The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1918-09-11
CHRIST THE COMBATANT

IN EFORE this war goes much further 1t will
TX be someone's business to say that Christ
- the consider, but Christ the combatant
We are ready forthwith to declare it, and les
son we have to learn if we are going to make
religion count for the utmost today. The time
has passed for that wraith-like conception OF
the Man of God We have got to see him accou-
tered with arms, and not merely moving about
in white robes haloed with supernal glory. His
work changes according to the needs of the
world. We have got to go through the mental
travail of learning the Christ of anger and &C
tion as well the Christ of meekness and med
itation. We bound to follow him, going
down into the pit of the mire and filth, and the
shot and the shell, and the guns and the gren-
AIDES and the bayonets, doing to the death the
niquites ncarnated in the enemies of man and
God That is unacceptable. 1t must be done.
1t is unthinkable that he would kill only be-
cause we have misinterpreted his person and
his mission and because when it comes to reli-
gon, people sentimental children who flee
from the incontrovertible logic of fact. We are
in this war because we believe it is judgment
of God that only by force of arms can we save
the world. AS Christians, of course, we say
Christ approves. But would he fight and kill
The business of Jesus Christ was to save the
world, we affirm; and that is our business. He
was willing once to pay with his body for his
souls desire. But most of US go no further
There was no international warfare during his
lifetime and his recorded experiences are there
by limited We are unable therefore, from facts,
to conclude what he would do; but we ought to
be in no doubt, from the nviolable nature of his
approach to every crime, what his course would
be.
| Let us say, with supreme contempt for ca
| suistries, that they who think that the Jesus
Christ of the soldier is a remote God presiding
| over devotional services in stately temple and
| administering the elements of the communion at
once defame the soldier and deny their Lord
Let our word be not misunderstood We speak
with the profoundest reverence for the minstra-
tions and forms of religious observance But
the Christ whose principal business is in the
sanctuary made with hands is false Christ
The true Christ is out there in the thick of it,
| on land in the air. There is not a
danger that he would evade, there is not SOL
der but he would brother him with his yirile
love, there is not an opportunity to deal death
to the enemy that he would shrink from or de-
lay in Selling! He would take bayonet and gren-
ade and bomb and rifle and do the work of
deadliness against that which is the most deadly
enemy of his Fathers kingdom in thousand
years. He that we might have life, abund-
antly That the memorable truth about Jesus
Christ and this war; and we rejoice to say it.
If it is not so, then the war is not ours.
The spirit saith today: Come forth, thou Christ
complete, captain of our salvation, examplar
in the flesh of every noble impulse and desire
that every moved the heart and soul of thine
own beloved mankind! Be with us in thy mys-
teal might, with thy relentless passion to save
the world again which has been lost since thou
vert here. For thou and we are once, at last;
yea, thou art infinitely like us, as we would
be like thee, and together, though we descend to
hell; we shall win the victory. Good soldiers
of Jesus Christ.-The Christian Register.