May a CHRISTIAN be a SOLDIER?
By R. GOVETT.
That depends upon what our Lord
Jesus Christ has said on the point.
The Law of Moses allowed of war; the priests were to encourage the
people to fight. God, the God of
Israel, would be on their side. Num. 10:9; Deut. 20.
But “the Law made nothing perfect.” The Son of God has come “full of grace and truth.” And the Father in His presence takes no
notice of Moses or Elijah, but “This is my beloved Son: HEAR HIM”. Mark 9: 7. “The Law
was given by Moses; but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ”. John 1: 17.
What then does our Lord say upon
the subject?
He reviews in the Sermon on the
Mount much of the Law, and sets up a new and higher standard. The Law generally taught as its
principle ‑ righteousness, or strict justice. Man was to render to God His dues; and
then he might exact what was due to himself from his neighbour and
fellow-man. If injured, he was to
seek and obtain redress. “If men strive... and if
mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life; eye for eye, tooth for
tooth, hand for hand, burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe
for stripe.” Exod. 21: 22-25.
This rule Jesus expressly
repeals. The Christian is not to
resist the evil man; but to be patient under injury, whether that be inflicted on our person, or on our property; by an
individual, or by the oppression of a government. Matt. 10:
38-41. We are to forgive
without limit the evil world in the midst of which we are set; that God may
also without limit forgive us. Matt. 6: 12, 14. As the Law taught JUSTICE, the Gospel
teaches GRACE.
Under the Law it was permitted
to hate and slay an enemy in war. Dent. 18: 3-6; 25: 17-19. But now Jesus commands His disciples to
love enemies, to pray for persecutors, to return good for evil. And this, in order
that we, His disciples may resemble our Father in heaven; who gives to the
unworthy His sunshine and rain.
An especial reward is set before those who would learn of Jesus; and He
gives us to understand, therefore, that He will not be content with merely the
loving those who love us. He calls
us to a higher and more difficult lesson, capable of being carried out only by
the sons of God; the love of enemies! “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your
Father, which is in heaven is perfect:” Matt.
5: 43-48.
Now this is an answer to those
who would distinguish between a Christian’s personal enemies, and those
of his country. We are to resemble
our heavenly Father; and He is not making any such distinction of
countries. He is calling men of all
nations to be reconciled with Himself.
And the Christian is one who has left his standing as one of the nations
of the world to become a member of Christ, and one of the Church,
which is Christ’s body. We
are no longer of the world, even as Christ was not. John 8: 23; 15: 19. We are pilgrims and strangers on earth,
seeking a better country, even an heavenly. Heb. 11:
13-16.
This one principle then, that WE
ARE TO RESEMBLE GOD THE FATHER AND HIS SON JESUS CITRIST, AND TO EXHIBIT THEM
TO THE WORLD, seems to me to settle this question for those who are
candid. Under the Law God took as
His title “Jehovah, God of armies:” Psa. 80: 7, 14;
Amos 5: .27, &c. Then
war was lawful: and the courage of Jonathan, and David, and Samson, glorified
Him.
But now God calls Himself
“the God of peace:” Rom. 16:
20; 1 Cor. 14: 33; 2 Cor.
13: 11; Phil. 4: 9; 1 Thess. 5: 23; 2 Thess. 3: 16; Heb. 13: 20. His Gospel is “the Gospel of peace:” Rom. 10:
15; Eph. 6: 13. His acting
now is “making” and “proclaiming peace:” Eph. 2: 15, 17; Acts 10: 36. His word is the word of
reconciliation. Col. 1: 20; 2 Cor. 5: 18, 20. How then can those who make
war be exhibiting the
character of their Father in heaven?
What says the Son of God concerning
Himself? The Spirit of God came on
Him “to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the
captives, and to set
at liberty the bruised:” Luke
4: 18. How then can any resemble
Christ in warfare - breaking the hearts of wives and families, seizing
prisoners of war, and detaining the wounded?
When His disciples would have
avenged a slight on Himself, what says He?
“Ye know not what spirit ye are of: for
the Son of Man is, not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them:” Luke 9: 55,
56. How contrary to the
mission of the warrior!
The Holy Spirit descended on
Jesus, not in a form like the eagle, but as the dove. Luke 3: 22. He came as the spirit of grace and as
the Comforter. His fruit is “Love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness,
goodness, faith, meekness:” Gal.
5: 22. Now war, is the opposite of all these things. The spirit of the warrior on the
battle-field is not that of God.
“The wisdom which is from above is first
pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good
fruits:” Jas. 3: 17.
The wisdom of war is the reverse of this Jesus sends us from God His
Father “grace and peace.” Grace then and peace are what Christians
are to exhibit to all men. But war
and wrath are the opposite to grace and peace.
“The
servant of the Lord must not strive; (fight) but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, in meekness
instructing those that oppose themselves:” 2 Tim. 2: 24.
