The Lord is a man of war; the Lord is his name. (Exodus 15:3 ESV)
War and Faith
When I was young, war seemed glamorous. Human warriors were exciting, heroic, and admirable. But while those who protect others through making war are noble, war itself is not. Robert E. Lee said it best when he said something like: “It is well that war is so terrible – otherwise we should grow too fond of it.”
In Moses’ song described in Exodus 15, though, we learn something important about war. As terrible as it is… as deadly as it is… as destructive as it is… as life-ruining as it is… It is still merely a tool in God’s almighty hands.
He is a ‘man of war.’
Sometimes we act and pray like war is outside of God’s bailiwick. But even war is a wielded by God to accomplish His goals, His very good goals.
The wars found in scripture display this hard-to-understand fact. God used war during the conquest of Canaan to remove unrighteousness, to teach His weak children to depend on Him, and to establish His Kingdom on earth for a time.
God used war as first Israel, and then Judah fell to God’s servants (albeit perhaps unwittingly) to discipline His wayward folk, to diminish pride, and to prepare the way for the suffering servant.
And we might see war again. And we will not like it. And we should not like it.
But remembering that the Lord is a man of war can be a conduit for faith. War is His, as much as peace. War is not something to fear, or worship, or set as an impossible barrier to God’s work. War is His.
And not only national military conflict. These things are also true concerning our war with temptation. These things are also true concerning our war with our sinful nature. These things are true with the battles going on with God’s enemies: the flesh, the world, and Satan.
Take the faith God grants us.