War

Where Do We Stand: Kirk Rupprecht 

Commonplace Church exists to glorify God, equip disciples & share the Good News of Jesus. Learn more at commonplacechurch.org

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:41

We're happy you're here. That's what I was waiting for. How's everybody doing? Good, good, good, good. Welcome to Commonplace Church. If you're here for the first time, checking out our church gathering. So glad you're with us. We are closing out our series today that we've been calling the last uh five, six weeks. Where do we stand? And uh today we're gonna close out, I would say. Um, well, first of all, the series is about some tough topics that we we face here in our culture, in our time, uh, just even as as followers of Jesus. And so today we're gonna close out with um a pretty timely topic, I would say. It's a topic that's uh we are you know seeing happen in our world today, and the topic is uh war and peace. So, you know, why this this topic in particular, you may ask. Well, I think for the reality of a Christian is this topic is both a um a both here and now, and also uh just a topic that we've experienced all throughout human history. Right? Right now we're dealing with conflict in places like uh Iran, uh places like Ukraine, right? And and yet throughout history, conflict has always been somewhat present. In fact, Jesus speaks of it this way. He says this in Matthew, he says, You'll hear of wars and rumors of wars, see that you're not alarmed. This must take place. But the end is not yet, for nation will rise against nation, kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines, earthquakes in various places. All these are but birth uh but this but the beginning of the birth pains. There it is. And so war is an important topic for us to engage today, just as it was when Jesus did uh walked and did his ministry, his earthly ministry. Now, before we begin the conversation, it's gonna be a heavy one. I'm not gonna, you know, I'm not gonna sharecoat that. Uh I just want to start by just reminding us the posture we've taken throughout this time. And the posture has been one of humility, one of looking at these topics from a place of delicacy, one uh orderly, and and most importantly, biblically. And I I thought of making like a brief like acronym, but it really wasn't that great. H H Dab, I don't think that's gonna work. So we're gonna step away from that. Uh, but my hope for this morning is is this I want to um spend a little time, here's what I'm gonna do, exploring a theological framework for this idea of war, right? How we understand war from the perspective of really how we of how and what we believe about God. From that framework, here's where I want us to go. I want to look at some, I would say, historic Christian responses to that theological lens. Ultimately, right, here's here's the final hope. My hope is that we're led to uh gospel-centered responses when we look at where we stand when it comes to this topic of war and peace. So if I could just summarize the takeaway for today, uh it would look like this God, a theological framework, God allows for war, yet war was not his design. From that reality, here's how we respond. We pursue peace, we protect the vulnerable, and we trust that the ultimate victory belongs to Jesus, just like we sang a couple minutes ago earlier. So let's just begin by I would say, uh looking at a, I would call a helpful theological framework for thinking about war. And I'm just gonna be honest, this first portion, okay, I'll give it a heads up. Some of the uh teaching is gonna require us to think critically, think deeply, put on our theological hats, uh, even do some apologetic work today. All right? You guys with me? Everybody awake? All right, cool, here we go. So, first thing, war is an allowance of God, not the design of God. Now, a statement like this, I can imagine there's some follow-up questions. Maybe some of the follow-up questions like this, okay, well, if it's war is not God's design, well, where did it come from? And from there, maybe the question, okay, well, why does God allow it? Maybe some other questions might look like this. Wait, don't we see God pronounce war in the Bible? Isn't that a thing? Doesn't God direct Israel into wars all throughout the Old Testament? So wouldn't that make God like some sort of proponent of war? These are really, you know, healthy questions to ask as we're exploring our faith and understanding. And they're important ones for us to wrestle with. So let's start with the first one. If war, if it's not part of God's design, where was it conceived? And for what purpose does God allow it? Now, here's the thing, I won't claim that I know perfectly why God allows everything he allows, okay? But what we can do is we can look at scripture and we can see how God reveals to us something like the origin of conflict. So to do that, we start in where the Bible starts, we start in Genesis. And so Genesis shows us the original, the origin of creation itself. And at the beginning of creation, humanity existed in the presence of God in what what the Bible describes as wholeness. The Hebrew scripture uses this word, it's called shalom. It's peace. So in the beginning, right, death