Jihad as Found in Judaism, Christianity and Islam

Jihad as Found in Judaism, Christianity and Islam



INTRODUCTION

As we pause at the beginning of the 21st Century and look back at the 20th Century, we see two major accomplishments for which that century will be remembered: first, we produced an untold amount of machines, and gadgets, and second, we used them to kill each other at an unprecedented rate. We lived in the bloodiest century in recorded history.


We saw wars escalate from tiny tribal conflicts to massive, global warfare, twice. We saw wars go from men on horseback with rifles and cannons, to fighter pilots in supersonic jets releasing missiles, napalm, and atomic bombs.

We left the 19th century where armies burned, looted, raped and plundered scattered villages and towns to the 20th century where major civilian population centers were incinerated (every man, woman, child, animal and tree) by the millions. This was the century where an Arabic word became a fixture in every language. The word was Jihad . This book is an attempt to define and understand Jihad. It is a study of Jihad as found in three of the world's major religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.


CHAPTER 1

WHAT IS JIHAD ?


Jihad is an Arabic word that means "Holy War". According to Jihad, God has a special loyalty to a particular group of people who are his "chosen people ". He blesses, and protects them, and uses them as his servants to do His work on the earth. Part of His work is to destroy evil, and evil doers, and to expand, and protect, the boundaries, possessions, and prosperity of his "chosen people". However, since God's work is always resisted by evil doers, you will have war. It is the privilege, and duty, of His chosen people to participate in the fighting, and support of His wars. Those who die in battle are instantly, and automatically, taken to paradise. Those 'chosen ones' who kill in war, should feel no guilt, or remorse, for they are doing a service to God, and the Community of "the chosen ones". They should be proud, and fearless, knowing that God actually empowers them (even inhabits them), and guides their swords, or guns, or bombs at His will, not theirs.

Is it true? Is God really involved in the wars of the earth?

It is the author's belief that it is true. God is involved in a Jihad (Holy War), and is fighting on two battle fronts. First he is fighting in Spiritual Realms against the forces of evil led by Satan (Lucifer), and second He is actively fighting against certain humans on the earth.

CHAPTER 2


GOD IS FIGHTING AGAINST SATAN


God is waging Jihad in Spiritual Realms against a spirit being, a fallen angel, named Satan , and his spirit armies. This ancient concept was well known in China, India, Israel, Persia, The Americas and The Middle East.

CHINA
In China The Father of Heaven, Yu-Huang Shangti "has an army of heavenly soldiers who fight the rebel spirits".

INDIA
In India "Indra the God of Warriors fights Vritra the Demon dragon".

PERSIA
In Persian literature we read of Ahura Mazda (or Mazd) who battles Ahriman "The first created life, The second death... the first consisted of light and truth, the second of darkness and falsehood ... the real world was a result of their hand to hand struggle."

NORTH AMERICA
In America the Pericu Indians of California say that "heaven is more populous than earth, and that at one time there was a great strife between the inhabitants. Among them was Wac, or Tupuran, who was very powerful. He revolted against Niparaya (the Highest God) , but was completely defeated, and deprived of his power, driven out of heaven, and shut up with his followers in an underground cave."

ISRAEL
The Jewish writer, Ezekiel , writing from Babylon, around 600 BC . explains why Satan was cast out "thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty...I will cast thee to the ground. " (Ezk:28:17)

Another Jewish writer, Isaiah (750 B.C.) writing from Israel says
"How art thou fallen from heaven o Lucifer son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground which did weaken the nations! . . . thou shalt be brought down to hell" (Is 14 12-14).

The Jewish/Christian writer, John of Patmos, (100 A.D.) gives an account similar to the Pericu Indians

"and there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels . . . and the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent called the devil, and Satan which deceiveth the whole world; he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."
(Rev 12-7-9).

"and I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand , and he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the devil, and Satan and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season" (Rev 20-1-3).

War is not only a reality on the earth, but is also taking place in other realms, other dimensions, in the heavenlies . A good force is battling an evil one. God is waging Jihad against a spirit being known as Lucifer.

(What I have just quoted and am about to quote in this book regarding the various national gods comes from The New Larousse Encyclopedia of Mythology.)

CHAPTER 3

GOD IS ALSO WAGING JIHAD AGAINST CERTAIN HUMANS.


All of the ancient writings, from the different geographical areas of the Globe, attest that God is involved in the wars that take place upon the earth. No matter whether God is viewed as male, or female, one of God's roles is that of a warrior.

MOSES
The Great Hebrew prophet Moses says "The Lord is a man of war " (Ex.15.3). Yahveh is a warrior who says, if I whet my glittering sword... "I will make mine arrows drunk with blood, and my sword shall devour flesh" (Dt. 32.41)

KING DAVID
In 1000 B.C. King David of Israel described God thusly:

"In my distress I called upon the Lord and, cried to my God: and He did hear my voice out of his temple: and my cry did enter into his ears. Then the earth shook and trembled; and the foundations moved and shook because he was wroth. There went up a smoke out of his nostrils and fire out of his mouth before: coals were kindled by it. He bowed the heavens also, and came down; and darkness was under his feet. He rode upon a Cherub, and did fly. He was seen upon the wings of the wind. He made darkness pavilions around about him, dark waters, and thick clouds of the skies. Through the brightness before him were coals of fire kindled. The Lord thundered from heaven, and the most high uttered his voice. He sent out arrows, and scattered them; lightning, and discomfited them." (2 Samuel 22.7-15)

EGYPT
In Egypt "The names and appellation of Osiris were countless . . . he appeared not only in the form of various animals - The Bull Onuphis, The Sacred Ram of Mendes, The Bird Bennu but also in the "Djed", a simple fetish which seemed to have been his primitive form in the days when he led his prehistoric followers into battle."

BABYLON
In Babylon " Marduk absorbed all the other Gods . . . it was he who organized the Universe . . . it was he who created Man . . . Marduk was generally represented armed with a kind of Scimitar."

ASSYRIA
The Assyrians of Ninevah "Asshur became "King of all Gods, self-created Father of all Gods . . . Asshur was above all a warrior God . . . Asshur is usually represented as a winged disk, or mounted on a bull." "He accompanied them (the Assyrian) into battles, fought at their side, directed the soldiers blows and rendered their armies victorious." Along with Asshur they worshipped Ishtar . While the Assyro-Babylonians made Ishtar a goddess, the Arabs made her a god under the name Athar . . . she was a goddess of War . . . "The Lady of battles . . . like Asshur she went on expeditions, took part in battles "covered with combat and arrayed in terror." She is represented standing on a chariot drawn by seven lions, with a bow in her hand."

CANAAN
In Phoenicia-Canaan; Baalat/Baal/Bull/El appears wearing a pointed helmet adorned with symbolic horns . . . thrusts his spear into the earth and the shaft of his spear appears to simulate the lightning's zig-zag.

GREECE
In Greece the chief god was named Zeus. "He begins as a sky-and-mountain-God provider of indispensable rain. Like Yahweh he is among his earlier forms, a god of war." (p. 181 The Life of Greece , Will Durant, Simon Schuster 1939 NY, NY.)

In Greece one of the favorite goddesses was Athena , "She delighted above all in battle."

ROME
In Rome Jupiter was the chief God and was a warrior god who carried three thunderbolts. But "Mars is without a doubt the most Roman of The Gods. His cult was more important than that of Jupiter . . . he was the supreme God of War. "He sometimes appeared on the fields of battles."

IRELAND
The Celts of Ireland and Wales worshipped "Morrigan , a goddess appearing in battle in changing horrid guises."

GERMANY
The Teuton Germans worshipped Woden. "Woden seems to take an undue interest in battles and warriors." "in spite of his patronage of battles, he does not fight in them, but intervenes magically making use of his herfjoturr, a paralyzing panic."

