Here is a post from my faith based blog, I felt it needed said
Of God or Man
The war within a Nation
I know a lot of us are troubled about the times we are living in and wondering where these things align in God's Kingdom and timeline. I've spent quite a bit of time thinking about it as well and reflected on mankind's history and concluded that Solomon was correct, there is nothing new under the sun. Many different generations have surely thought they were living in terrible times and looking for the Lord to intervene. Jesus warned us to be aware of the seasons, but also told us that no one knows the time of his return.
In the Jewish household, of his time, once a bride was betrothed, she started to prepare for her husband's return and was in a state of readiness, the husband would come in the night unannounced and declare his return for his bride with a loud shout. A host would follow him, and the wedding would take place, then he would take his bride to a room he had prepared at his father's house.
The part I want to focus on here is preparation and do diligence while we wait patiently for our Lord. If he comes tomorrow or in 100 years does not matter. His bride is expected to be ready. The church is his bride and should be about the business of the Lord. Then why observe the seasons?
As a farmer earnestly prepares for the harvest when he sees the wheat turn from green to gold, so must a church know their time to harvest is limited. We must, in a unified effort, be at the task we were commissioned to do, save as many as possible. Make no mistake this is a war, and the souls of men are the sum game.
I think we win wars one battle at a time and victory can come in small wins or great battles. Identifying the territories, we can reclaim from the enemy and to hold the ones we have is key. We must wisely assess what is possible and what is not. One thing that is certain is a unified army is much stronger than an army of factions.
The very first place to start is with ourselves. If we are not prepared and properly equipped, then how do we expect to be of any use on the battlefield. Scripture tells us to gird up our loins. A proper equipped soldier is well prepared mentally and with weapons. First, we must win the battle within our own minds. Paul tells us this:
2 Corinthians 10:3-6
New International Version
3 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 6 And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete.
and
Romans 8:5-8
New International Version
5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. 8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.
We must focus on training in the spirit and develop a clear perspective of the world around us. We need clear vision and intelligence to see what is happening before us. We must train ourselves up in the ways of the Spirit and be prepared to explain the reason we believe. Ephesians warns us to prepare:
Ephesians 6:10-20
New International Version
The Armor of God
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people. 19 Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.
First bring yourself in line with God's will and then you will be prepared for battle.
The enemy has slipped inside the lines and works to deceive those who think they are fighting a righteous war. They do not even know they are being deluded!
It has taken me a long time to get here, but this is exactly the state of the USA today. We are likening to Saint Augustine's The City of God, where his treatise was that Rome was a split city. One was the city of Man and the other The City of God, but it was only seen as Rome alone. Two factions worked within and one focused on greed and self-serving flesh and the other was working to prosper God's Kingdom. It's kind of a dry read, but this book is a profound vision of the world.
Saint Augustine realized that the war was greater than just Rome being sacked by Barbarians. It was also being morally defeated. That the city was in the grip of evil, yet God's remnant was in place. The battle for Rome was Spiritual and I am certain the battle for this Nation is Spiritual.
Rome changed because of the Christians who risked all to share the gospel of Jesus Christ and Paul was primary in this effort. Today we must be about this in the USA. We have before us a Nation of Man and A nation of God. Right now, I fear the forces of God are splintered. If we want to fix the violence in our schools, we must take God back into them instead of kicking him out. They call it rights, but the devil has twisted the moral conscience of men to build walls against the gospel of Christ. He blurs the vision of right from wrong and convinces the weak minded they are the righteous and uses their deluded state in his plans. We must choose just as the people of God did and say, "But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.". I recommend reading all of Joshua 24.
We all have heard the promise of 2 Chronicles 7:14
New International Version
14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
It is time to return to God and choose. We do this not only by praying, but by acting. The weapon of our war is the word of God and Love. Scripture tells us to never let the sun go down on us angry and the spirit will help us transform our minds from anger to compassion. We must stand firm against evil and the greatest weapon against evil is truth. As a unified body we take the gospel to the people and start saving souls, the armed forces call it recruiting. Jesus told us:
Matthew 22:37-40
New International Version
37 Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
Many of our leaders are not Spirit lead or even Spiritually connected. They want to legislate righteousness and rule more than serve. They are blinded and can not see past the wall of the City of Man. When young men can find help for their troubled souls in Christian brothers and sisters, they will not seek empty vengeance by shooting their peers. When moral law is not up for self-determination, we will reform society. This will not come by any other method than spirit lead warriors leading people to Christ. God has set aside a remnant and all they need to do is move!
I cannot express this firmly enough; we will not win this war unless we fight as one body. The devil has separated us into factions and made us weak. All who believe in Christ are called. Let's act like it.
Addendum:
I wrote this before July 5, 2022. This morning the first story on the news was about the 4th of July shooting in Illinois that claimed 6 lives and injured dozens. In a media interview the mayor of Highland Park ask a question; is this what we have come to in this country? Sadly, my answer is "Yes". Immediately the conversation turned to removing the guns from the streets and passing Gun control laws. As a gun owner and hunter, I am concerned about infringement on my right to own and bear firearms. With that said, I do not oppose reasonable restrictions and regulations on purchasing firearms. However, I feel passing all the laws you can think of will not fix the problem. We have created a playground for evil and what we see is the fruit of a nation of leaders who have let Satan fool them into legislating God out of our country and thus moral fiber out of our government. I can not say this firmly enough, it is not a gun problem it is a moral problem, and it is not guns we should attack, but the devil and his demons. We have delusional leaders who have abandoned the moral code of God's word and decided for themselves what is fair. The devil preys on weak minds and tells them "Don't let those religious people tell you what to do". Those religious people are the foundation of this Nation, and we soon better realize it. We don't need more laws we need more Jesus! Yes mayor, this is what we have come to, A Nation of Man. God's remnant The Nation of God is very much alive, we just need to mobilize. We start in our own community by preaching the gospel and unifying.