and violence among God's image bearers were not part of the created order. Peace was. Humanity existed in harmony, harmony with God, and of course, harmony with one another. Yet, if you know the story, it continues. Humanity disobeys God's command and not to eat from the tree of good and evil and the knowledge of good and evil. And with that act of disobedience, well, sin, sin enters the story. As sin enters, shalom is shattered. Peace is no more. And the result of sin is that man now experiences the consequences of that sin. And that consequence is death. One of those consequences is conflict. And also it's this result it's humanity's, it's our mortality. It's our mortality. Life not just conceived, but life, life not having a conclusion. Almost immediately we see the effects of sin unfold. If you look just one chapter after chapter three in Genesis, we encounter the first recorded act of violence. It's the first murder. Genesis 4 tells the story of Adam and Eve's son, Cain and Abel. Now both are bringing offerings to the Lord, yet God shows favor towards Abel's offering and not Cain's. And Cain's response is this it's envy, it's jealousy, it's strife, it's rage. And in that moment, we see the first human-to-human conflict. And what we also see is the destructive power of sin. See, Cain, he takes into his hands something that only belongs to God, and that's life itself. Look what it says. So Cain was very angry, and he f his face fell. The Lord said to Cain, Why are you angry? Why is your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? If you do not do well, sin is crouching at your door. Don't miss that line. It's desire is for you, but you must rule over it. Cain spoke to Abel his brother, and when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother, Abel, and he killed him. So here's what I want us to notice about this account. Cain's action was not part of God's design. Cain's action was the consequence of the presence of sin. And so that naturally raises the next question. Okay, so well then why does God allow this to happen? Right? Why doesn't he just stop Cain? Why does he stop him from taking the life of his brother Abel? Why does God allow life to be taken at the hands of another? That's a really great question, and it's a really layered one. I think the first part of that answer uh is just the reality that God has given humanity free will. Right? When humans, when they're given the freedom to make choices, unfortunately, tragic tragic choices become a possibility. And God did not create humanity, though, to be like robotic, right? To just simply carry out predetermined actions. Because God's desire is is love, right? In any relationship, it's there's obedience and love and freedom. So that's one part. But I also think there's an even deeper reality behind this question. The question of God allowing death as a consequence for sin in the per the first place, right? Starting there. Because ultimately, here's the question. The question boils down to this act about God's character of love. And I want to frame this question for us. Here's the basis of it. If death, if it wasn't the consequence, I think about that, would it be more loving for God to just then allow his creation immortality yet in a cursed world? Asking, would it actually be loving of God to allow his creation to exist eternally, yet doing so in a world where sin has distorted, a world that's filled with sorrow, world that's filled with suffering and brokenness, right? Allowing his creating beings to exist in hardship caused by sin. Or is it possible that death actually serves a loving act of God? Now, hear me out, loving in this reality, the reality that he allows life a span of existence, to only suffer in this fallen world for a set time, limited existence under sin's curse. Is it more, I would say, harmful, right? Just allowing unlimited encountering of sin's destruction. So viewing death as God's means to the ends of noting allow not allowing his creation to have to endure and exist in forever in pain and in sorrow. Now it's a f it's a philosophical question that people have been asking for uh since probably the dawn of man, right? And and listen, because we're not God, we have to go after it from a space of humility. And I'll I'll admit I've I've wrestled with this question personally. It's it's so complex. And so with that, I think one of the ways I've tried to make sense is by doing this, uh shifting the focus of the question here. Instead of focusing just on the means of death, right, how death is experienced, things like murder or death experienced by something like war, I think the challenge becomes to consider more of like a macro view when it comes to death. And that's just the the inevitability of death, that death happens to all. Now, of course, hear me out, that doesn't mean that the way life ends is unimportant or how life concludes isn't of value. It is. It matters deeply. And so things like war, they are serious because war brings about the loss of human life. Yet what script the reality of scripture presents is that, listen, because of sin, sadly, death comes for every human life. Whether it comes through war, disease, through the actions of another person, or