SCANDINAVIA
Scandinavia; In the North Woden was called Odin . He was the God of War . . . it was on His command that dead warriors were burned with all that belonged to them . . . for thus taking with him all his worldly possession, the dead warrior would find them again when he reached Valhalla. When there was a battle on earth, Odin sent (supernatural women called Valkyries) to mingle with the combatants; it was their task to determine which warrior would fall.

SLAVIA
The Slavs worshipped Svantouit "a flag - a war banner - was kept in the temple. The priests would show it to Svantouit's worshipers before they went to war."

PERSIA
Ancient Persia; In the pre-zoroastian period, Mithra often associated with the Supreme Ahura, was a god of the First magnitude. "His military valor was without rival. " Sometimes called Ahura Mazda. Mithra was worshipped by the Aryans . . . Mithra Ahura of the Zend-Avesta . . . Mithra Varuna of the Vedas had one goal : "an ardent zeal for moral purity obtained, and pressured, by a belligerent attitude; that of a soldier."

INDIA
In India Karttikeya or Skanda, is a god of war.
In the Bagavad Gita the god, Krishna becomes Arjuna's charioteer, and as they approached the battlefield . Arjuna hesitated to take part in the war, deploring the useless slaughter. Why kill ones friends and relatives? Krishna however, reminds him that he belongs to the caste of the warriors. He cannot go to heaven if he displays such cowardice. Besides they only kill and are killed in appearance. In reality the soul is eternal. Allthose on the battlefield have always existed and will never cease to exist. This is Leela - Maya God's play.

Indra is another Indian god of warriors. "He is armed with arrows and rides in a chariot . . . he wields a thunderbolt-lighting while his chariot becomes the sun. He fights the dragon Vritra . . .

CHINA
In China the august personage of Jade yu-huang Shangti was the "Father of heaven who made human beings by modeling them from clay. He has an army of heavenly soldiers who fight the rebel spirits when necessary." He has "embroidered dragons on his robe" .

Kuanti is a Taoist god of war .

JAPAN
In Japan Bishamon or Bishamonten was "the protector of the Law and of Human Life against illness and Demons, and was a god of war. In The Second World War, we learned of the KamiKazes , Japanese pilots who did suicide missions with the traditional Jihad concept that warriors who died in battle would go immediately to paradise.

MEXICO
For the Aztecs "Huitzilopochtli was the Great War and Storm god." "He was born fully armed . . . and a blue Javelin in his hand . . . his whole body was painted blue.
"
CHILE
In Chile the Araucanians most powerful God was Pillan , the God of thunder . . . he caused earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and lightning . . . The Chiefs and Warriors killed in war were absorbed into Pillan.

BRAZIL
In Brazil for the Guarrani Tupians "Monan was the Creator of Mankind, he destroyed the world with flood and fire."

POLYNESIA
Tu, was a war God worshipped throughout the whole of Polynesia. Oro was another War God worshipped all over Polynesia.
In Hawaii they worshipped the War God Ku.

AFRICA
In Africa Shango is the storm God of the Yoruba people . . . famed for his love of war.
Now I'm not saying that Yahweh or Allah are the same God as Shango and Jupiter, but the point I'm trying to make is that there can be little doubt about it, whenever people knew of God ,they perceived of him (or her) as an active participant in the wars of the earth. Even Jesus, the Christian Savior who is presented by a loving, forgiving Lamb, will return as a warrior. When he returns to earth again, he will come as a conquering general.

"I saw heaven opened and behold a white horse and he that sat upon it was called Faithful and true and in righteousness he doth judge and make war . . . his eyes were as a flame of fire . . . he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood . . . and the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses" (Rev. 19-11-21).

The overwhelming evidence by those of all nations who have sought to know God, is that he is indeed waging Jihad against certain unrighteous human beings.

CHAPTER 4

WHAT WEAPONS DOES GOD USE ?

  1. God's arsenal of weapons: . In addition to human beings, who are often used as avenging soldiers, God uses many other weapons to kill, or wound, His enemies and to punish, correct, and sometimes even kill his own chosen people.
  2. God uses evil spirits (sometimes called fallen angels or demons):
  3. some cause insanity (Mt 18.28, 17.15 Mark 5.15 Lk 8.27-29)
  4. some cause muteness of speech (Mt 9.33)
  5. some cause disease (Mt 10.1 Mrk 1.23, 3.11 Lk 4.36 Acts 5.16, 8.7 Rev 16.13)
  6. some cause deafness (Mrk 9.25)
  7. some cause blindness (Mt 12.22)
  8. some cause suicidal mania (Mrk 9.22)
  9. ( I am basing most of this on the writings of the ancient Jews as found in "Wilmington's Book of Bible Lists " Tyndale Publishers .
  10. some cause personal injuries (Mrk 9.18)
  11. some cause physical defects (Lk 13.11)
  12. some will inflict grievous torture in the future (Rev 9.3)
  13. King Saul was tormented by an evil spirit (1Sam 16.11, 18.10,19.9)
  14. Demons were used to punish rebellions in Israel (Ps 78.49)
  15. Demons will bring the ungodly to the final battle of Armageddon (Rev 16.13)
  16. a Demon was instrumental in King Ahab's death (1Ki 22.19)
  17. a Demon was used to punish King Abimelech (Jud 9.23)

God also uses:
  • plagues (Ex 7.20, 12.29)
  • earthquakes (Ex 19.18)
  • fires (Gen 19.24)
  • famine (Gen 12.10)
  • hail (Ex 19.24) lightning (Ps 114.6)
  • wild beasts (1Ki 13.24 2 Ki 2.24)
  • diseases leprosy (Num 12.1-10)
  • inflammation (Dt 28.22)
  • extreme burning (Dt 28.22)
  • mildew (Dt 28.22)
  • scab (Dt 28.27)
  • weakness (Dt 28.32)
  • weak knees & legs (Dt 28.35)
  • boils all over (Dt 28.35)
  • Diseases specifically mentioned:
  • Edema - Dropsy (Lk 14.1-4)
  • Dysentery (Act 28.8)
  • Tuberculosis (Dt 28.22)
  • Fever (Dt 28.27)
  • Burning eyes (Dt 28.32)
  • Cancer (2 Ki 20.1 2 Chron 21.18)
  • Boils - Staph (Ex 9.9 Job 2.7)
  • Blains - Anthrax (Ex 9.9)
  • Gangrene (2 Tim 2.17)
  • Malaria (2 Cor12.7)
  • Itch (Lev 13.30)
  • Scaling (Lev 21.22)
  • Small pox (Lev 26.39)
  • Sun stroke (2 Ki 4.18)
  • Heart attack (1 Sam 4.18)
  • Syncope (Gen 45.26)
  • Hemorrhoids (1 Sam 5.6)
  • Internal bleeding (Mt 9.20)
  • Sores - ulcerated (Is 1.6 Lk 16.20)
  • Worms (Act 12.20)
  • Fear (Ex 23.27)
  • Sudden death (Act 1.10)
  • Serpents (Num 21.6)
  • Choking (Num 11.31)
  • Barrenness (Gen 16.1)
  • Windstorms (Jonah 1.4)
  • Miscarriages & Abortions (Hos 9.14)
  • Suicides (Mrk 9.22)
  • Insects - hornets (Ex 23.28)
  • Rapists (Zech 14.2 Is 13.16)
  • Mental illness (Rom 1.28)
  • Sexual disorders (Rom 1.28)
  • Venereal diseases (Zech 11.17 Dt 28.27)
  • Immoralities - spouse adultery & prostitution (Hos 4.13)
  • Kidnappings (Jerm 48.46)
  • Thievery (Jerm 17.3 Ez 26.12)
  • Menstrual disorders (Lk 8.43)
  • Imprisonments (Gen 39.20)
  • Enforced labor (Jud 16.21)
  • Slavery (Ex 1.11)


