Hi Friend,

The chilling phrase, “You may not want war, but war wants you,” is known to students of history.  It’s a loose translation of words spoken by Leon Trotsky, a Russian Marxist revolutionary who was one of the fathers of communism and the leader of the Red Army.  He knew the meaning because he was a war monger.

You were not even alive when Trotsky made the statement.  It’s a little unnerving to think that powerful men were at war with you before you were born.  That was the situation with Adam and Eve. A cunning adversary was waiting to destroy them when they were placed in the Garden.

When God created man, the first instruction He issued was an outline of the structure of the world.  That’s the logical place to begin.  Adam and Eve were new to life—they knew nothing, so it was necessary for the One who was there in the beginning to tell the first humans how the world is configured.

Genesis says that the earth existed in a state of “chaos and confusion” until God brought order to the globe.  We take for granted that the earth has always existed as it is now but there was a time when this planet was chaotic.  God separated the land from the sea.  He cleared the air so humans could see through the misty “fog” of opaque water vapor.  He commanded and there was night and day. He spoke again and there were plants and animals to provide food for survival.

We are told relatively little about the events of that time other than a barebones recounting of the sad story of corruption that resulted.  In fact, the first 1,500 years of man’s history is related in a mere eleven chapters of Genesis.  Could the world contain enough books to give us the complete story?

After God had done the work of fabricating, the first humans set about to rearrange the structure.  Dennis Prager recently observed that during creation God was primarily concerned with bringing order out of chaos.  Prager uses this perceptive analysis to further explain that there is now a war on creation.

Normal people don’t comprehend the mind of sick individuals like Trotsky and Marx.  We are willing to live and let live and expect others to do the same—but they are not.  The Bible is filled with warnings about such people.  In fact, God warns us that we have an adversary, Satan “who walks about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.”  (1 Peter 5:8)  If Adam was unequal to the task of facing such a formidable foe, then so are we.

Great men of God such as King David often prayed for God to deliver him from the schemes of evil men.  David’s prayers almost sound paranoid.  He frequently complained to God that those “who hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head.” (Psalm 69:4)

It is a condition common to those who worship God.  Today it’s hard to believe that there are people who actively oppose order and seek chaos.  They thrive best when there are no police officers to protect citizens.  They do not want a nation with borders or citizens capable of defending themselves.  They don’t want children to know whether they are male or female.  This war is embraced by many popular leaders in America’s Protestant, Catholic and Jewish religious faiths, as well as public school educators, government and corporate directors, and medical personnel.

Okay, we understand that you are at war.  You didn’t ask for it.  You don’t want it. War came to you, forcefully, like a burglar in the night.

Is there any good news?  Ironically, yes!  To borrow a phrase, it is a war that you were born to win!  Again, it’s in Genesis where the One who brought order out of chaos, reveals the highest part of His plan.  He made man in His image.

The other key to winning is that you must be willing to fight.  Jesus is the Lamb of God—but he is also the Lion of Judah.  He will return with an army of angels prepared for battle.  Be sure to pick the winning army.

Until next time,

Jim O’Brien