War Is Not Normal

War gets treated like weather: expected, planned for, explained away as “just how it is.” But what if that assumption is the real problem? We sit with a question most of us avoid asking out loud: why do we assume violence is normal, even when we claim to follow the Prince of Peace?

We walk through the difference between what is common and what is good, then trace biblical peace back to Genesis. Before sin, there’s shalom, right relationship under God. After sin, violence shows up fast, Cain and Abel isn’t random, it’s a warning about what brokenness produces. From there we turn to Jesus, because his kingdom announcement doesn’t fit neatly inside our habits of retaliation. “Blessed are the peacemakers.” “Love your enemies.” “Put your sword back.” Those words confront our instincts, and the cross shows what they look like in real life: Jesus absorbs evil without returning it, revealing a costly, transformational kind of peace.

We also wrestle with real evil, war, and the mess of the present moment while keeping our eyes on Scripture’s direction, a future where swords become plowshares. Then we bring it down to ground level: peacemaking isn’t passive, and it isn’t only private. We talk about public life, politics, policy, leadership, and what it means to be salt and light without giving blind allegiance to any party. Finally, we come home to the war within: bitterness, resentment, and unforgiveness that steal peace long before any headline does.

If you’re tired of easy answers, press play, then share this with someone who’s ready for a real conversation. Subscribe, leave a review, and tell us: where do you feel most challenged to become a peacemaker?

Transcript

Why We Treat War As Normal

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Let me just start by asking you something straight up. Why do we assume war is normal? Why do we talk about violence like it's just part of life? Like it's inevitable. Like it's necessary, like it's just the way the world works. Because I think if we're honest, we don't just accept war, but we expect it. We plan for it, we justify it, we build entire systems around it. And then we come to scripture and we read about peace. And somehow, somehow those two things just sit next to each other unchallenged.

SPEAKER_00 0:51

But I'm not sure they're supposed to.

Genesis, Sin, And The Birth Of Violence

Jesus And The Kingdom Of Peace

The Cross As Nonretaliation

SPEAKER_01 1:05

Well, hello and welcome back to Uncomfortable Grace, where truth and mercy glide? Today we're stepping into something that's gonna push a little bit. Because we're not just talking about peace in your relationships. We're asking a bigger question. Is the world the way it's supposed to be? What does following Jesus mean in a world built on war? Let me start here. Because this matters. There's a difference between what is and what ought to be. There's a difference, and we confuse those all the time. Just because something is common doesn't mean it's good. Just because something happens a lot doesn't mean it reflects God's design. War is common. Violence is common. Conflict is everywhere. But that doesn't mean it's right. Go back to Genesis before sin. There's no war, there's no violence, there's no domination. There is, however, peace, shalom peace. Everything is right in relationship under God. And then sin enters the picture. And almost immediately violence shows up. Cain kills Abel. That's not random. That's theological. Sin doesn't just break relationships, it produces violence. So what we've normalized scripture actually presents as broken. So let me push this a little bit, because this is where it gets uncomfortable. We've grown to um we've grown so used to the brokenness that we don't question it anymore. War, we say, well, that's just how things are. Violence, well, you know, sometimes it's necessary, we say. Retaliation, listen, you can't let people just walk all over you. And I get it. I get it. There's truth in the tension. But here's the danger. When you normalize brokenness, you stop longing for restoration. And the gospel is not about managing brokenness, it's about restoring what was lost. Now let's look at Jesus, because this is where everything has to sinner, correct? Right? Jesus doesn't just come to forgive, right? He doesn't just come to forgive sin. He comes announcing a kingdom. And what does that kingdom look like? Well, peace. Not surface level peace, by the way, deep, costly, transformational peace. You know, he says, blessed are the peacemakers. He says, love your enemies. He says, put your sword back in its place. And we've got to wrestle with that. Because if we're honest, friends, if we are honest, that doesn't fit naturally with how we think. It confronts us, it challenges us, it even exposes us, because everything in us wants to respond to harm with harm. And Jesus says, Listen, friends, no, that's not my way. So let's go to the cross now. Because if you want to understand peace, you've got to understand the cross. So what happened at the cross? Jesus is betrayed. He's beaten, crucified, and he does not retaliate.

SPEAKER_00 5:59

He absorbs. Let that sit for a minute. He absorbs evil without returning it, mind you.

War, Evil, And Scripture’s Endgame

SPEAKER_01 6:14

That's not weakness. That's power. That's peace. And that's the model we're giving. Not to mirror evil, but to overcome it. And if we skip that, and we so often do, we skip it, we miss the heart of the gospel. We miss the heart of the gospel, friends. So let's ask it directly now. What about war? What about violence? What about real evil in the world? Well, because I'm not naive, I know that there is evil. You know that there is evil. There are threats, there are situations that are complicated. But here's where I land. Maybe you do too. Maybe this is going to challenge you. War may exist, but I don't believe it's the goal. I don't believe it's the design. I don't believe it's what we're what we're moving toward. Scripture doesn't end in war. It ends in peace. Swords turned into plowshares, nations no longer learning war.

