Peace in This World

I'll go right ahead and spoil the ending...I believe the notion of establishing peace in this world to be a false hope.

Please understand; its not that I like the idea of war. Nor do I accept the Hobbesian idea that all of mankind is involved in an internal struggle for power, that civilization exists only as the best mediated path to avoid mutual destruction in the otherwise endless and unavoidable wars.

My reasons for doubting world peace are, in a way, simpler than that. I believe man is sinful--and that while there ARE men who prize peace and want to see men live together in Christian love, there are also plenty of men who will chose to burn in Hell even as they look on the throne of Christ.

I'm not trying to get into a theological discussion on the nature of salvation. What I am talking about is the story told in John's Revelation--that after 1000 years of life on earth with Christ as our King, the number of those that will rise up with the Enemy to defy heaven will be as the sand on the sea shore. Humanity is fallen--it is only by divine grace that we desire goodness.

Why am I arguing this? Because I am frequently chastized by other Christians for ignoring the call to love in the Bible. I have been told that I ignore the commandment not to kill. The problems with the translation of scripture aside (the literal translation of "thou shalt not kill" means no murder, not no war, captial punishment, etc).

There seems to be a disconnect when it comes to reality and those who oppose any and all wars. Realistically, it seems to ignore the fact that there are people who will chose to go to hell even when they have seen God Himself. Realistically, it overlooks the fact that those same people will not hesitate to destroy paradise for their own ends--and while there will come a day when God's strength will answer any selfish desire, in this world, to live justly requires not merely minds and souls that cherish love and peace, but strong bodies who will defend those same ideals from men that hate the very thought of a world without war.

It assumes that America is one of the great instigators of that desire for carnage. America has flaws--nobody would thoughtfully suggest otherwise--but you would be overly cynical and as closeminded as the "war mongers" if you could not believe that those who suggest peace through strength don't understand the appeal of a world where love and peace rule supreme. The reality is, such a world will not exist this side of heaven. Christians shouldn't imagine that they can extricate themselves from the burdens of this world by living for the abstract peace while terrorists and tyrants burn the innocent and helpless.

For every successful "people power" movement, there is always the realistic threat that in the end, if need be, the tyrants will be overpowered by force. The people power revolts that were successful happened when the tyrants realized that the time had come to take the money and run (think Philippine dictator Marcos) rather then run the risk of certain death by trying to fight. Ultimately, force was still a factor--the only reason those instances were resolved peacefully was because the tyrants were smarter/bigger cowards then others who clung on to the bitter end (think Saddam).

Peace in this world is a false hope. But I told you that already. I do believe that it is important to always try to avoid the destruction of war--but a good leader understand the difference between peace and appeasement. Look forward to heaven, and trust that in the meantime God will give us the strength and the faith to endure in a world of darkness and evil men. For the sake of my son, I certainly hope that God will protect us.