The question of whether a young man (or woman) should enter into military
service or not is a question not to be taken lightly.
Throughout history, Spirit-filled, born-again Christians have looked into
the same Bible and come up with different answers. The Bible doesn't always
give clear-cut guidance for specific individuals, countries, and times, but
it does give lots of general guidance. The Holy Spirit is present to help
and guide us, if we will let Him.
I struggled with this issue at length before entering into the U. S. Navy,
myself, and did so only after some very serious Bible study and prayer.
Although I can give some general guidance, I have no clear-cut, simple
answers for other young people considering military service (voluntary or
involuntary), nor do I wish to condemn anyone for their decisions one way
or the other. I looked at the official AG position papers, hoping that
someone had already addressed this, and found lots of good,
well-thought-out papers expounding a Biblical view on other subjects, but
not on the morality of war or military service.
Military service involves several things of great moral importance, not the
least of which is the possibility that a man may be called upon to kill
another man in the performance of his duties. He may also be required to
perform duties which greatly endanger his own life in the process of
protecting his own nation or his own nation's allies.
Let's start with the Bible. In the Old Testament, one of the Ten
Commandments is "You shall not murder." The same Old Testament also
commands killing of people as punishment for capital crimes (i. e. murder)
and as part of warfare. God actually commanded people to wage war in
certain circumstances (i. e. 1 Samuel 23:2), and when they did so at His
command and in His way, they were always victorious, although not
necessarily totally free of casualties. When they made war on their own,
and without His guidance, they generally suffered greatly. Sometimes God
fought for His people directly using angels, such as when one angel wiped
185,000 Assyrian invaders in one night (1 Kings 19:35) or when an army of
angels assisted Elijah in capturing an army peacefully and letting them go
back home (2 Kings 6).
In the New Testament, we have Jesus Christ as the fulfillment of the Law.
When our Lord walked the earth, people were looking for a military leader
to free Israel of the Roman conquerors who were occupying and oppressing
them. Jesus repeatedly dodged being labeled as that leader, and stressed
over and over again that His Kingdom was not of this world, but was in the
hearts of believers. Jesus never advocated violence to further His Kingdom,
but love and truth. War is spoken of prophetically in the New Testament,
however, with Jesus saying that there will be wars and rumors of wars, and
revealing some details of wars to come in the Revelation to John. War isn't
how we advance the Kingdom of God, and indeed it gets in the way of
missionary activity, so let us pray for peace.
From what is written in the Bible, I conclude that it is not always wrong
to wage war, or God would never have commanded it. I also conclude that
sometimes it is wrong to wage war. For example, it must have been wrong for
the Assyrians to wage war against Israel to conquer and loot it, while
blaspheming the Living God, because the Lord judged them severely when he
had an angel kill 185,000 of them in one night. In war, as in lesser
conflicts, it is possible that one side is right and the other is wrong, or
that both sides are wrong (perhaps to differing degrees of evil). I can't
imagine any war in which both sides are right, as then there would be no
need to fight.
In the history of the USA, there was often a moral side to a war, although
the moral issue(s) were not the only issues. In the Revolutionary War, one
of the issues was freedom to worship God as we please. Other issues
included taxation, territorial control, and revenge. In the Civil War, the
main issue was abolition of slavery. In World Wars I and II, there were
oppressive conquerors invading other countries and committing atrocities,
and the invaded countries fought back. In the Korean and Vietnam wars, we
defended allies from communist oppression. In the Desert Storm Gulf War, we
again defended allies in Kuwait from invasion by a dangerous dictator. In
Bosnia, we intervened to halt systematic genocide. In the process of all of
these "moral" wars being fought, very bad things happened. Innocent
bystanders and civilians were injured, killed, or impoverished. War is an
ugly and dangerous thing. Wars sometimes take on other forms, as well. For
example, the USA and Cuba have been waging economic and propaganda wars
against each other for many years over Cuba's oppressive communist
dictatorship.
