Martin Luther on the Truth War

Martin Luther, that noble gospel soldier, threw down the gauntlet at the feet of every Christian in every generation after him when he said:

If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Christ. Where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved; and to be steady on all battlefields besides, is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point."

Truth War

It seems like every time I turn around, every time I read some blog, there is something new that concerns me about evangelical Christianity in America today. That is not to say that I am encouraged on many fronts as I hear of the triumph of truth. For this I rejoice.

As we think of the battles that we must constantly engage in as we "fight the good fight of faith" as Paul writes to Timothy, I trust that we will not grow weary in doing well. I was strengthened to press on and persevere in the cause for truth as last week I read The Truth War by John MacArthur. This book is full of exhortations to the good and faithful soldier of Jesus Christ. (Of course all of this military allusions are spiritual and figurative. We do not fight with the sword as some other religions advocate). So for the next few weeks I may share a quote or two from this book that encouraged me and I trust may encourage others.

Now is not a good time for Christians to flirt with the spirit of the age. We cannot afford to be apathetic about the truth God has put in our trust. It is our duty to guard, proclaim, and pass the truth on to the next generation (1 Timothy 6:20-21). We who look to Christ and believe the truth embodied in His teaching must awaken to the reality of the battle that is raging all around us. We must do our part in the ages-old Truth War. We are under a sacred obligation to join the battle and contend for the faith. . . .

Our task as ambassadors is to bring good news to people. Our mission as soldiers is to overthrow false ideas. We must keep those objectives straight; we are not entitled to wage warfare against people or to enter into diplomatic relations with anti-Christian ideas. Our warfare is not against flesh and blood (Ephesians 6:12); and our duty as ambassadors does not permit us to compromise or align ourselves with any kind of human philosophies, religious deceit, or any other kind of falsehood (Colossians 2:8).

If those sound like difficult assignments to keep in balance and maintain in proper perspective, it is because they are indeed. . . .

We are ambassador-soldiers, reaching out to sinners with the truth even as we make every effort to destroy the lies and other forms of evil that hold them in deadly bondage. That is a perfect summary of every Christian's duty in the Truth War.