just simply through bodies that grow old and break down. The end of earthly life is inevitable, and it comes for all of us. And so when we talk about war existing in this world, what we have to remember, we have to understand it's not part of God's original design. We exist, war exists, I'm sorry, as a tragic reality that's flowing from the presence of sin and the brokenness of humanity, and which we can conclude from hearts of lamentations, right? That war, things like war at times, sadly though, they can serve as ends to means to the ends. Now that doesn't mean war is loving. It doesn't, it just means that God not allowing human life to be unlimited in the presence of sin, that could serve as an act of love. And that though leads us to another important question. So if God allows wars to exist as a means to the end, does that mean God desires war? Right? Um, what about Old Testament passages where God directs Israel into battle to wipe out like nations? Well, doesn't that make God like a proponent of war? And and that's heavy territory to engage, but that's why we're doing tough topics, right? So here's another important truth to consider, though. Let's ask, what does God hate? God hates sin. What does God love? God loves his creation, his image bearers. So if there's some sort of belief that God has the desire to wipe out his creation for enjoyment or spite, what that is, is that's very antithetical to his claim of existing as a loving creator. I think the main issue, rather, it's centered on what God hates, which is sin. See, God desires to rid this world of sin. That's his heart for redemption. And so the main issue isn't God as some sort of like war-hungry deity. The main issue is sin's destruction and sin's harm towards creation, right? Just as God warned Cain. Remember, he said this, he said, sin has this desire, it's crouching at your door, right? It's looking to do what? To devour. Right? Sin, not God, is looking to kill and destroy. That's not God. That's sin. But what we see in Old Testament counts are, yeah, nations and societies where sin has become so deeply embedded in the culture that God allows, in certain instances or orders, destruction over those particular places and people. You see, all throughout the history of Israel, here's what we see: we see examples of places where violence, where brutality, and practices like child sacrifice had become normalized. Right? Savage life where sin's presence becomes so dangerous to the humanity within it and around it. And so you see, in those environments, the sanctity of life is not honored. Sin, sin has become the driving force of that culture. And so let's let's kind of put our uh philosophical hats on once more and ask this is it more loving for a God to allow a society that devours human life to continue unchecked, allow it to thrive, or rather, might it be a loving act of protection to remove the destructive presence altogether? The reality in Old Testament times was this, once again, many nations Israel encountered, they practiced things like child sacrifice, ritual violence, systematic brutality. These were societies, sin had grown to dominate the flourishing of human life, right? That the human life could no longer flourish. And the outcome, right? And once again, raising this question would allowing those destructive practices to continue, would that be reflecting the heart of a loving God? Or is it possible? God, by declaring removal of those harmful societies, in essence, is protecting life. We see one of the examples in the Old Testament, the account of Saul and the Immaculates, where Saul disobeys God's directive to wipe out these people group. And listen, I recognize these passages are often used by uh critics of the Bible, right, to argue, well, God of the scripture is some sort of like warmongering deity. Because if God commands the destruction of another people group, right, how can Christians claim God is loving, right? That's typically how the argument goes. And I and I recognize that. And I understand why some of these passages are so difficult for so many. Here's what the argument, however, I think overlooks something important, right? Would a loving God just simply allow destructive violence to continue unchecked? And also this wouldn't a protective God be also considered a loving God? Maybe a simple analogy might help. A loving parent is not one who passively allows their child to be exposed to every possible danger. A loving parent evaluates risks. A loving parent warns their child about harm. And when necessary, a loving parent sets boundaries to protect their child from what could destroy them. And protection sometimes means drawing boundaries that keep destructive influences away. And so, in a similar way, scripture shows us that at times God protected his people by prioritizing the preservation of the set-apart life or continuation of cultures, right? And removing them that were consumed by violence. And so, in that sense, war then becomes something God allows to protect peace. But there's an incredibly important distinction we have to make here, okay? There's a difference between God declaring something and us as human beings declaring and deciding something for