While it may seem difficult to fathom how a Christian could take up
military arms and still walk in love, it is not much of a stretch from
police authority to military authority. Police carry deadly weapons for a
reason (Romans 13:4).
In the USA and some other countries (i. e. Australia), we enjoy freedom of
religion, peace, and prosperity. That freedom did not come cheaply. It has
been purchased and defended with human blood. There are powerful forces in
this world that would take this treasure from us if we did not defend it.
Often people wonder about Christians in the military, but I ask you, what
could be much scarier than a military force with no Christians in it? Where
would be the restraint? Who would be more trigger-happy?
To assist someone considering military service right now, I suggest that he
or she ask some questions. The answers to those questions will make the
decision easier.
1. Is my country using its military power in a godly way (i. e. for
defense, and not to invade and oppress)?
2. Is military service required for me right now? What alternatives are
there? What are the consequences if I don't serve in the military?
3. Could I kill someone in the line of duty?
4. Is there a current or potential threat against my country, my family,
and my friends that I should help defend against?
5. Am I willing to submit to military discipline?
6. Would I risk my life to save a friend?
7. Am I loyal to my country?
8. Can I honestly contribute something good to my country by serving in the
military, and should I?
9. If military service is not required for me, what do I gain if I serve?
What do I gain if I don't serve?
10. Do I trust my country's leaders to not misuse its military?
11. What do I believe the Bible says about military service? (Read it
yourself and meditate on it!)
12. What is the Holy Spirit saying to me?
Really coming up with accurate answers to some of the above questions
requires knowing the future. That is OK. The Holy Spirit knows the future,
and He will help you decide.
I agonized over the decision to join the U. S. Navy for quite a while. The
Lord led me to join. I did join, and served honorably. I helped defend my
country and the freedoms I enjoy. I thank God that I never had to fire a
weapon in anger, but I was trained and ready to use a wide variety of
weapons if it ever became necessary. I learned a lot. I got to do things I
never would have gotten to do without joining the Navy, and I got
opportunities to share Jesus Christ in places where your average evangelist
or pastor cannot go (i. e. a submerged submarine).
I have an uncle who joined the U. S. Army during the Vietnam war, and he
flew Medevac Helicopters. He was there to rescue, not to shoot, but one
time the enemy rushed the aircraft during a rescue, and he gave an order to
fire, and saw the resulting death. He had no real choice, as his life and
the lives of the men he was rescuing would be lost if he did not defend
himself. After the adrenaline rush was over and they were safely away, he
threw up. Knowing that you were responsible for the death of a man, even a
man attacking you with a gun, even though you didn't actually pull the
trigger, is hard on a Christian.
Every 4th of July (U. S. Independence Day), our church holds a "patriotic"
service, in which our pastor and the whole church honor those who have
served and who are currently serving in the military and thank us for
defending our freedom, including the freedom to freely assemble and worship
God as we please. I still get a little choked up with emotion every time he
does that, as it is a rare occasion that anyone thanks me for my
contribution to our freedom. My 4 years of military service pales beside
the sacrifice of others who have lost limbs or even their lives in defense
of our country. I believe that it is an honor to have served my country in
the U. S. Navy. Even though I fired no shots in anger (but lots of practice
with bullets, torpedoes, etc.), I believe that my part in keeping peace
through strength and deterrence during that time was of value. If I were
not so fortunate as to be a U. S. citizen, but was forced to serve in an
army that oppressed and conquered rather than defended, then I would not
have considered military service to be an honor.
Today, just as in the Old Testament, the key to morality in military
service and war is to hear and obey the prompting of the Holy Spirit. He
may prompt you differently than another brother for reasons you don't know
about, so don't be quick to condemn, but full of grace. Above all, never
forget the REAL battle we are engaged in, and keep your spiritual armor on
(Ephesians 6)!
_______
Michael Paul Johnson
[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://ebible.org/mpj
_______
To unsubscribe, send "unsubscribe rangernet" to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
"Eat the hay & spit out the sticks! - A#1's mule" RTKB&G4JC!
http://rangernet.org Autoresponder: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
