The Real War on Terror

      On December 14, 2014, Jordanian pilot Moaf Al-Kasasbeh (Moo-off All Kah-saus-bay) was captured by ISIS when his plane went down in ISIS territory, in February 2015 he was murdered by them. As I watched the video that was released of Kasasbeh’s death on YouTube, I was deeply disturbed. They doused him in gasoline and put him in a cage, he was forced to watch the trail of flames come closer and closer to his cage until it got there and he was lit up as a human torch, skin visibly melting off of him. It was dark, it was evil, how could mankind do this to another? I thought. Make no mistake, there is evil in this world, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria is a major part of it. Terrorism is rampant in America and across the globe, but how should we respond to it? As a people, as followers of Christ, how do we deal with terrorism?

      ISIS, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, also known as IS, ISI, ISIL, and Daesh, split off from the extremist group known as Al-Qaeda in early 2014. In June 2014 the groups from Syria and Iraq consolidated it holds over many cities and changed their name to the Islamic state. This group, led by Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, has executed over 10,000 men, women, and children over the last 2 years according to the UK daily mail. The New York Times claims that over the last couple years around 20,000 foreigners have joined ISIS.

      ISIS militants aren’t all evil, Harry Sarfo, Abu Omar, Abu Ibrahim, along with 60 plus others are ISIS defectors.These are the people who joined in hope of creating a better life for them and their family by having a steady pay check, but could not stand nor stomach the extreme violence and evil that was committed and encouraged in the group. When Harry Sarfo was asked by a fellow ISIS militant why he didn’t engage in the executions he reportedly said “I don’t know this person. He didn’t do me any harm. I won’t kill him.” He had witnessed stoning’s, beheadings, shootings, hands chopped off and many other things. He said that ISIS is “not just un-Islamic, it is inhuman.” Other defectors have said the “brutality of IS terrifies everyone.” There are endless incidents I could name that immediately bring to mind the extreme terror and horrific deaths that have been caused my ISIS. Paris, Brussels, Kuwait, Cairo, Ankara, Beirut, San Bernardino, Istanbul, Orlando, Baghdad, the list is endless. The tragedies are eternally engraved upon our hearts as we watched in horror as humanity was slaughtered and terror was instilled.

      The question remains, how do we respond to terrorism? The first way is simple and yet essential. Do not fear. Terrorism thrives on instilling terror, that is what it’s whole purpose is, and yet however simple it may be, refusing to fear them is how we beat them. In the Bible, at many different times, in many different ways, it says do not be afraid. My favorite passage is from 1 John 4:18 when it says “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” When we realize that God is a God of love, then it makes perfect sense that love is what casts out fear. For me in my life, the more I read His word, the more I talk to Him, the more I get to know his heart, and who he is, the more I realize that if God is for us, who can be against us? If we stand in our faith, what can harm us? Fear is a very interesting concept, because the only fear is an instantaneous reaction, it is fight or flight. But Love? Love is a lifestyle, it does not fear. The fear that ISIS spreads is the fear of death, and every single person who fears, fears death. We view it as an end, as the worst possible thing that could happen to us, or to someone we love. As for me, I’ve already died, it is not I who live, but Christ who lives within me, so why would I fear death? It has already been defeated, and it was defeated by love. In Romans 8:37-39 it says “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” So when we hear on the news about the destruction ISIS has inflicted upon humanity, we have no reason to fear, for what can man do to us? 

      The second way every individual can defeat ISIS, is just as simple as the first. Pray. 1 John 5:15 says “And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.” There are two words in this verse that stick out to me, the first is the word ‘know’. The word translated ‘know’ in this verse is the Greek word ‘eidó’ which literally means to remember. And the second is when it says ‘we have the requests’ the word translated ‘we have’ is the word ‘echó’ which literally means to possess. What 1 John 5:15 is saying is that if we remember that he hears us in whatever we ask, then we remember that we possess the requests that we have asked of him. I urge you today to remember the power there is in your prayer. I serve a God that for whom nothing is impossible for, I serve a good God, a God of life, and safety, and everything good. He doesn’t have a bad streak in him. So pray, that is how we defeat ISIS. Pray for protection for those in danger, pray for healing for those wounded, and yes, pray for the ISIS militants themselves. When we think of these individuals our hearts are filled with anger and hate, but i can garuntee you that when God looks upon them he is filled with sorrow and pain. Pray that their eyes might opened to the truth that they are missing, that they come to know the life that is in Jesus. No one is beyond hope... Pray, that they might live.

      A lot of people question this position, the think it is not realistic. Here is the deal. The reason I believe what I do, the reason I speak so idealistically is because in a world of people who are willing to settle for the possible, I refuse. In a world of people who are content with the way it is, or feel too helpless to make a difference, I refuse. I refuse to compromise what I know to be true because people doubt it. I refuse to give up hope because people tell me there is no hope. I refuse to not believe that love will win because all people seem to see is hate. This is an example of my idealism. Being idealistic doesn't mean you have your head in the sand and it doesn't mean you aren't realistic, it just means you aren't content with the way the world is. It means you aren't willing to let the hate in the world continue to grow without trying to make a change, without trying to be the change. So while refusing to fear ISIS and all terrorists, and while praying for all those involved, including the terrorists, while that all seems like it is unrealistic, I can tell you it isn't. Is it unrealistic to assume that the God we pray to is bigger than ISIS? Is it unrealistic to assume the the God we serve who loves us so much that death itself cannot come between, that He could protect us? Is it unrealistic to think that the God whom turned my heart from the stone it was could turn the hearts of a scared man with a gun? Is that unrealistic?

      Wayne Watson’s song ‘such a time as this’ speaks my heart when it says “Now, all I have is now, to be faithful, to be holy, and to shine. Lighting up the darkness. Right now, I really have no choice but to voice the truth to the nations a generation looking for God. For such a time as this I was placed upon the earth, to hear the voice of God, and do His will, whatever it is. For such a time as this, for now and all the days He gives I am here, I am here, and I am His, for such a time as this.” So, children of the most high God, I contend that we have been called for such a time as this. The most powerful lesson my daddy ever taught me is that if you don’t do it now, you never will. So I urge you, don’t be afraid of the forces of darkness, because you are a child of the light, and don’t forget the power that is in your prayers. ISIS is not a group to be afraid of, it is an ideal to pray against, an ideal that we can defeat without ever physically coming face to face with. For such a time as this, we were called. God Bless you, every one of you.