People recorded in the Bible who were directly executed by God:
  1. Ananias & Sapphira for lying to God (Act 5.1-10)
  2. A Sabbath breaker (Num 15.32)
  3. Er (Gen 38.7)
  4. Hanaiah (Jerm 28.15)
  5. Herod Agrippa I for pride (Act 12.23)
  6. Jeroboam for bad leadership (2 Chron 21.18)
  7. Jeroboam's son (1 Ki 14.12)
  8. Korah for trying to overthrow Moses (Num 16.30)
  9. Lot's wife (Gen 19.26)
  10. Nabub & Abihu for offering strange fire (Lev 10.2)
  11. Nabul for lack of hospitality (1 Sam 25.38)
  12. Onan (Gen 38.8)
  13. Saul for rebellion and consulting a witch (1 Chron 10.13)
  14. Ten spies for rebellion (Num 14.37)
  15. thousands of Israelites for complaining (Num 11.1)
  16. Uzziah for touching the Ark (2 Sam 6.7)
  17. 2400 Israelites for immorality (Num 25.9)


CHAPTER 5

WHY WOULD A LOVING GOD WAGE JIHAD AGAINST PEOPLE?


Why would a loving god wage Jihad against certain human beings? Ask a Moslem, Christian, or Jew and they will all give you the same answer: "God is holy, and good, and He fights against all that is unholy and evil. As long as people worship God and obey His laws, He will be their friend and helper. But if they choose to disobey Him, He becomes their enemy." In the Torah God says:

" If you walk in my statutes and keep my commandments and do them; then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit . . . and I will give peace in the land, and yea shall lie down and none shall make you afraid:
and I will rid evil beasts out of the land." (Lev. 26.3-6)

" But if ye will not hearken unto me and will not do these commandments. . . I also will do this unto you; I will even appoint over you terror, consumption and the burning ague, that shall consume the eyes, and cause sorrows of the heart; and yea shall sow your seed in vain for your enemies shall eat it. And I will set my face against you and ye shall be slain before your enemies . . . I shall bring a sword upon you .. I will send pestilence among you . . . I will walk contrary to you in fury ; and I, even I will chastise you seven times for your sins." (Lev. 26. 3-28)

Think of it this way. God is all love and when lovelessness (sin) appears, it throws itself at love and is destroyed. Nature gives the best illustration in the moth and the candle. God is like the candle. He is all light. The moth is like sin (for moths are destructive). The moth hurls itself against the light and is destroyed. You could say the light overcame the moth. A loving God has only to be and evil will throw itself at Him and perish. Does God fight against evil people? Or do evil people fight against God? Does God kill evil people? Or do evil people kill themselves in opposing God.?


CHAPTER 6

ABRAHAMIC JIHAD


Abraham became the Father of three of the world's largest religions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, (all known for their violent, war-like natures.) Oddly enough Abraham was a quiet peace-loving lover of humankind. He lived around 4000 BC in an intensely violent war-loving society near what is now the country of Iraq.

God told Abraham to leave Iraq and go to Palestine where the even more war-like Canaanite savages lived. There Canaanites worshipped Baal the God of war and Baalah his sister -wife, the Goddess of fertility, prostitution, orgies, and many deviant sexual behaviors, including child rape and bestiality. All of these violent Middle Eastern nations were steeped in what I call "Traditional Jihad". That is unholy man-made wars. Each nation had a national God who they believed led them into battle and fought beside them and through them.
It was in this context that the one true God found Abraham, and chose him out of all the people on the earth to be his special "friend". Abraham had three qualities that endeared him to God:
  1. He was a LOVER . He loved all people even the vilest of sinners (he begged God one time not to destroy the wicked people in Sodom and Gomorrah.) (Gen. 18.16-33)
  2. He was able to trust God (he did falter a few times which endears him to me, but he always got back up, and back on track).
  3. He was dedicated to instructing his children in the ways of God.

I wonder how Abraham felt when God told him to leave his war-like nation and go into Palestine where an even fiercer nation lived. Then he was given an incredible promise. God said that He would give the land of Palestine to Abraham and his seed. Not only would Abraham receive Palestine, but all the land from the Nile to the Euphrates (Gen. 15.18-21)
"Unto thy seed have I given this land from the River of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates." (Gen 15.18)
"I will give unto thy seed all these countries" (Gen 26.4)

"From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast." (Josh 1.4) "and I will set thy bounds borders from the Red Sea even unto the sea of the Philistines and from the desert unto the river."


WHAT ARE THE BOUNDARIES OF THE PROMISED LAND ?


Based on these texts one could say the river of Egypt is the Nile, therefore the Jews can claim everything east of the Nile and west the Sea of the Phillistines which could be the Persian Gulf; following northward they could claim everything west of the Euphrates river to where it begins in western Turkey ( most of Turkey). That would be Lebanon, 2/3rds of Syria, half of Iraq, all of Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Dubai, (The United Arab Emirates), Oman, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Ethiopia, 1/4 of Egypt, Sudan, much of Kenya, part of Uganda and Tanzania. That is the most liberal view of God's promise to Abraham. Some people say the River of Egypt is referring to the Red Sea. That would give the Jews claim to everything except the African countries. It's still quite a chunk of real estate and contains some of the richest oil preserves in the world. It is also under Moslem control, and they believe God gave it to them for their faithfulness in propagating Islam. They also claim it by reason of being children of Abraham through the line of Ishmael. But the Jews insist that Ishmael lost the promise, and it only goes to those who are descended through the line of Isaac and Jacob. When you have two religious groups claiming God gave them the same piece of land, and they both subscribe to Holy War, look out, The blood is going to flow.

ABRAHAM'S VISION WAS NOT SO UNIQUE

Now this call of God, and the promises, were not so unusual. Many Chiefs of the Middle East felt God was calling them to expand their boundaries and overtake neighboring countries. This is one of the cornerstones of traditional Jihad. God's chosen people are to expand their boundaries and prosper, by conquering the wicked savage nations around them. But where the call of Abraham made a radical departure from Traditional Jihad was that Abraham was to make the invasion alone . He was to take no army. God told him to leave all of his kindred behind. God alone would fight for him. Thus a new era of Jihad was born. Something new had come into the world. I call it "Abrahamic Jihad". Quite simply it means God will prosper his chosen people and fight their enemies all by himself. He told Abraham "I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you." If Abraham had truly obeyed, he would have never had to engage in any kind of combat. But he did not obey. He brought a partial army in the form of his nephew Lot along with Lot's men. As a result Lot was soon kidnapped by a gang of Bedouin Chieftains and Abraham sinned again. Instead of waiting for God to rescue, or dispose of Lot, Abraham took matters into his own hands and pursued the renegade chieftains engaging them in battle and rescuing Lot.

Abraham was not obedient: he brought his kinsmen, he broke the code of Jihad and yet there was something about Abraham that God knew he could count on. He knew that Abraham would properly instruct his children in the ways of God. By looking at the lives of his son Isaac, and grandson Jacob, we can see that he successfully passed on the concept of Abrahamic Jihad.


CHAPTER 7

THE FIRST WISE ONES


The First Sons of Abraham Understood Abrahamic Jihad Isaac seems to have entirely understood Jihad for he had five legitimate occasions in his life to take up arms against invaders. Each time he left the fighting to God and moved out of the scene of conflict. Each time he moved, God led him to greener pastures. Finally he came to Reheboth a large land flowing with milk and honey where his enemies came and signed peace treaties with him. One of the cornerstones of Abrahamic Jihad is found in Proverbs 16.7

"when a man's ways please the Lord, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him."

