Conflict and strife are inevitable in a fallen world, as Ecclesiastes 3:8 notes that there is a time for war. The Bible acknowledges the reality of war, with Jeremiah 51:20 and other passages describing God's use of warfare to judge nations. However, Jesus warns in Matthew 24:6 that wars and rumors of wars are a sign of the end times, and James 4:1-2 highlights the spiritual roots of conflict, emphasizing the need for inner peace and humility. Ultimately, as Romans 7:21-25 suggests, the believer's greatest struggle is against the flesh, and true victory comes through surrender to God.
Relevance Score
29%
You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. These things must happen, but the end is still to come.
“You are My war club, My weapon for battle. With you I shatter nations; with you I bring kingdoms to ruin.
What causes conflicts and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from the passions at war within you? You crave what you do not have; you kill and covet, but are unable to obtain it. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask.
So this is the principle I have discovered: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law. But I see another law at work in my body, warring against the law of my mind and holding me captive to the law of sin that dwells within me. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God, through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I serve the law of God, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.
When you go out to war against your enemies and see horses, chariots, and an army larger than yours, do not be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, is with you. When you are about to go into battle, the priest is to come forward and address the army, saying to them, “Hear, O Israel, today you are going into battle with your enemies. Do not be fainthearted or afraid; do not be alarmed or terrified because of them. For the LORD your God goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory.”
Blessed be the LORD, my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle. He is my steadfast love and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer. He is my shield, in whom I take refuge, who subdues peoples under me.
Then He will judge between the nations and arbitrate for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will no longer take up the sword against nation, nor train anymore for war.
Put on the full armor of God, so that you can make your stand against the devil’s schemes.