We all know Christians are meant to be warm, loving people, but when do we need to acknowledge that we are in a Spiritual war?
It feels like I have written many articles on the various battles we face as Christians and also the love that God shows us. One issue that has recently come up is how are we meant to know when we should be acting in warfare or when we should be relenting?
In the Bible, there are times where Jesus says 'I have not come to bring peace, but a sword,' but it is also written about him that he is the Prince of Peace. This can be a little confusing as to whether he is a warrior or a peacekeeper.
The simple answer is both. Jesus came with authority that was given through the Father (God) which meant that though he is loving in nature, he is able to deal with the wrongs that oppress His people.
To clarify, this authority has also been given to us. Jesus tells us to ask for whatever we need in His name and it will be given. In regards to this, when we ask Jesus to come into our life, he does come in and fills us with power and authority as he promised.
One of the ways we can use this power is discussed in Ephesians chapter 6, where we are told to 'Put on the full armour of God.' As an aside, why would we need armour and weaponry if there was no war to wage? However, in this same passage we are told that we do not war against flesh and blood but against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
So what do we do when someone does wrong to us? Should we 'wage war' on them? By no means! This is where we should be peacekeepers. We should 'turn the other cheek' and pray for them, because their actions are not prompted by love, but rather they have been misdirected. Pray that they will be forgiven of their wrongdoings and raised up also in love as God would have them and demonstrate the same love that Jesus has for those who persecuted him.
And now this could sound quite hard if someone is attacking you with everything they have or in a way similar to this. In this situation, my opinion would be to ask God for direction and heart to continually do the right thing throughout this time. We are told to live at peace with everyone as much as it depends on us, so yes there is a scenario where we shouldn't be passive, but react to stand up for what is right.
We should be aware that that there is 'a time for war and a time for peace.' (Ecclesiastes chapter 3, verse 8) What we need to do is continually reflect on whether what we are doing is right.In 1 Peter chapter 4 verse 15 it is written 'If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or a thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler.'Once we have ourselves in check, we are able to be sure that the circumstances we face are not of our own actions, but from the devil.
And what should we do if we do make a mistake? We should confess it to God, acknowledge that we made a mistake (he already knows anyway) and move on in faith believing that we are forgiven. These are the instructions that we receive in the book of 1 John chapter 1, verse 9.
In essence we need to be living a life of keeping the peace, but also being able to fight off the devil's attacks and schemes when confronted. In this way we are called to be both peacekeepers and warriors.
Tim Robertson is from Sydney, and likes to write about recent learnings in the hope that other people may also benefit from them.
Tim Robertson's previous articles may be found at www.pressserviceinternational.org/tim-robertson.html