Abraham seems to have instructed his grandson Jacob too, in the ways of this new and better Jihad. Jacob had four valid occasions to take up arms and resisted doing so. Jacob's sons however reverted to men's unholy Jihad. Thus Jacob put a curse on two of his sons, Simeon and Levi. Jacob's daughter, Dinah was raped by a young man from a neighboring tribe. Jacob's sons were calling for war. Jacob insisted on leaving vengeance to God (another cornerstone of true Jihad). When he learned that the young man wished to marry Dinah he agreed to it, if all the men in the youth's tribe would be circumcized, and worship Yahveh. The youth's tribe agreed, and the third day after the circumcision, when the men were unable to walk because of their pain, Simeon, Levi, and their men, attacked them killing every man and boy. Jacob was furious, this was not God's way. It would result in the children of Israel being punished for 430 years as slaves to the Egyptians.

CHAPTER 8

MOSES UNDERSTOOD ABRAHAMIC JIHAD

In 420 BC there arose a man who truly understood Abrahamic Jihad.
His name was Moses. Moses did not liberate his people through armed revolution, but through migration. At first the Pharaoh said the Israelites could leave, but then he changed his mind ,and he decided to kill them. His armies pursued the migrating Israelites to the banks of the Red Sea. It was there that Moses revealed his knowledge of God, and Abrahamic Jihad.
On the banks of the sea he told his followers that they were not to engage in battle, but to stand still.
<br>"Fear not stand still and see the salvation of the Lord . . . the Lord shall fight for you and you shall hold your peace." (Ex 14.13-14)
In Abrahamic Jihad Moses knew that Yahweh is a warrior, in fact he is the only warrior. That day Pharaoh and his army were destroyed. No Israeli struck a single blow. Yahveh triumphed gloriously the horse and rider were thrown into the sea.

CHAPTER 9

JOSHUA AND THE TWO INVASIONS OF CANAAN


Crossing the Red Sea, the children of God saw the awesome power of God; their champion, mighty warrior. If you had been among them wouldn't your have soared? Wouldn't you have totally pledged your obedience to Moses? Well I would like to think I would have, but they surely didn't. In fact shortly after the crossing, they had gathered against Moses and were about to stone him to death (Gen 17.4).

Suddenly the Amalakites came sweeping down on them. War. But this time the command was not "Stand still and see the salvation of God". No, Not this time. This time it was fighting; hard brutal hand to hand, deathly combat. All day long the fierce, sickening, battle raged.
You see True Abrahamic Jihad only works when you are walking in obedience to God. Then God fights for you. If you are walking in disobedience, and rebellion, don't expect God to fight for you. On the contrary, you can expect the Amalakites (the name means trouble). The horrible truth is that when you are living in sin, God does not fight for you, but He actually fights against you.

The Amalakite war was sent by God to punish his people. It's like a spiritual law of cause and effect. Obey and God will destroy your enemies, disobey and God will fight and chastise you with war and enemies.

The Israelites won the battle against Amalek only through a painful, prolonged, ferociously sickening battle.

The lesson to me is that sin begets warfare. It's that simple.

THE FIRST INVASION
A year later, the children of Israel marched towards the promised land to invade. It was not to be a blood-thirsty all out slaughter. In fact it was to be a peaceful, gradual penetration in which God alone would do the fighting; True Abrahamic Jihad.

In Exodus chapter 23 God promised to drive out the inhabitants of the land: "I will send my fear before thee . . . I will send hornets before thee . . . mine angel shall go before thee . . . little by little I will drive them out before thee" (Ex 23.22-30)

Do you recall the unhappy event? As they approached the promised land, they sent 12 spies out who returned with the frightening news that the land was full of Amalakites, and giants. Only two of the spies had enough faith to say let's invade, the rest discouraged the people. They again rebelled and turned against Moses . By now you know what that means:
Rebellion = Sin = War.

Seeing the people in open revolt, Moses commanded them to turn back to the desert. The invasion is off. God commands you to return to the desert where your carcasses will fall. "Not so" they shout , and begin organizing their warriors to invade. They rush into the Promised land only to be slaughtered and repulsed. The folly of men going to war is always unholy, and filled with death. Finally in defeat, they go out into the desert to die.

The message is not difficult to grasp. We enter God's kingdom by trusting him and obeying him. Our own efforts always lead to destruction. All the good deeds I can do, all the money I can give to the religion, all of the sacrificing and proselytizing are useless and vain. The just shall live by faith. Be faithful to God and live.

THE SECOND INVASION 1380 BC

Forty years later, when all the faithless ones had died, and even Moses had died, Joshua led the second invasion into the promised land. It was not Abrahamic Jihad this time but traditional. God however did intervene and often helped, but occasionally He turned against the Israelites when they sinned. Despite His help, they for the most part had to endure the horror of war to gain the land. Traditional Jihad is always punishment for sins. You may think that God is the God of second chances. But the second chance is costly and not worthy to be compared with His best for you. Don't count on Plan B.

In this instance Plan B was the result of sin and filled with horrendous unpleasantries; the gory, sweaty, emotional madness of killing women and children, burning cities, the psychological terror of waiting for the next violent attack by the savage, demonic Amalakites, Canaanites, Amorites, Zidonians, Midianites, Maonites, Edomites, Kenites, would they never stop coming? Would it never end?

To make the punishment even worse , God placed incredible restraints upon the Jews so that it was clear to all that they never could have won without God's help.
They were forbidden to build or maintain a large army (Dt 17:16). If they captured enemy horses or chariots, they were to burn the chariots and hamstring the horses. Those who felt bad about killing (conscientious objectors), were free to abstain from the war. Newly weds were exempt from battle for one year, as well as a man who had just built a new house. It was even forbidden to harm fruit trees  (Dt. 20: 19-20). If any nation outside of Palestine wanted peace they (the Jews) had to make peace with them (Dt. 20:10-15). In many ways Plan B required them to fight with one hand tied behind their back. disobedience exacts the highest price.

Guy Hershberger in his book War, Peace, and Non-Resistance says "Undoubtedly Israel's fighting was the consequence of her own sins and contrary to the intentions of god." Hershberger coined the phrase GOD'S PERMISSIVE COMMAND.

He says God's original plan was for a gradual penetration that required no fighting except on God's part. The later permissive command was that they must now fight tooth and nail. Just as God was not originally for divorce, but later commanded it because of the people's hard hearts. Just as God did not intend for Israel to have a king, but later instructed Samuel to choose Saul. All of these were permissive commands . Hershberger concludes
"It is not God's plan that men should sin, but if they choose sin, He can still use them to carry out the eternal purposes."

And what were God's Eternal Purposes concerning Palestine?

It was his intention to plant a nation of priests at the crossroads of the world. A nation that would serve as a cradle for the birth of the Messiah. A nation that knew God and would teach others about his ways. Some historians record the Invasion of Canaan as a great victory, but I expect if you could have interviewed any of the invaders they would have hung their heads in shame at the atrocities they committed in order to win. God had not chosen them to be butchers but priests. They missed their chance to know true Abrahamic Jihad, and in the end, they failed to actually drive out all their enemies, so that soon after the death of Joshua, they went a-whoring after the heathen gods, and found God's hand turned completely against them. "Therefore the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel" (Judges 3:8)

Several times they were oppressed and brought into bondage by their enemies. Then they would repent and cry out to God for help, and He would send an understanding leader to temporarily deliver them.

