Jihad

Posted by Kirk M. Wellum

It was not very long ago that most people living in the western world did not know the meaning of "jihad". The word was not a part of our vocabularies, nor was it heard in normal conversation. But as in Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" a great evil is stirring in our world today; a restless, hellish evil that desires to plunge the world into moral and spiritual darkness. "Jihad" is its slogan and battle cry. Those who take the word upon their lips and who allow it to shape their lives will be cut down at the end of the age when the Lord Jesus Christ slays the wicked with the breath of his mouth and the glory of his appearing. But between now and then they are a threat to be reckoned with, a blight upon the world, people who are themselves enslaved by the beastly powers of one whose ancient method is to masquerade as an angel of light.

Jihad means "holy war". In many ways it is an oxymoron: a complete contradiction of terms. There is no such thing as a "holy war" when it is waged by the fallen sons and daughters of Adam. Wars that are fought by unholy people always share in their unholiness. They are marked by violence, bloodshed and destruction. In spite of the rhetoric of those who promote such folly, the legacy of such conflict is always sad beyond comprehension. It is one thing when atheistic madmen unleash their fury upon the world. It is even more tragic when a whirlwind of depravity is perpetrated in the name of God. If there is one thing that the only true holy book teaches, it is that "the anger of man does not produce the righteousness that God requires" (James 1:20). It is absolutely impossible for sinful human beings to bring about the kingdom of God by means of guns or bombs or executions or repressive laws or marches or sermons or anything else.

There is only one "holy war" that has ever been fought. And it is the war between the descendant of the serpent and the descendant of the woman (Genesis 3:15). It is a holy war that has spanned the ages, holy because it has not been fought by one who is unholy but by one who is thrice holy. God himself, in the person of his own dear Son, has chosen to save out of the fallen mass of humanity, a people of his very own. At great cost to himself he sent his Son to do what only he could do to reconcile God to us and us to God. The great battle in this holy war took place more than two thousand years ago on a hill outside Jerusalem. There, with no human help or support, the Son of Man, fought the definitive battle with the powers of sin and Satan. On the cross, Jesus, the crucified one, did what all the armies of unholy warriors could never do. He paid the price for the sins of his people and he secured their deliverance from every foul spirit and power of oppression. Of course, there would have been no victory and we would have no way of knowing about it, had he not risen from the dead. But as the inspired Scriptures testify, and as as secular history cannot deny, he rose triumphantly from the grave. He is the holy warrior! And he has triumphed. And he will reign until he has put all of his enemies under his feet. His reign is gracious and glorious. He alone can bring lasting peace.

Jihad, as the word is used today, is always and in every place a monumental tragedy and disgrace. It is never pleasing to the true and living God. And it can never make the world a better place. There is only one holy warrior and one Savior of sinners. He is the only one that can deal with the real cause of human torment. Today, he continues to call people from all the nations to repent and follow him. Although he does not promise us an easy time in this life and we will never achieve total victory here and now, he does promise to be with us to the end, and when the eternal plan of the Father has been fulfilled in all of its details, he will unveil a new heavens and earth where righteousness will finally dwell forever. Yes, in the end righteousness will live on the earth; but we must never forget that it is a righteousness that has been secured for all who look for it, at the cross.