ourselves, right? Something like engaging in wars. You see, God occupies a place above any of us, above humanity. He is the author of life. He is the just judge. He determines the beginning and the end of every human life. And we as human beings, we don't sit in that seat. We've not been given the authority to determine the value of life or decide who should live and who should die, right? Only God holds that authority. So when Scripture shows God allowing war in certain moments of the history, it's not an invitation for humans to pursue vengeance or domination over others, right? Over their own felt justice or judgment. Even seamless wars and conflicts. And like many, we might even be experiencing even today. See, rather, here's the thing. God is using, it's God he's used human history to accomplish his purposes in protecting the value of life. And that just brings us back to this central truth that uh and our response as disciples to Jesus to that truth, that God is not a proponent of war. God is this, he is a pursuer of peace, and God calls his followers towards the same posture. If you have a Bible, um, if or you can read on the screen, but just head to Romans 12, 9 through 21. And Paul gives us a little bit of uh an insight here. He says, Let love be genuine, abhor what is evil, hold fast to what is good, love one another with brotherly affection, outdo one another in spirit and in showing honor. Do not be slaughter in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer, contribute to the needs of the saints and show hospitality. Bless those who persecute you, bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, associate with the lowly, never be wise in your own sight, never repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as depends on you, live peacefully with all. Beloved, never revenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. To the contrary, if your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he's thirsty, give him something to drink, for by doing so you will heap burning coals on his head. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. So Paul, in this passage of Romans here, here's what he's doing. He's sharing what a response to living from the lens of Jesus' resurrection looks like for his followers. And he speaks of many different responses, and some of those responses speak into how we as Jesus followers engage the world in the reality of war and conflict. Words that Jesus himself spoke during his time in his earthly miss uh ministry. Look at some of the uh directives Paul gives. He says, Bless those who persecute him, persecute you. Echoes the words of Jesus in the Sermon of the Mount. Look what it says. You have heard it said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. Paul says this, live in harmony with one another, repay no one evil for evil. Once again, Jesus' words. You have heard it said, an eye for an eye, a teeth tooth for a tooth, but I say to you, do not resist the one who is evil. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other side other also. If anyone would sue you, take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. Give to the one who begs from you, do not refuse the one who would borrow from you. Paul he Paul goes on to say this He says, If possible, so far as it depends on you, do this. Live peacefully with all. Once again echoing Jesus, Blessed are the peacemakers. They shall be called the sons of God. Paul instructs even believers not to seek personal revenge, instead to care for their enemies, they're words that echo the wisdom in Proverbs. Proverbs 25 says, If your enemy is hungry, give him bread. If he's thirsty, give him water to drink, for you will heap burning coals on his head, and the Lord will reward you. So here's the thing wars, conflicts, their presence, present realities of this world. Yet although they are present, they were never designed for this world. And for the Christian, we live as those who long and practice peace. So when we're met with war, when we're met with conflict, the heart of the Christian is always asking this question: Is peace possible here? And if peace is not possible, then here's the next question. It becomes, if peace cannot be reached, what means might be needed to be taken to bring peace about? And also, who might need protection from potential harm and destruction? That means taking in consideration anyone who might be at risk, any group that might be at harm, the most vulnerable, right? Those who are unable to defend or protect their rights and their dignity. It's questions like this: who needs protection? Who's being oppressed? Who's the most vulnerable? Where is human life most at risk? And I believe for the follower of Jesus, if there's ever a call to engage in conflict or war, it must always be viewed this way and not from any other option. Right? Not some sort of like path or plan that's toward gaining or domination. The heart behind any engagement conflict should always be protection, it should be defense, and ultimately the pursuit of peace. Because here's what we see. History shows us that there were wars that could be considered just, and there are wars that are clearly unjust. There's wars entered into to protect human