DEBORAH and BARAK


In 1155 B.C. Jabin, the king of the Canaanites, attacked with 900 chariots of iron, and for 20 years he was scourging Israel. Then God sent Deborah and Barak. Deborah was a Prophetess and seems to have had a partial understanding of True Abrahamic Jihad. She and Barak went up to see God destroy their enemies. It is written:

"The Lord discomfited Sisera and all his chariots and all his host with the edge of the sword before Barak" (Judges 4:15). This is true Holy war language "So God subdued in that day Jabin the king of Canaan". It even says the stars fought from heaven and the river, Kishon fought against the Canaanites (Judges 5:20-21). This seems to have been an attempt to return to Abrahamic Jihad, but since Barak appears to have fought, it was not complete. Therefore the peace was short lives for it is written:

"And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years" (Judges 6:1).

CHAPTER 10

WISE LEADERS WHO UNDERSTOOD ABRAHAMIC JIHAD


GIDEON

Then came a man who came the closest to grasping Abrahamic Jihad: Gideon . When Gideon first was called to Battle, he gathered an army of 32,000 men. God told him to cut it to 300. These 300 men by merely blowing trumpets and waving torches saw God, the warrior, do true Abrahamic Jihad.

"and the 300 blew the trumpets and the Lord set every man's sword against his fellow throughout all the host and the host fled" (Judges 7:22). The Midianites in the dark, were surprised and confused. Upon hearing the trumpets and seeing the waving torches, they panicked, and began fighting each other. Gideon took Jihad to it's next logical step by disbanding the army and refusing to become king. Thus Israel enjoyed peace for 40 years.

Unfortunately the next ruler was Abimelech, a man so wicked that he spent his entire life fighting men's unholy Traditional Jihads (without any of God's help).

He was followed by a couple of good Judges: Tola and Jair, but then "The children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord... and the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel and he sold them into the hands of the Philistines, and into the hands of the children of Ammon" ( Judges 10:8).

Then Jephthah the illegitimate son of a harlot rose up to deliver them and there was peace for a short six years. But he was a foolish man who sacrificed his own daughter because of a rash vow, and later had a dispute with the tribe of Ephraim. Jephthah waged a traditional Jihad of folly against the Ephramites, and killed 42,000 of them.

Jephthah was followed by Ibzan who had 60 children. Then came Elon and Abdon who were good and saw peace. Then the people sinned, and were again oppressed by the Philistines for 40 years until Samson arrived.

SAMSON

Samson killed 10,000 men with the jawbone of an ass. But we should not think of Samson as a hero, for most of his fighting came as the result of his sins. He disobeyed God by breaking his Nazarite vow, and disobeyed again by marrying outside of the race. Later he sought Delilah as a second wife (again outside of the race of Israel). It is no accident that he was blind, and died with the Philistines in the end. Samson, I conclude, did not understand Abrahamic Jihad but used his own strength to fight his enemies . He is a good example of how not to do it. The fact that he was able to kill ten thousand shows that God can use sinners to destroy other sinners (even in unholy Jihads).

The sad story of Israel is that they continually turned their backs on God's way in favor of their own way. They perverted the right way so far, that in Judges 20:35 we see them using man's traditional unholy Jihad against their own brothers. 11 tribes went to war against the Benjamites and destroyed them down to only 300 men who escaped.

Fallen, fallen how the mighty are fallen!

SAMUEL THE PROPHET

The next Judge, and the greatest, was Samuel. When he saw war coming, he called the people together at Mizpah to fast and pray and repent. Suddenly They were surrounded by the Philistines, but Samuel understood True Abrahamic Jihad. Instead of attacking, he sacrificed a lamb. As he was offering it in the altar. . .
"The Philistines drew near to battle against Israel but the Lord thundered with a great thunder in that day upon the Philistines and discomfited them and they were smitten before Israel . . . and the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel" (1Sam. 7:10-13).


MR. TALL DARK AND HANDSOME

Even though Samuel was a great Judge, and Prophet, his sons, Joel and Abiah, who followed him, were greedy and unjust, When the people saw that Samuel was old, and his wicked sons were about to become judges, they decided they didn't want Judges anymore, but wanted Kings, like all the other nations of the world.

Samuel was angry, and God was angry. To walk in faith means that God is your only king, and only Champion. Samuel warned them that if they had a king like all the other nations, they would become like all the other nations: idolaters, and war mongers. But the people insisted, and God (to punish them), gave them what they demanded. Did you ever pester God for something and once you got it realized it was punishing you? I have.

Well they got their king, he was Mr. tall, dark, handsome, and rich. His name was Saul. But he was weak, cowardly, impatient, disobedient, unrepentant, and knew nothing of Abrahamic Jihad. He ended up possessed by an evil spirit. He lost his kingdom, and spent his last days being punished with Traditional Jihad. In the end, he finally killed himself.

THE SHEPHERD BOY

Saul was succeeded by David. As a young man, David came close to understanding Abrahamic Jihad, but when he became king, he perverted it, and spent his remaining days in Man's Unholy Jihads.
When David was young and he fought Goliath, the Giant, he knew with a certainty that God would give him the victory. He made his mistake however, in picking up the five smooth stones from the brook. If he had complete faith in God, he could have stood still, and God would have opened the earth to swallow the giant, or sent fire from heaven. Instead David used his own slingshot. Small although it seemed , instead of God getting the glory, the people cheered for David.

Perhaps David learned from this first mistake for later David, actually practiced True Abrahamic Jihad, when he was being hunted by King Saul. On a couple of occasions, David had chances to kill Saul, but each time he stopped, and said, "I must not touch the Lord's anointed". He knew God would destroy Saul in due time, and that's exactly what happened.

Unfortunately, David later sinned seriously against the code of Abrahamic Jihad. In 1000 BC when David became king, he wanted Bathsehba, the wife of one of his soldiers. So he arranged to have the soldier killed in battle. Thus David perverted Jihad, and used it for personal gain. This is the lowest form of man's unholy use of Jihad (and the most prevalent) . This brought a curse on David's family: miscarriages, a daughter raped by a brother, a son murdered by a brother, a rebel son, Absalom forced David from the throne. Later Absalom was killed in battle against David's army. For the rest of David's life, he was in one battle after the other with Moabites, Arameans, Ammonites, Edomites, and even the old Amalakites; He never knew peace again?

The saddest thing was, that in his old age, David longed to build God a temple, but God said No. Because David had been a man of war, and had bloody hands, he was forbidden to build the temple. The temple was only to be built by a man of peace.

Perhaps David repented and longed to return to the right path for he wrote in Ps.120:6:
"Too long have I lived among those who hate peace. I am a man of peace; but when I speak, they are for war."

Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. (Ps. 34: 14)

David taught us to Love our enemies and pray for them

Ps. 109:2 For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me: they have spoken against me with a lying tongue. 3 They compassed me about also with words of hatred; and fought against me without a cause. 4 For my love they are my adversaries: but I give myself unto prayer. 5 And they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love.

David taught us to not be angry

Ps. 37: 8 Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret-it leads only to evil. 9 For evil men will be cut off, but those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land. 10 A little while, and the wicked will be no more; although you look for them, they will not be found. 11 But the meek will inherit the land and enjoy great peace.

David said YHVH hates those who love violence

Ps. 11:5 The LORD examines the righteous, but the wicked and those who love violence his soul hates.

David said YHVH will destroy war and save the meek

Ps.76:1 In Judah is God known: his name is great in Israel. 2 In Shalom (peace) also is his tabernacle, and his dwelling place in Zion. 3 There brake he the arrows of the bow, the shield, and the sword, and the battle. 4 thou art more glorious and excellent than the mountains of prey. 5 The stouthearted are spoiled, they have slept their sleep: and none of the men of might have found their hands. 6 At thy rebuke, O God of Jacob, both the chariot and horse are cast into a dead sleep. 7 thou, even thou, art to be feared: and who may stand in thy sight when once thou art angry? 8 thou didst cause judgment to be heard from heaven; the earth feared, and was still, 9 When God arose to judgment, to save all the meek of the earth.