Jesus when standing before
Pilate declared that His kingdom did not take its origin from the world; and
therefore His servants did not fight as they would otherwise have done, on the
night of his seizure. John 18: 36.
But there are objections which
are presented by those Christians who follow war as their profession, and by
some others. Let us consider the
strongest of them.
1. ‘Has not a Christian a duty to perform to his King and
country?’ This has
been partially answered already. We may further reply:-
“No
man can serve two masters,” We are to be obedient to governors or,
to the king as supreme, wherever their commands clash not with
Christ’s. But here the
contrast is apparent. Christians
cannot serve their native country in war without serving the flesh and the world;
and they are then compelled to take the world’s principles for their
guides in war. Our spirit, if we
are born of God, is not of the world.
Therefore we are not to associate with its evil works. 1 Cor. 2: 12; Rom 12: 12; Eph. 5: 11. It is our condemnation to be “carnal and walk as men.”
Gal. 5: 22-24; 1 Cor. 3: 3.
2 – ‘What would become of us, if all, were to refuse to fight?’ That will never be the case, while this
dispensation lasts. But our
question ought to be: ‘What is our duty?’
Not, ‘What be the consequences of it!’ ‘Duties are ours; events are God’s.’
3. – ‘But what said John Baptist to soldiers? He did not by any means teach them to
leave their profession.’ Luke 3: 14. It is true he did not. But it may be doubted whether, if
John’s words to them were fully carried out, any could be a soldier. “Do violence
to no man.” Is not war the highest violence? But decide that as you will, John came
only “in the way of righteousness.” It was left to John’s Master to
teach the higher principle of grace.
4. – ‘We have accounts of several holy men in the army; but
neither Jesus nor His apostles told them to leave their occupation.’
God desires that the obedience
of His people should be deep and real, the result of a conscience enlightened
to see the new principles of Christ, and leading us to give up this pursuit and
that, as the result of conviction.
It was not in a moment, that the disciple came fully to know his
Lord’s mind, and its bearings on his previous life. But it does not require much intellect
to perceive the contrariety of war to these texts: “Recompense to no man evil for evil.” Rom. 12: 17.
“The Lord make you to increase and abound in LOVE
one toward another, and TOWARD ALL
MEN.” 1 Thess. 3: 12.
5. - The last objection which I
shall name is this. ‘While I would not, as a converted man, enter the army; yet
being converted while in the army, I am told by God to continue in my calling.’ “Let every
man abide in the same calling wherein he was called.” 1 Cor. 7: 20.
A look at the context will soon
decide the meaning of this for the candid.
Paul is not speaking of employments capable of being changed at a
man’s choice, by which he gets his livelihood, but of conditions of life
already decided for him. The Jew
born was not to become uncircumcised; the Gentile born was not to be
circumcised. The slave was to be
contented in slavery, the freeman in his freedom. “Let every
man wherein he is called therein abide with God.”
1 Cor. 7: 24.
Now it appears that the Christian called to the knowledge of Christ
when a soldier, cannot therein abide with God. The teachings of our Lord bid him leave
it, because the life of one who is bound to shed human blood is not a true
manifestation of God and Christ.
Mark, too, the previous words, “Ye were
bought with a price: be not ye (become not) the servants
(slaves) of
men.” 1 Cor. 7: 23. The soldier, as subjected to military
law, is obliged to do whatever he is commanded by authority. There is no freedom for conscience to
obey Christ alone. He is the slave
of men. Whether it were to crucify Christ or to watch His tomb, to behead John
Baptist or James the apostle, or to present arms to the host, he must do it, or
take the penalty. Also no one can
become a soldier without taking the oath of allegiance, and Jesus has forbidden
all oaths to His disciples. Moses,
said ‘Swear, but do not perjure yourselves’;
but I say to you, Do not swear at all.”
Matt. 5: 33-37.
In a late newspaper conducted by
Christians, an account was given of the life of an officer, a believer. It told how he, with ‘another Christian officer,’ was posted with
artillery under his command at the battle of
But suppose - as was often the
case in the last American war - that one Christian shoots down his brother in Christ. Would you choose to be either the slain
one, cut off in the midst of the stormy feelings of battle, or the slayer of a
member of Christ FOR WHOM HE GAVE HIS
BLOOD?
Is not our path plainly marked
out in these words of the Holy Ghost?
“Dearly
beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is
written ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay’
saith the Lord.” The
Christian, forgiven by grace may not touch the sword of justice; or avenge himself, or the country in which he is a pilgrim. War says- ‘If the enemy have plenty of food, take it away. Sink it in waters, or
burn it in the fire, or carry away for thyself.’ The Lord says to us – “If thy enemy hunger,
feed him.” War says – ‘If he have plenty of water, cut off
his supply! Keep up a continuous
fire at his wells, or fill them up!’ The Gospel says- “If he thirst, give him
drink!”
WHICH MASTER WILL YOU OBEY? THE WORLD? OR CTIRIST?
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