life, and of course, wars entered into that desired to just prosper over human life. Think, for example, um, World War II. Millions of innocent Jewish people were experienced genocide at the hands of uh of Hitler. Horrific evils being carried out against a vulnerable population. And so entering into conflict was in many ways, it was an act of protecting human life. That kind of action reflects God's declaration that he uses through the prophet and Micah says that he has told you, O man, what is good? What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, to walk humbly with your God? And so there was a pursuit of justice in confronting that evil. Yet history also reveals to us nations, including our own at times, that have entered into wars that were not driven by that posture, wars that seemed imperialistic in nature, wars for the pursuit of power, expansion, or prosperity over others. All point pointing this out, there's always been, when it comes to wars of conflict, complexities and challenges. And so what is the complexity? What is the challenge? Well, for the follow Jesus, we know it's the human heart. The human heart can so easily be deceived about its own motives. Because war, it can so easily be removed from God's purposes of protection and easily be shifted into a pursuit of power. So we have to be clear about this truth, right? God did not allow war for the purpose of overpowering others. His allowance of war in Scripture was connected to the protection of life, and ultimately the goal of being restoration of peace. Peace, shalom, right? That's God's original design. That's the design, is what how's he setting out to restore, right? And sadly, though, sin's fractured that peace. Violence has come about, war, suffering. But God's desire never has changed. He still desires peace. This is what sin has done. Sin has instilled in us hate from war. Enmity created the idea of some sort of enemy. Animosity created this idea of an adversary. And so the question becomes this where should follow of Jesus stand on this issue of war? Well, I think the answer is that we there's choices that each disciple is allowed to make based upon personal conviction, based upon personal conscience. Because the truth is this throughout the history of the Christian faith, well, believers have held different convictions about how they should respond to war. One stance has been this pacifism. Pacifists believe that any form of violence, even in defense of others, is not consistent with the way of Jesus. Groups like the Anabaptists have historically held this position. And this view it comes from observing the way Jesus responded to violence. Even when he was treated unjustly. And verses like this shape this perspective says, put your sword back into its place, for all take the sword will perish by the sword. In Luke, my kingdom is not this world. If my kingdom were this world, my servants would have been fighting. We also see this as Peter, he tries to defend Jesus in the garden, he cuts off another man's ear. And what does Jesus do? He rebukes Peter and he heals the man. Now, because of moments like these, it's difficult to dismiss pacifism entirely. It's a sincere attempt to take the teachings and example of Jesus and just really live them out. Yet scripture also presents other passages that have led many Christians to see a place for defending the vulnerable. This stance is called the just war theory. So for example, John uh tells his disciples in or sorry, Jesus tells his disciples in Luke 22, he said to them, But now let one who has money bag take it, likewise a knapsack, and let the one who has no sword sell his cloak and buy one. For I tell you this scripture must be fulfilled, as he numbered with the transgressors, for what was written about me has its fulfillment. And they said, Look, Lord, here are two swords. And he said, It is enough. So from passages like this, many Christians have concluded that defending others can be a form of peacemaking. It's not violence by aggression, rather, it's protection offered on behalf of those who cannot protect themselves. And so this framework holds that while war is generally undesirable, it may be morally permissible if it meets certain conditions. Here's the conditions. Must be a just cause, declared by a proper authority, carried out with the right intention. However, there's an important distinction, once again, that we have to be guarded from. It's this, it's the purity of the heart that defends can so easily move from defense to revenge if we're not careful. Let me give an example. If someone was to like attempt to break into my house, right, um, my responsibility as a husband and as a father would be to protect my family. Right? My hope would be that any action taken would just be an act of defense. But imagine if I did successfully protect my family by the grace of God. Uh later, I then decided to seek out that person so I can enforce my own justice upon them. Well, what's happened at that point? That's no longer defense. That's revenge. That's retaliation. And revenge is exactly what Jesus speaks against in the Sermon on the Mount. And what Paul warns us in Romans, he says, Beloved, never revenge of yourselves, but leave to the