Just War

Today's Reading: Numbers 31
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In this passage, God sends the nation of Israel to war against the Midianites. God gives the Israelites victory, but the commanders and their men take plunder and bring back the women and children against the wishes of the Lord. As a result, atonement must be made for their actions.

War is never easy, never longed for, and should never be politically acceptable. However, at times circumstances necessitate the viciousness of war. Righteous Soldiers never enter combat wanting to kill and destroy, but they know war requires the sacrifice and violence to bring about a lasting peace.

War is ugly, it stands against what we "accept" as civilians, however, the ugliness is part of the process toward peace. Unfortunately, too many people fail to see the productivity of war and try to politicize the fighting before the war is over. As a result, Soldiers are left restricted and unable to complete the process of winning the war.

In Vietnam and partially in Iraq and Afghanistan, people do not want to commit to winning the war because it is not politically acceptable to do so. People want to be like the commanders of Israel and only finish part of the war. The reality is, God called the Israelites to complete the battle, the atonement would follow the victory. You cannot win a war while trying not to offend the enemy. Instead, defeat the enemy (even though it is ugly at times) and then rebuild after the victory.

God wanted Israel to completely destroy the Midianites. Likewise, in our battles against sin, God wants us to completely destroy the enemy. We cannot combat sinfulness while we harbor pockets of hidden sin in our lives and expect to win the war.