SPEAKER_00 7:44

That's the trajectory. So even if we wrestle with the present, we don't lose sight of the future.

Peacemaking In Public Life

SPEAKER_01 7:59

So listen, if all that is true, if war is not the goal, if peace is the direction of the kingdom, then here's the question we have to then ask. What is the role of the Christian in all of this? Because it's really easy to sit back and say, well, the world is broken, it's going to hell in a handbasket. Well, that's just politics. Well, that's just the government, and just check out. It's easy to do that. But hear me. Peace is not passive. Peacemaking is not sitting on the sidelines hoping things get better. Peacemaking it steps into broken systems and seeks to bring them under the influence of God's kingdom. And that includes government, policy, leadership, and public life. Yes, yes, I said it. It includes all of that stuff. Because some of us say, I don't do politics, Cody. And I get the heart behind that. Politics is messy, it's frustrating, it's divisive. But let me push you a little bit. Let me push you a little here. If you don't engage, someone else will. And guess what? They may not carry the values that you claim to hold. So then we sit back and complain about the world while refusing to step in it. That doesn't work. That bloody doesn't work. Jesus didn't call us to withdraw from the world. He called us to be salt and light in it. So what does salt do? Well, salt preserves. What is this light we're called to? Well, light exposes and guides. That's not passive, that's influence. And if we're called to be peacemakers, then we don't just pursue peace privately.

SPEAKER_00 10:25

We pursue peace publicly. We pursue it in public. Now hear me clearly.

Start With The War Inside

Learning From Other Traditions On Nonviolence

Bitterness, Forgiveness, And Becoming Peacemakers

SPEAKER_01 10:36

This is not about blind allegiance to a party. This is not about baptizing a political system. This is about something deeper. Bringing the values of the kingdom into every space we step into justice, mercy, peace, dignity of life, and asking, How do we reflect Christ here? Because think about it. How can we expect the world to reflect anything close to biblical peace if the people who claim to follow the Prince of Peace refuse to engage? You can't withdraw and then complain that about the direction things are going. Let me call you to some responsibility here. Now listen, not everyone is called to the same level of involvement. Some of you will lead, some of you will advocate, some of you will vote and stay informed, but none of us get to check out completely. Because peace is not just something we believe in, it's something we work toward. But before we try to fix the world out there, don't forget what we said in the the podcasts before this one. You've got to deal with the war in here, within yourself, within your heart, because if you if you bring a divided heart into public spaces, you'll just multiply division. But if you carry the peace of Christ, you become a different kind of presence. Now, I'm gonna say something that might make some of you uncomfortable. There are moments where other religions recognize something we've ignored. I've had the opportunity to study world religions, and when I look at traditions like Buddhism or Sikhism or strands of Hindu thought, and you see a strong emphasis on non-violence, you're seeing something real. You are. We're seeing something real. See, it's it's a recognize it's a recognition that violence is not the answer. Now, hear me clearly. I'm not saying they've got the full truth, I'm not saying Christ isn't central, but I am saying this. Sometimes we've gotten so comfortable justifying violence that we've stopped feeling the weight of Jesus' words. And it takes hearing echoes of peace elsewhere to wake up, to wake us back up to what he actually said. So let's bring this in close now, because before we talk about global war, we've gotta talk about the war within us. You know, the bitterness, the resentment, the the unforgiveness in our hearts that that we carry and we carry so often because we refuse to lay our burdens down. Some of you are carrying conflict that no one else even sees. And it's shaping you. It's shaping you, friends. You don't have peace because you're holding on to war. And Jesus is calling you out of that. He's calling you out of that, friends.

SPEAKER_00 15:05

So what do we do? We become peacemakers. That's the goal.

Final Questions And Heart Check

SPEAKER_01 15:14

To be peacemakers. And and and what did I say? It's not passive, it's not weak, but people who actively pursue reconciliation, people who refuse to mirror the world, people who live like the kingdom is real, we need that, and we need to become that right here, right now, in the here and now. We need that. So I'll leave you with this. Is war normal? Or have we just settled for less than what God intended? Because the kingdom is moving toward peace. And if you belong to that kingdom, so should you. Well, thank you for joining me today on Uncomfortable Grace, where truth and mercy collide. If this stirred something in you, I hope you just lean into that. I prayfully hope that you lean in to whatever it was that I said that provoked you to be uncomfortable or provoked you to anger, and ask the question of why? Why did it push me there? Examine your heart. Look to scripture, look to God for the answer. But I will leave you with this. Friends, the best of all is Christ is with us. Grace and peace, friends.