wrath of God, for it is written, vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. And so Paul's instruction is clear. Vengeance does not belong to us. If there is any consequence for the wrongdoing of another person, that responsibility, that responsibility, I'm sorry, ultimately belongs to God. And so with that posture, within this just war thinking, whether we're talking about global conflicts or personal conflicts in our own lives, we have to remember this defense may be permitted, revenge is never. Because sadly, there have been moments in church history where that distinction was lost and war took on unhealthy biblical stances. There was a time when the church itself moved beyond defense into offensive domination. You see, during the Middle Ages, the Christian church declared what was called a holy war. It was the crusades, and it was an attempt to reclaim what was considered the holy land from at that time Muslim control. Now, if we're honest, that moment in history, it still casts a long shadow. See, millions of lives were lost, and the witness of Christ's followers was deeply damaged. And what happened during that time, what I think Christians today we should reflect on is the way that two ideas were combined that never should have been: war and holiness. Holiness means set apart, pure, belonging to God. War, though, exists in a sin stained world. And so these two concepts, holy and war, are very difficult to reconcile. So whenever we hear language, right, about fighting a holy war, it might just be important for us to pause and ask, how can holiness and war truly exist? Is that all at all possible? Now here's the thing: it would be remiss of me if I didn't recognize a war that is one of holy consequences. But that war isn't a war between men. Ultimately, it's not a war against other people. It's a heavenly war between God, the people of God, and the spiritual opposition to the work of God. Paul makes this clear in Ephesians. He says, Finally, be strong in the Lord and the strength of his might, put on the whole armor of God. You may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against rulers, against authorities, against the cosmic powers over the present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. So what does this passage inform us? It says, yes, there is a spiritual battle that is happening right now as we speak. And the reality is there is a war and has been ongoing since the moment of Satan and his legions rebelled against the one true God. A war that we are all a part of. And yet, here's something else we know about war. No one who experienced war leaves unchanged. There's shrapnel, there's explosions, PTSD, there's loss. General William Sherman, reflecting on his experience in the Civil War, he famously said, War is hell. Sherman wasn't being dramatic. He was simply describing what he'd witnessed and what he experienced. War is hell because it reflects the work of the one who opposes God, Satan, the one who calls hell home. And so because of the reality of the imputed sin of Adam, every one of us is born into a worn, torn existence. Sin has changed the condition humanity was originally created for. And we've been born into what's called a war zone. We've seen shrapnel of explosions of broken life, seen loss of loved ones, things like parents divorcing, friendships breaking, rejection from people we trusted. Right? Many, many of us carry deep trauma from the spiritual war that we've experienced in this world. And yet, here's what I want to just remind us. For the follower of Jesus, this is Jesus presents the only worldview that can fully offer this. We know how this war ends. We may not know when it will, but scripture tells us that it will. Look what it says in Revelation. From his mouth comes a sharp sword, which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress, the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh was written, name written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. I saw the beast of the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him, who was sitting on the horse against his army. The beast was captured, and with it the false prophet in his presence, and had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast, those who worship his image. These two were thrown alive in a lake of fire that burns with sulphur, and the rest slain by the slower that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on his horse. All the birds was gorged with their flesh. What's this vision declaring? It's declaring the victor of the spiritual war. It's claiming Christus victus, right? Christ is victorious. Yes, on the cross. Yes, at the grave. Christ claimed victory over the weapons of the enemy, Satan, sin, and death. Thank you that you offer us peace through Christ, Lord, through what Christ has done on our behalf, through the gospel, Lord. And we pray that we would be uh people of peace, Lord, that they we would have hearts that reflect you, Lord. Hearts that just desire peace, desire to see peace just take place, Lord, uh, in our lives and in the world around us. And we know that we can uh find this hope through what Christ has done. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.