David learned that Vengeance only belongs to YHVH

Ps. 94:1O Lord God, to whom vengeance belongeth; O God, to whom vengeance belongeth, shew thyself...

David saw that it is the blood-thirsty who pervert YHVH's message

Ps. 139:19 Surely thou wilt slay the wicked, O God: depart from me therefore, ye bloody men. 20 For they speak against thee wickedly, and thine enemies take thy name in vain. 20 Away from me, you bloodthirsty men! (NIV)

David learned to continually pray for his enemies and to mourn when their leaders fall

Ps. 141.5 I am praying continually for them in their misfortune 5 my prayer also shall be in their calamities. 6 When their judges are overthrown in stony places, they shall hear my words; for they are sweet. (KJV)

I say perhaps David repented and learned to live in peace and love for on his death bed he ordered the death of a man who had cursed him once. So perhaps he did not learn to practice what he preached.

SOLOMON , THE MAN OF PEACE

This brings us to Solomon, the man of peace. Solomon started out as the wisest of men, but ended up far from God . He broke so many of God's laws, that he began sacrificing children to idols. God was so angry with Solomon ,that He said he wanted to destroy him, and all of Israel. God said if it hadn't have been for his promises to David, He would have wiped them all out. But because Solomon never practiced men's unholy traditional Jihads, he allowed him to build the temple, although he warned that it would only be temporary for Solomon's sins would find the Babylonians coming to tear it down. Nevertheless during Solomon's reign Israel did enjoy peace. 400 years later, as God predicted, the Babylonians came and destroyed the temple.

ALMOST JONATHAN

Jonathan was almost king, and almost completely understood Abrahamic Jihad. He was David's best friend. Perhaps he and David discussed the concept of Abrahamic Jihad, for when he and his armor bearer stumbled upon 600 Philistine soldiers, Jonathan said "Let's go over to the army of these men. . . perhaps Yahweh will do something for us for there is no limit to his power: the Lord is able to save by many or by few " They waited for a sign in the way the Philistines would answer them. . . when they heard the words they wanted to hear, they attacked . . . " and there was a trembling in the host in the field and among all the people and the earth quaked; so it was a very great trembling . . . and behold every man's sword was against his fellow. The slaughter raged beyond all bounds" ( I Sam. 14: 6-20).

This is almost complete Abrahamic Jihad, but Jonathan, and his friend, did use their swords and killed about 20 men, so it is not truly Abrahamic Jihad; (almost...but not quite.)

JEHOSHAPHAT

The next man who did truly grasp Abrahamic Jihad was Jehoshaphat. When the small kingdom of Judah was being attacked by Moabites, Ammonites,Syrians, and Edomites, king Jehoshaphat called everyone to fast, and call upon God. The Prophet, Jehaziel, received a message from God that he was about to destroy the invaders. His people would not have to strike a single blow. Here it is folks: True Abrahamic Jihad. King Jehoshaphat announced:

"Ye shall not need to fight in this battle. Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord" (2 Chron. 20:17). Does this sound familiar ? Doesn't it echo word for word Moses at the Red Sea?
As they marched off to the battlefield, King Jehoshaphat "appointed singers unto the Lord and that should praise the beauty of his holiness as they went before the army" (2 Chron. 20:21). This King had Pizzazz. He put the crooners right up in front of the army. Can you imagine the US army going into the battle with all it's Punk -Rock and Rollin, Heavy Metal Thrashers, Rappers, and Country Singers in the fore front? Actually for America it wouldn't work. Jehoshphat's singers were singing about the beauty of the Lord's holiness . American singers have no idea what that is about. They'd be praising sex, booze, broken hearts and one night stands. Jehoshaphat's people were in a state of serious repentance and had gotten right with God. That would take another miracle in America.

When Jehoshaphat's troops reached the battlefield, guess what they found?

God had caused all the invading armies to attack each other. As the Israelites came over the hill, "They looked unto the multitude, and behold there were dead bodies fallen to the earth, and none escaped" (2 Chron. 20:24).

Do you realize God is the same today as he was then? Are you having trouble with your enemies? Try fasting, and praying, and doing some serious repenting of things you're doing wrong, and then stand still and see the salvation of God. God is the same yesterday, today and forever.

HEZEKIAH

The next king in the Old Testament to understand Abrahamic Jihad was Hezekiah. He awoke one morning in the 8th Cent. B.C., to find Jerusalem surrounded by soldiers whose camels were as innumerable as the sand of the desert. Hezekiah immediately went and fell on his face before God in prayer.

"and it came to pass that night, that the angel of the Lord went out and smote in the camp of the Assyrians 185,000 men" (2 Kings 19:35). They weren't just any men, but the most valiant of the warriors. When the Assyrians awoke, they fled in terror. Isn't True Abrahamic Jihad beautiful? I mean isn't it great to have a God who will take care of all your problems for you, if you'll only trust him? Ahh, there's the rub. It takes great faith to stand still.
After Hezekiah, it was almost all down hill. There were endless wars of Men's folly and unholy Traditional Jihads.

That was a long time ago. we're talking about the 8th Century B.C. I'm trying to get you to believe in a concept that rarely has been believed in for nearly 3,000 years. But you see it's real, and it works. I can see it, and I'm trying to help you see it.

OPEN OUR EYES ELISHA

The last two examples of Abrahamic Jihad that I've found in the Old Testament, occur in 2 Kings 6 & 7. The king of Syria sent his army to Dothan to capture the prophet Elisha. Elisha's servant wakes him in terror announcing that the city is surrounded. Elisha says don't worry there are more of us then there are of them, and them he prays for his servants eyes to be opened, Suddenly the servant sees horses filling the mountains, and chariots of fire surrounding the city, and descending. UFO's? No, it's the army of God. Then in grand Abrahamic Jihad style, Elisha prays that the Lord will send blindness upon the Syrians, and they are instantly struck blind, Elisha then leads them to the king of Israel who proposes to slay them. Elisha, in the true spirit of his father Abraham , says no, give them food and drink, and send them home. "The bands of Syria came no more onto the land of Israel " (2 Kings 6: 23).

Well almost, actually the Syrians later made one more foray into Samaria (northern Israel) but it says "The Lord made the host of the Syrians to hear a noise of Chariots and a noise of horses, and even the noise of a great host . . . wherefore they arose and fled" (2 Kings 7: 6-7).

THE HAMMERERS

After Hezekiah it was all down hill. Jewish Jihadists made one final push 165 years before the birth of Christ in the Family of Mattityahu Maccabee (the Hammerer).

although the books called the Maccabees are not found in the Hebrew Scriptures, they appear in the Catholic Bible and tell of a time period of man-made, unjust, Jewish Jihad just up to the time of Christ and how the descendants of Esua took over the nation through Antipater Herod.

It is a bloody tale of a family known as the Hasmoneans, or Maccabees, who stole the priesthood(they were not descended from Zaddock) and stole the throne of David (they were not descended from David) and waged an unholy man-made Jihad against the Greeks, and their own fellow Jews. They moved the Feast of Tabernacles to December to fit the Winter Solstice, changed the Sabbath law to allow fighting on the Sabbath, and slaughtered over 100,000 Jews who were suspected of sympathizing with the Greeks.

"the High Priest, Alexander Janneus, crucified 800 Pharisees before their wives and children in Jerusalem in 88 BCE. According to Josephus (Antiquities XII), “The women and children were slaughtered before their eyes.

The evil Jihad of the Maccabees is celebrated each year under the name of Hanukkah or Chanukah. It is claimed that a miracle accompanied their conquest of Jerusalem when a one-day supply of oil lasted 8 days (this miracle is not recorded anywhere in the scriptures and). Many look to these renegade usurpers as heroes, but they were just another group of religious fanatics killing in the name of God.

