When we look at the Old Testament, we see that God directed His people to fight their enemies and to take over lands and territories. He also at times used the enemies to punish and discipline His own children.
Joshua had to fight the giants to ensure that the land they possessed will no longer be dominated by the enemies but that people can settle down and start rebuilding their lives.
One man of you shall chase a thousand, for the Lord your God is He who fights for you, as He promised you. Joshua 23:10
God was with His people in the battles that He approved of, and they were victorious because the Lord fought for them.
Now go and attack Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and do not spare them. But kill both man and woman, infant and nursing child, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’” 1Samuel 15:3
The Lord commanded Saul to kill and destroy everything that belonged to Amalekites. He did not want any trace of this enemy left behind. This would prohibit them from becoming stronger over time and fighting Israelites at a future date. The fighting in the Old Testament many times was sanctioned by God, and it was relentless and furious in dealing with the enemies.
But if any harm follows, then you shall give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe. Exodus 21:23-25
Retaliation is another area that was permitted in the Old Testament. Not only as a nation, the Israelites were permitted to fight, but also as individuals they were permitted to retaliate for the wrong done to them.
All of the above scriptures portray a natural battle against enemies. As long as Israel walked with God, He defended them, and they were victorious in their battles. At other times, when they weren’t following Him, God would not respond and they would lose a battle.
After Jesus entered the world, everything including our fighting changed. He was not a man who fought physically. He did not hurt or injure anyone physically or verbally. At times, He rebuked people, but it was never to humiliate them or try to overpower them. Some could use his statements made to Peter as a license to be harsh, but when you look at the totality of Jesus’ life, He was gentle, humble, and very sacrificial.
If you are a fighter by nature, you could easily use the Old Testament examples to support your fighting inclinations. However, we have a paradigm shift in the New Testament when it comes to fighting. This is difficult and costly for a natural fighter, but you cannot fight like you used to. As Jesus said,
And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine will burst the wineskins and be spilled, But new wine must be put into new wineskins, and both are preserved. Mark 5:37-38
So what does this mean when it comes to fighting? Who are we fighting against and how are we supposed to fight? I will share more on this subject in the next devotional.