Opinion: Is ISIS Like the Philistine Army in 1 Samuel 5?

Radical Islam is a carcinogenic, a poison every bit as toxic as Nazism. Muslim Jihadists, like Hitler in 1938, interpret leniency as weakness, thus fueling their crusade for world domination and further aggrandizement.

Islam, the religion of peace, seeks to prevail over each and all religions, attacking non-Muslims, looting possessions and property, killing the males, enslaving the females and children, forced conversion to Islam, honor killings, forced marches, beatings, and hard labor. If that’s not enough degradation, the women and older girls suffer from ritual gang rape, genital mutilation and a life of sexual servitude.

Christians in America, individually and corporately, have reached their kairos — their defining moment in history. The first requirement for spiritual blessing is to admit that we cannot save ourselves. Until we admit our insufficiency, God does not move to save us. And, there is no safety in distance from God.

To digress, let’s identify a few of the culprits for the mayhem in America.

First, consider the Supreme Court of the United States, the administration of President Obama, and the United States Congress. The secularists on the Supreme Court have joined together with the White House in refusing to admit that God is the ultimate source of standards for righteousness and governance. Tinkering with His definition of marriage, morality, and justice offends Him directly, bringing judgment on a nation.

Then, the gutlessness of the legislative branch’s refusal to defy the tyrannical work of SCOTUS (Supreme Court of the United States) and POTUS (President of the United States) is an appalling display of cowardice. But when Congress capitulates, it abdicates its legitimate Constitutional role of “checks and balances,” the principle established by the Founder’s to deny any of the three branches of government from amassing excessive power and threatening freedom.

Solomon gave insight into our predicament: “The Lord has made all for himself, yes, even the wicked for the day of doom” (Proverbs 16:4). In God’s economy, even evil beasts have a purpose.

ISIS, like the Philistine army in 1 Samuel 5, is merely an instrument in the hands of the living God. Keith Krell explains: “…the Philistines misinterpreted their victory. The only reason that they had defeated Israel was because Yahweh was using the Philistines to discipline His people. How much better it would have been for His glory to be revealed on the battlefield, but He couldn’t give victory to a disobedient people. The living God cannot be used, manipulated, or managed. God allows Himself to be humiliated and exalted. But through it all, He will not compromise His holiness or integrity. In the church God often appears to be losing because Christians refuse to submit to His lordship. The Lord longs to show up in a powerful way, but He is waiting for us to be holy as he is holy. So instead of blaming the church for being anemic, lethargic, and irrelevant, perhaps we should blame ourselves.” (Keith Krell, 1 Samuel).

Proverbs 10:25, “When the whirlwind passes by, the wicked is no more, but the righteous has an everlasting foundation.” Surrendering America’s Judeo-Christian heritage and Biblical-based culture will have consequences, “This gale hits everyone, not just the wicked. Thus it represents whatever crisis or disaster befalls a society, not a punishment for a particular sin.” (Michael V. Fox, Proverbs).

Yet the compassion and faithfulness of God to His children is everlasting. The Lord “has always made possible an escape from his wrath for those who would avail themselves to it. So Noah escaped the flood, Lot escaped Sodom, and the Hebrew people escaped the death of the firstborn. God does not want any to perish, and anyone who will may find the refuge of his grace.” (John N. Oswalt).

God is the sole sovereign of the universe, and while evil and destruction seem to be winning, (i.e., ISIS threatening the principles of justice and the U.S. Supreme Court violating the moral order upon which America was founded) they will not prevail.

“God will triumph and those who have kept the faith with him through dark days will triumph with him. But the true monster which must be destroyed, the one before which God’s people find themselves, is not some primordial chaos; it is the monster of moral evil. That, too, God will destroy, and his people may await that day with joy.” (John N. Oswalt).

As for those who call on the name of the Lord, the spiritual resurrection of America will likely come in our helplessness, for the Lord longs to show up in a big way. He waits for His people to be holy (1 Peter 1:16).

God is simply looking for a Gideon or Rahab to stand.