02-07-2004, 07:49 AM
wel-mel you are right the old testament has all that, but there is something you should know.
Luke:9:54 And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? 55 But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. 56 For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them. And they went to another village.
In the old testament sin was punishable by death, in the new testament God made a new covenant with men, Jesus came so the sinner can have life, The sinner can be forgiven of their sins.
the disciples wanted for Jesus to throw down fire like Elijah (Old Testament), Jesus said the Son of man did not come to DESTROY but to save.
Matthew 5:38 Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: 39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40 And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also. 41 And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain. 42 Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away. 43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. 44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; 45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? 47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? 48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
The Old Testament is filled with accounts of war. Many of these were okayed by God, if not commanded by Him. David was a man after God’s own heart, and yet he led the armies of Israel against the armies of many surrounding nations. His success was dependent upon his obedience to God.
Clearly David was acting in God’s will in routing the enemies of his day. But when it came time for someone to build a temple for the Lord, God declared that it could not be David because he had shed blood. This temple was to be prophetic of the coming Messiah, one who would be innocent and not shed blood. Jesus came upon a nation that was oppressed by another, yet He never lifted a finger against the oppressive Roman regime. His battle was greater. He battled against spiritual powers. He did not get distracted by fighting earthly battles.
We are no longer living under the Old Covenant of the law, because Jesus has perfectly fulfilled the law and become our righteousness. We now live under the New Covenant of grace. But where does war fit in under the new covenant? When someone hits us, do we turn the other cheek? Jesus did, and He told His followers to do the same.