CHAPTER 11

MESSIAH: THE WARRIOR KING


As I stated earlier, God planted the Israelites at the cross roads of the world to be a cradle nation for the Messiah's birth. Part of the Messiah's role was to restore the Religion of Abraham , and in my opinion, to especially restore the concept of Abrahamic Jihad. As we have seen, a few leaders, and prophets, appeared from time to time to set things straight. The prophets kept reminding the people that God was a warrior, and they prophesied that a Messiah was coming who would be the embodiment of the Warrior King. The Messiah would break the yoke of the oppressors, and set his people free. He would set up a kingdom of holy priests who would reign In HOLINESS , power, and prosperity.

According to the Prophet Isaiah: He would be the one to end all wars (Is. 2:4), a conquering king whose sword would be his words (Is. 49:2). He would heal us by his suffering (Is. 53:5), and take away our sins by his death (Is. 53:12), and having done so, he would mount the throne of David and be our conquering king forever:

"And the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom to order it, and to establish it with justice from henceforth ever for ever" (Is. 9:6).

This Messiah would come from Judah's tribe (Gen. 49:10), and David's line (Is.11:1-10). He would be God's own son (Ps. 2:7-12). He would introduce a new covenant (Jerm. 31: 31-34), he would take our OLD nature, and give us a NEW one (Is. 9:6-7) , He would invite the gentiles to become Israelites (Is. 11:10), he would bring in everlasting righteousness (Dan. 9:24). He would be born in Bethlehem (Mic. 5:2), teach in the 2nd temple (Hag. 2:7-9), work miracles (Is. 35:5-6), be rejected by the majority (Is. 53:3). He would have a triumphal entrance into Jerusalem on a young donkey (Zech. 9:9-10), be betrayed for silver (Ps.41:9 & Zech. 11:12), be silent at his trial (Is. 53:12), be spat upon (Is. 50:6), be crucified with sinners (Is. 53:12), have his hands and feet pierced (Ps. 22:16). And miraculously God would raise him from the dead (Ps.16: 8-11)

This only fits one person: Jesus (Yahshuah or Yehoshua), who was born in Bethlehem around 4 B.C. He lived as a poor carpenter until he was 30. He never had a wife, or a house. He had very few influential friends. His closest followers were poor, uneducated fishermen. At the age of 30 he began to preach the ancient message of Universal love (extending even to enemies), forgiveness of all offenses. and Abrahamic Jihad (trusting in God alone to deal with our enemies).

He declared himself to be the Messiah, and condemned many of the corrupt leaders of his nation for leading the people away from God's true message of peace and love. He was unfairly tried, and executed . Then according to his followers, he came back to life, spent 40 days instructing them before ascending up into a white cloud, promising to one day return in a like cloud, to gather all who believed in him, and followed his teachings. His return will cause a cataclysmic destruction of the earth, and cosmos, and only those united with him will survive to inhabit paradise (a new earth and new heaven).

That a man could have returned from the dead is just as hard to believe today as it was then, but something supernatural must have transpired to motivate his humble, fisherman followers to boldly proclaim his resurrection with such startling zeal. They were each murdered for proclaiming this message, yet to their dying breath they passionately proclaimed his resurrection and Gospel of love. Within 300 years almost the entire Roman Empire embraced Christianity.

THE MESSIAH EXPOSED THE DEVIL


Yahshuah revealed that the devil Azazel was also waging a war against human beings. The Old Testament only hinted at demons and the devil, but Yahshuah's mission was to reveal and destroy the demonic spirits that were attacking the world. The New Testament uses the Greek Word ARCHONS to label the demon spirits.

Col 1:15 gives us a glimpse into that invisible world describing them as
  • thrones (Tronos -evil potentates)
  • dominions (Kuriotes -lords of darkness)
  • principalities (Arche -ruling demons)
  • powers (Exousia -ascended masters)
Ephesian 6:12 says these demonic rulers are arrayed against humans and war against us.

"Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but
  • against principalities (Arche)
  • against powers (Exousia)
  • against the rulers of the darkness of this world (Kosmo Krators -devils)
Romans 8:38-39 says the ARCHONS are trying to separate us from Yahveh: "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels (fallen angels), nor principalities (Arche), nor powers (exousia), nor things present, nor things to come, "Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Messiah Yahshuah our Rabbi".

Satan is an ARCHON, he is the RULER of the ARCHONS. So Satan, and Not YAH-veh, crucified YAH-shuah. Here's what we know about Satan. He is called:
  • The Archon of this world
  • The Ruler (Kosmo Krator) of Darkness
  • The PRINCE of the ARCHONS
  • The Devil
  • The Serpent
  • The Tempter
  • He can appear as an Angel of Light
  • The Deceiver
  • Beelzebub (Baal Zebul) meaning Lord of the Flies
  • Baal (Husband)
  • Lucifer (debatable)
  • The Dragon
  • Belial
  • Moloch
  • Azazel (this may be his true name)
  • The God of this world
  • The Prince of the power of the air (The Archon of the ascended masters of the air)
"Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and YAH-shuah healed him, so that he could both talk and see. All the people were astonished and said, "Could this be the Son of David?" But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, "It is only by Beelzebub, the PRINCE of ARCHONS, that this fellow drives out demons." (Mt:22)

What this means is that we have invisible enemies warring against us. But the good news is that Yahsuah has already broken theer power and is hunting them down and destroying them

Azazel used his demonic rulers of darkness to take over (demon-possess). Judas Iscariot, Caiaphas, Herod Antipas, Pontius Pilate, a few lawless leaders of the Jewish counsel, a hand-picked mob, and a few Roman Soldiers. It was Azazel who orchestrated and ordered the crucifixion of Yahsuah. But if he, and his hordes of demons, had known that in so doing they would bring down their empire, they never would have killed him.

"And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it." (Col.2:15). Christ conquered and continues to conquer them throughout the Kosmos.

YAH-shuah conquered death. He holds the keys to hell and death. Azazel is condemned and will be driven away. All the archons of the invisible world are now being hunted down and destroyed, by Yashuah. After his resurrection when his disciples saw him at lake Galilee he said:

" All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth." (Mt 28:18).



So in crucifying YAH-shuah, Azazel lost his throne and his was broken army, and as the age progresses, he is losing more and more, and will eventually be cast into the lake of fire. We are however still engaged in the struggle. We must resist Azazel and the unseen ARCHONS until the end when Yahshuah will hand

"over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion (arche -archons), authority (demon masters) and power (Dunamis -Satanic powers). For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death."(1 Cor.15:24)

But victory is ours. James 4:7 says, "Resist the devil and he will flee from you." Azazel, and his demons, can still influence us. But they are deceivers. They are like old lions with mighty roars, but they have no teeth, or claws, and our shepherd always walks beside us, and carries a big stick. When you resist them in Yahshuah's name, they run with their tails between their legs.

We can overcome Azazel and all his archons Revelation 12:11 says, "They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death."

But the struggle has been long and bloody. Many early followers expected a quick victory and an early return of Yahshuah. But history shows that not only has the delay been long in coming. but the forces of the Archons have not surrendered but have been effective in convincing us that they have powers.


THE ROMAN EAGLE KILLS THE LAMB


Unfortunately once the war-like Romans became the possessors of Christianity, they made some radical changes. Note well, neither Jesus nor his earliest followers ever taught, or practiced, the use of traditional violent Jihad. Upon his arrest, Jesus told his right hand man Peter "put up thy sword. All who take the sword, will perish with the sword. Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?" " (Mt. 26:52-53).

Nevertheless, since the 4th Century, in Rome, when the Emperor Constantine wedded the Roman Empire to the Christian Church, the majority of Christians on this planet have believed in, and practiced Traditional unholy Jihad. The Messiah's message of love and Abrahamic Jihad were trampled beneath the world-conquering boots of Rome. The Roman Eagle killed the lamb.

