“I am a Christian, and I am a devout Christian.
I believe in the redemptive death & resurrection of Jesus Christ.” ~ Barack Obama

“If you Love Me, keep my Commandments.” ~ Jesus Christ (John 14:15)

“This is my Commandment: that you Love one another as I have Loved you …” ~ Jesus (John 15:12)

I start today by stating that this post is NOT a personal attack on the current United States President.  Neither I nor anyone else has either the standing or the wisdom required to condemn him as “evil” or “malicious” or “immoral”.

This goes for me, who is so very disappointed in how far Obama has caved to the whims & lusts of the American military-industrial machine … This goes for every Republican, who can’t stand Democrats in general … And this goes for every Peace activist and every true Lover of Humanity, who must all be simply appalled at the raw callousness with which American politicians continue to rattle their sabers, raze other peoples and rape other nations.

Despite this well-warranted dislike, and no matter how much we might reasonably despise what Obama & his cronies are doing to our country, to other countries and to our planet, NONE of us are in a position to judge HIM, the man — not even close.  (“Let all without sin cast the first stone”, indeed!)

That having been said, let it also be said that this Truth applies to Mr. Obama and his administration as well. If they would not be condemned as worthy of termination for their own evil deeds, then they have no standing to condemn Assad (or any other “terrorist”) for his.

Indeed, for Mr. Obama and all other self-professed Christians, it is well worth remembering today that war was never sanctioned by Christ; that if you are to be true Followers of Jesus, then actively pursuing Peaceful ends by actively using peaceful means is your only alternative.

As Jesus himself stated most directly in the Bible: “I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be Children of your Father in Heaven … For if you only Love those who Love you, what reward do you have?” … Put your sword back into its place; for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.” (Matthew 5:44-46 + Matthew 26:52)

It really couldn’t be any more obvious …
It really couldn’t be any more clear.

Of course, the Bible does admittedly contain many Jewish (Old Testament) stories advocating both the condemnation of others and the use of force against other nations, and the self-professed “apostle” Paul in the New Testament was indeed a fiery man who often lashed violently out at his enemies.  And yet it must also be noted that the Jesus of the Gospels had a very different ministry and preached a very different message.  His ministry was a ministry of selfless service, and his message was a message of Peace … period.

So, for my Christian Friends, understand that when it comes to others who don’t believe like you do or don’t live as you would have them live, you all have a choice to make:  either you tow the line of the Christian church and arrogantly condemn them as “sinners” or “non-believers” or “the lost”, or you follow Jesus Christ and reach out to them with acts of humble Kindness.

AND, even more importantly for Mr. Obama (and all other Christian “leaders”), know that when it comes to your foreign policy decisions, you too have a choice to make: either you tow the line of the Christian church and make “just war” on your enemies, or you follow Jesus Christ and reach out to them as a champion of Peace.  Mr. Obama, you may call yourself a Christian if you wish, and yet you must remember that you — just like the rest of us — are not what you say, but rather what you do.

There is indeed great evil afoot in this world, my Friends. AND YET it is because of this rising tide of darkness that the time has come for EVERY Christian to set aside their hypocritical, outdated and ultimately counterproductive support of violence as a means to resolve their conflicts.  There is no such thing as a “just war”, just as there is no such thing as a war that is “winnable”. Waging war is is the ultimate sign of weakness, and it is also shows the ultimate lack of Faith — both in God if you are religious, and in LOVE if you are not.

In essence, it is high time for Christians to quit preaching hollow words of reverence for Jesus while ignoring his Commandment of LOVE. It is high time for Christians to cease using force to batter their enemies, and to start ladling them with The Way of Christ instead.

Jesus was a man of LOVE — a LOVE pure and without exception. Therefore, to be a true Follower of Christ should be about following his Way of Peace; it should about adhering to his Way of Forgiveness; it should about abiding in his Way of Kindness.

Christianity has the potential be a Force for LOVE in this world.
It has the potential to be a Force for Peace … It has the potential to represent the teachings of Jesus Christ.

And it is high-time for Christians to start acting accordingly.

Amen … Let it be so.

“War might be hell and yet still the right thing to do.” ~ Barack Obama (The Audacity of Hope)

“They profess to know God, but they deny him by their actions.” ~ Titus 1:16

“Whoever says ‘I abide in Him’ must walk just as he walked.” ~ 1 John 2:6

Filed under: The War on WAR by Scaughdt