First Baptist Church of Midway

July 28, 2014

God's Perspective on War

Romans 13

War is a very controversial subject in both the world and the church. Considering the broad spectrum of views and opinions, those who follow Christ would do well to search the Scriptures and ask, What does the Lord think about war?

In order to gain a proper understanding, we must first consider the condition of our fallen world. War is a natural consequence of sin. Some conflicts are fueled by evil intentions and desires, but others are a battle between right and wrong. God hates bloodshed, but if evil is not forcefully resisted, the wicked will prevail.

The Lord established government as a means of promoting good and restraining evil. National authority comes directly from Him. But some rulers abuse this authority and act wickedly, making war unavoidable. When evil men attack, a refusal to fight is an abdication of a government's responsibility to protect the innocent and avenge wrong.

The Old Testament offers ample evidence that God sometimes uses war to achieve His purposes. He commanded the Israelites to fight for possession of the land He'd promised them and to kill the inhabitants, who were extremely evil (Deuteronomy 20:1, 17-18). He also used war to judge and punish wicked nations (Jer. 25:12-14) and even to discipline His own people (Jeremiah 5:15-17).

As you think about this difficult subject, remember that God's goal is the destruction of wickedness, not people. In the final battle, Jesus will defeat sin and death, wars will cease, and righteousness will reign (Revelation 19:11-16). Until that day, we are left on earth to do our part in overcoming evil.

Used with permission from In Touch Ministries, Inc.

Upcoming Sermon Series:

      As we continue our study in Ephesians, we will look into some of the things that God calls us to. We will see in Ephesians 1:15-23 that we have The Call To Understanding. In Ephesians 2:1-10 we will see that God has given us The Call To Salvation. Then in Ephesians 2:11-22 we will see The Call To Unity.
Last Week: Paul commends the believers to two things, but he wants to make sure that they understood who they were in Christ, and that their hope was in Him alone. So he calls them to understand the greatness of God's plan, power and Person.
      Sunday's message is available for streaming or for download on our website, just under the calendar, or by visiting us on iTunes.

Next Week: We will continue our series from our continued study of Ephesians, The Call of God.

August 3 - No Carry-In Fellowship Dinner

August 9 - Men's Prayer Breakfast at 8 AM.

August 10 - Church Outside at 11 AM. This is our annual service outside enjoying God's beauty and fellowship one with another. It will be at the Caldwell Pavillion, behind their home. We will be having a picnic following the service. Please note, there will be NO SERVICES AT THE CHURCH, we will just have a unified service at the Caldwell's at 11 AM.