THE FALL OF THE EARLY CHRISTIANS

Robert Culver, Professor of Theology, at Winnipeg Theological Seminary, believes Christians can go to war, but he himself admits that "No single leader of Christianity in the early Pre-Constantinian era approved a military career as right for a believer in Jesus Christ".

Yale Historian, Roland H. Bainton, in his book The Horizon History of Christianity wrote: "The taking of life in war was unanimously condemned by all Christian writers prior to Constantine" . Bainton says Christianity moved through three stages. First, they opposed all war, second, they accepted controlled, restrained, Just Wars, third, they fully embraced all out warfare."

Broadly speaking three attitudes to war were to appear in the Christian Ethic: Pacifism, The Just war, and The Crusade. Chronologically they appeared in just this order." (Bainton pg.14).


WHAT EXACTLY DID THE EARLY CHRISTIAN LEADERS SAY?

155 A.D. Polycarp called the Philippians to obey the word of Peter "Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing, or blow for blow, or cursing for cursing."
Justin Martyr said: "Before becoming Christians any of us were warlike, but we have changed our warlike weapons, beating our swords onto plough shares and our spears into implements of tillage".

174 A.D. Tertullian issued a loud and bitter cry against the participation of certain Christians in military service. He said: "Shall it be held lawful to make an occupation (in the army), when the Lord proclaims that he who uses the sword , shall perish by the sword? And shall the son of peace take part in the battle, when it does not become him to even sue in a law court? On the contrary, if a soldier gets converted, he must abandon the military
immediately."

180 A.D. Athenogaras reported: "We have learned not only not to return blow for blow, and not to go to the law with those who plunder and rob us, but to those who
smite us on the one side of the face, to offer the other side also, and to those who take away our coat, to give likewise our cloak."

200 A.D. The Apostle's Regulations say that donations are not to be accepted from evil-doers such as "Actors, Dishonest Merchants, (and) Soldiers."

215 A.D. Clement of Alexandria said: "Above all Christians are not allowed to correct by violence sinful wrong doing...For it is not in war but in peace that we are trained."

253 A.D. Origin of Alexandria said: "We no longer take up swords against nations, nor do we learn war anymore, but are become children of peace."

258 A.D. Cyprian said bitterly : "If murder is committed privately, it is a crime, but if it happens with state authority, courage is the name for it." He said "The guiltless are not permitted even to put the guilty to death."

295 A.D. A man named Maximilian was executed for refusing to serve in the Roman Army. He said: "I cannot serve for I am a Christian."

300 A.D. Lactantius of Bithynia said: " It is not lawful for a just man to engage in warfare." He described Christians as "thosewho are ignorant of wars, who preserve peace with all, who love all men as brothers."

300 A.D. The Apostolic Order said: "Converts must give up Sorcery, Palmistry, and Soldiering."

310 A.D. Finally, Arnobius said that "Non-resistance had been the position of Christians from the beginning of the Church."


So this proves conclusively that all the early Christians understood their Master's call to stand still and see the salvation of God. although they never used the term Abrahamic Jihad, they knew, and practiced the concept perfectly. It wasn't until the soldier, Constantine, conquered Rome, and crowned himself as the Emperor, that Christians began to serve in the Military. Constantine was very friendly to the Christians. He ended all persecutions, and gave large sums of money to the Churches. He built many large, and ornate, Christian temples (often placing statues of himself in them ); and in the end, he set himself up as the Head of the Church. He presided over the first ecumenical council: The Council of Nicea (325 A.D.).

Later, under his pressure, The Council of Arles declared that any Christian who refused to serve in the military was to be excommunicated. "The ascension of Constantine terminated the pacifist period in church history" (Bainton).


AUGUSTINE, THE NOT SO HOLY SAINT

Enter Augustine the African. Not all Christians were willing to abandon the original teachings of Christ. In order to abandon the early beliefs of their forefathers, there had to be a theological justification. This was given to them by Ambrose, the Italian, and Augustine, the African, (400 AD). Using some of the ideas of Plato and Cicero, they developed what has become known as the Justum Bellum : the Just War Theory.

The Just War Theory begins with the idea that war is terrible, but sometimes good men must fight to keep evil men from expanding their kingdoms, and to protect their land, and loved ones. The Just War Rules were seen as brakes to make sure that wars would be controlled, that non- combatants would not be injured, that justice would prevail, and that the Christian soldiers would be restrained enough so as not to become as evil as the evil men they were trying to stop. The Just War Theory was always in Self-defense, to prevent the spread of evil, and never was to sanction the expansion of anyone's kingdom.

AUGUSTINE'S RULES FOR THE JUSTUM BELLUM


IN 400 AD Augustine, using Plato, Cicero and Ambrose, declared that Christians may fight but :
  • Clergy were exempt (as in ancient Israel) both priests, monks,
    and secular ministers.
  • The conduct of the war should be just.
  • The intention is to restore peace not prepare for more war.
  • Shed as little blood as possible.
  • Try every means to avoid actual battle.
  • It is to vindicate either:
  1. Justice
  2. honor
  3. safe passage
  4. failure to make amends
  • Wars can be loving if they are "wars of mercy" waged by the good.
  • A soldier can kill and still be loving "Moses in putting to death sinners was moved not by cruelty but by love".
  • The war must be waged only under the constituted authority (even if the authority is an infidel ruler).
  1. faith must be kept with the enemy
  2. no wanton violence
  3. temples are not to be profaned
  4. no looting
  5. no massacre
  6. no acts of vengeance
  7. no atrocities (rape, tortures,or reprisals)
  8. no conflagrations, only those in public authority (official soldiers ) may do this. Private citizens may not defend themselves. Love should be the motive and justice should lie on one side only.
  • The war should not create more damage than it sought to save from damage. The good must out weigh the bad.
  • The Christian soldier must never become as evil as his enemies.
  • Soldiers should never attack clergy, monks, nuns, women, pilgrims, merchants, peasants, visitors, councils.
  • No fighting near churches, cemeteries, cloisters, shepherds sheep, farm, animals, wagons in the field, or olive trees.
  • All this should be undertaken in a mournful mood.

Not all Christians were duped by Constantine, Ambrose, and Augustine. A notable band in northern Italy known as the Italic Church totally rejected this new teaching. We will read more about them later when we look at the Reformation.
The main body of Christians however both in the East (the Byzantines) and the South (the Alexandrians) and the West (the Roman Catholics) accepted the new teaching that Christians can be warriors, and fight in limited "just "Jihads.


POPE URBAN II LAUNCHES THE CRUSADES

The problem with The Just war theory is that no one ever followed it. As the technology advanced, the wars became more fierce, and the feelings more hateful, until in 1095, when Pope Urban II called for a crusade against the enemies of Christ, almost every man in Europe grabbed a sword, and was ready to hack, slay, stab, plunder, rape and pillage in the name of Christ. Every trace of the Just War Theory was thrown out the window. Even the clergy became warriors forming military units like the Templars, Hospitalers and Knights of St. John. So Christians moved from Abrahamic Jihad to limited Just Jihads to full blown Traditional Unholy Jihads: Crusades.

those who died were promised that their sins would be forgiven and they would go straight to paradise.

POCKETS OF FAITHFUL FOLLOWERS



As the crusades gained gruesome proportions, the enemies of Christ came to mean not only Moslems, but also Jews, Byzantine Christians and heretics ( anyone who disagreed with the Roman Pope). Thus the crusades were fought on many battlefields including pogroms against the Italic Church (Waldenses), the Albigensis, and the Catharii to name just a few sects that opposed the Roman Catholic viewpoint.

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