Bible Study with the Cincotti’s – Wars and Rumors of Wars – 06/08/2025
Today’s Bible Study, Authored by Arthur Cincotti.
Listen to our Bible Study Discussion at: Wars & Rumors of Wars Audio Podcast
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Wars and Rumors of Wars
“Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for please that war in your members? Js. 4:1
I grabbed a statistic online, from “Geneva Academy”, which claimed that the present number of armed conflicts going on worldwide is 110. Many of them don’t receive much attention but I will say that since our listenership is international it is certainly important to you if you or your country is embroiled in one. Our prayers go out to you as we grieve over your suffering. Here in the United States our internal conflicts are ugly especially when they reach to point of violence.
How does this happen? Clearly something is very wrong. The simple fact that we have not been able to free ourselves from violent disagreement demonstrates how little we have “evolved” and the extent to which we desperately need a savior. This has been the human condition since “the fall.” Even in the first century Peter records that some were saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.”
Jesus prophesied some harsh realities while He was among us. He said: “For you have the poor with you always…” Mt. 26:11;
“In the world you will have tribulation…” Jn. 16:33
“Now brother will deliver up brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death.” Mt. 10:21
“…Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.” Mt. 24:7, Mk. 13:8, Lk. 21:10
“And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars.” Mt. 24:6
These things He was speaking into the time in which we now live, this dispensation between His first coming and His second coming. In fact, in many of those statements He goes on to say that this condition would escalate as His second coming draws nearer. In the Mt. 24 passage He goes on to say, “But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.” vrs. 8. I believe that we would all agree that mankind has been in labor for a long time. Finally He gives us a glimpse of the end when He says, “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.” Mt. 24:14.
Conflict on a global scale is only a bigger example of the inner conflict that persists in the soul of every man, woman and child born into a world where there remains the possibility of separation from God. We must be born again. Even then, as we know all to well, conflict is not instantaneously erased from our sphere of options. Tragically we have even seen, over the ages, conflict between believers grow ugly and violent.
In our opening verse, James tries to distill this condition by explaining it’s source. He goes on to say:
“You lust and do not have, you murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, ‘The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously;? But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: ‘God resists the proud,
But gives grace to the humble.’” Js. 4:2-6
There is much herein to unpack. James is speaking to an ongoing problem in the church of his day, but one which also persists in the church of our day. He isolates self-gratification,
a departure from knowing and obeying God’s plan (self righteousness), split affections, and pride, as the core issues of life that draw us away from God into conflict and sin. When taken to extremes it can erupt into serious, violent, full-scale conflict. We must guard our hearts against all of these potential pitfalls.
The church, over the ages, has tried to erect barriers to protect against these conditions from creeping into the life of an individual or the corporate body. Monasticism is one example of communities of believers separating themselves from the world and it’s systems. These communities often have strict codes of behavior including vows of poverty, vows of silence, and chastity. Others, like Anabaptist’s and Quakers, have chosen to take some portions of Jesus teachings hyper seriously, like: “whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.” Mt. 5:39, or, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth…” Mt. 6:19
Traditionally the church has applied Augustine’s “just war theory” to situations of conflict that arise within and without. Some considerations in the theory include: a substantial moral basis for conducting war, and the protection of so called innocent life. We could rightly consider the application of this theory in the aftermath of such heinous world conflicts that involved atrocities such as occurred during World War II, the Rwandan genocide, or any number of terrorist attacks that have happened in recent times. Do victims of oppression have the right to defend themselves and at the same time consider themselves followers of Christ, who, when questioned by Herod, “answered him nothing.” fulfilling
Is. 53:7
“He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and as a lamb before its shearer is silent, So He opened not His mouth.”
It is most important to realize that large scale conflict arises from many people banding together, who have personal conflict. Self-government is the highest form of government. If we truly ascribe to the gospel, even when conflict finds us we will find the strength and manner to defuse it and be an instrument of His peace.
Mt. 5:9 says, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” Vrs. 10-12 go on to say, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake; For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
We must be extremely circumspect before engaging in conflict, especially that which turns violent. Eph. 4:26 says, “’Be angry, and do not sin’: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil.” Paul is actually quoting Ps. 4:4,5, “Be angry, and do not sin. Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still. Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, And put your trust in the LORD.” It is also not incidental, in the Ephesians passage, to learn that our misplaced, unresolved anger can and often does give a foothold for the devil to move in and reek havoc in human affairs. He comes to steal, kill and destroy, according to Jesus, in Jn. 10:10, and these are all expression of warfare. We must always be mindful that there is a spiritual component to conflict which Paul addresses in Ep. 6:12, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” and in II Cor. 10:3,4, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds…”
Finally, in closing:
Rm. 12:17,21 “Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord…Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
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