish their ends through intimidation and murder, but Christians should never be numbered among them.  Do you know how Jesus gained the victory and spread His Gospel throughout the world for eternity?  By dying at the hands of His enemies without resisting evil according to His command during the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5:39).  This approach is repulsive to conventional wisdom because it is a revelation of God's true wisdom.  Jesus committed Himself completely into the hands of the Father, knowing He would be raised from the dead.  He committed Himself fully to God, knowing He would be vindicated for His righteousness and death would be overcome.  He prayed.  Oh, how He prayed!  Jesus loved, prayed, and obeyed God, and every single professing Christian in the world ought follow His example.

It was through dying on the cross and rising from the dead which shattered the chains of bondage and sin which held men captive in darkness and death.  To the world it appeared He lost the battle as His lifeless body was removed from the cross, but it was His physical death which ushered in new spiritual life for countless souls.  The example and pattern established by Jesus was followed by the Christians in the early church.  They faced great persecution, incarceration, torture, and execution.  Instead of picking up the sword to smite unbelievers or even to defend their own lives, they fled to the safety of other regions.  Some like Paul went willingly where the Spirit revealed he would be arrested in chains.  The Word of God and the Gospel was taken into marketplaces, prisons, palaces, and remote villages.  Yet somewhere down the line, the church or government decided they would abandon the sword of the Spirit - the Word of God - and use the carnal weapons of men or political policies to accomplish God's purposes.  It reverted to a physical battle over land and people using military might rather than seeking God in prayer to fight our battles.  Perhaps people were deceived to think prayer was not enough to triumph in conflicts concerning God.  Instead of dying to self to save souls, men waged war to kill those who opposed them.  And this approach has continued by some to this day.

May Christians be those who have reclaimed all the territory of their own hearts and minds to the obedience of Jesus Christ, choosing to follow the example of Jesus by always doing what pleases the Father and walking in love.  The spectre of conquesting jihadists or controlling governments should not cause us to deviate from Christ's ways.  Instead of stockpiling weapons, we need to draw the Sword of the Spirit - the Word of God - and heed it ourselves!  Even if obedience to God means my head will be sawed from my shoulders, I pledge to love those who draw my blood.  Whether I live or die I entrust my eternal soul to the hands of my Father who loves me and gave His only Son to physically die for me so I might spiritually live through Him.  One day (should God tarry) I will go the way of the earth, and my family name may be wiped from the planet, but there is no one in the universe or beyond who can destroy my Saviour, for He has overcome!  We will not need to fight, for Jesus is already Victor!  Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward all men!