Holy War and the Future of Mankind

A commentary by Larry J. Walker
United Church of pastor, Bend, Medford and Roseburg, Oregon

The Middle East is in the news every day. The steady stream of casualties from terrorist attacks takes its toll in more ways than deaths and injuries. People are increasingly becoming weary of the ongoing hostilities. Some question involvement of the U.S. and other western nations in Iraq. British Prime Minister Tony Blair has promised under pressure to step down in the face of mounting opposition to his support for U.S. occupation of Iraq.

The whole issue of Middle East involvement is sure to be a major political issue in the upcoming U.S. elections. Some advocate diplomatic dialogue to attempt peaceful solutions. Still others oppose the whole concept of waging war as a means to resolve problems between nations. These differences exist between nations as well as individual citizens, thus weakening the possibilities of any united action by the United Nations.

It is important to understand that the problems in the Middle East are not just over political or military issues, but also over major and longstanding cultural, ideological and religious differences between East and West. The Middle East is the birthplace and current focus of three major religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

Of course, differences of belief and practice between these religions can be expected. But the widespread immorality and corruption in western nations greatly intensifies these rifts.

Many Muslims simply don't want to be infected with the problems of western culture. Nor do they want outside interference in matters pertaining to their religious beliefs, which also underlie their governmental structure and political policies. So the solution that extremist Muslims have adopted is jihad—"holy war."

Western nations are often referred to as "the Crusaders" in Islamic nations, hearkening back to the Crusades in the Middle Ages that pitted Christianity against Islam. Ironically, they understand the origin of the conflict better than many citizens and governmental leaders of western nations.

A "holy war" cannot be prevented by political negotiations, nor can the deeply-rooted underlying issues be resolved by military action. There is far more to this and other problems facing mankind than most people realize. Years ago, a major news magazine proclaimed that what is needed to solve mankind's problems is, "a strong hand from somewhere."

Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all anticipate the coming of a savior or deliverer. The Bible identifies Jesus Christ as the Savior of mankind. While many Christians think of His role as Savior in spiritual terms as saving individuals from the penalty of sin, the Bible also teaches that He must return to earth to save mankind from annihilation.

Jesus Himself warned of widespread wars at the end of the age that, along with other problems, would escalate to the point that, "there will be great suffering unlike anything that has happened from the beginning of the world until now, or ever will happen" (Matthew 24:21, New English Translation). He went on to say that conditions would become so devastating that, "If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive…. "(Matthew 24:22, New International Version).

The book of Revelation offers explicit details of this suffering, including a great holy war at the end of the age. This holy war, unlike those that have taken place throughout history, will truly be "the war to end all wars." Revelation 19:11-16 prophesies that Jesus Christ will return to earth as "King of kings and Lord of Lords" who, "judges fairly and wages a righteous war" (New Living Translation).

A major and necessary aspect of this "holy war" will be the removal of Satan the devil, the originator and perpetuator of the problems facing mankind today (John 8:44, Revelation 20:1-3).

We are living in a perilous world where the survival of mankind is at risk. Thankfully, God has a plan to save mankind. This plan is revealed in the Bible and portrayed by seven annual Holy Days that foreshadow future events concluding in this great end time "holy war" resulting in universal peace and prosperity (Colossians 2:16-17, Micah 4:1-4).

More information about the Middle East is now available free of charge in several articles of the current issue of our free magazine, The Good News. We also have a free booklet that extensively covers the Middle East today in light of Bible prophecy. Just request, download or even read online the free booklet, The Middle East in Bible Prophecy, and The Good News magazine.