Tony Campolo Once
Again Takes Questionable Stand on Controversial Issue
Matthew 10:16 warns the believer to be as wise as serpents
and as harmless as doves. Yet it seems many Christians
do everything within their power to throw common sense
to the wind, foremost among them being Christian author
Tony Campolo.
At a Baptist conference in North Carolina covered by the
Evangelical Press, Campolo elaborated upon his position
regarding the war on terrorism. Americans should thank
God each night that this minister is not charged with
formulating strategic policy at the Pentagon.
The Evangelical Press quotes Campolo as telling the conference,
“I’m not sure we want to hear about this Jesus
who says, ‘Those who live by the sword die by the
sword’ as we engage in military buildup. I’m
not sure we want to hear of a Jesus who says, ‘Blessed
are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children
of God.’.”
Such a statement is an insult to every member of the American
armed forces and those of us involved in other vocations
such as media who contemplate the protection of this great
country. Even more importantly, such a statement misconstrues
the meaning and intent of Scripture.
Even though it might not come straight from the Bible,
a little piece of wisdom just slightly less profound urges
that, if a nation wants peace, it must prepare for war.
Though many Christians fall for every missionary sob story
making the rounds on the deputation circuit regarding
the childlike innocence of wide-eyed foreigners, the world
is a dangerous place.
Those out to destroy the United States aren’t known
to abide by Sunday school courtesies such as “please”
and “thank you”. It’s kind of hard to hand
them a tract as they fly jetliners into skyscrapers. The
only way to prevent them from picking on you is to convey
the message that the pain they will endure for doing so
will be as great and perhaps even more so than whatever
they can inflict upon you.
Perhaps Rev Campolo should study his Bible a bit more
carefully. The issue is not so much the sword or the use
of force per say but rather the context in which it is
employed.
Liberals, even if they don’t believe another lick
of Scripture, love to pound the adage “Those who
live by the sword die by the sword” in the face of
those advocating a sufficient national defense. Yet it
is doubtful the alleged scholars have studied this Biblical
injunction beyond its use in sloganeering.
Jesus actually says in Matthew 26:25, “Put your sword
back in its place, for all who draw the sword will die
by the sword (NIV).” The Lord said this in response
to Simeon Peter cutting off the ear of the high priest’s
servant when Jesus was arrested.
Elsewhere, however, the use of the sword is not so frowned
upon. Romans 13:4 says, “For he [the ruler] is God’s
servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid
for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God’s
servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the
wrongdoer (NIV).”
Modernists are no doubt dancing with glee, thinking they
have stumbled upon one of those fabled Biblical contradictions
they are always talking about but always seeming to evade
their grasp. But what we have here is not a contradiction
but rather a need for context.
The factor separating the Bible’s condemnation of
violence and the acceptance of the need for the strategic
application of force centers around the issues of legitimacy
and authority. Christ chastised Peter because the headstrong
Apostle no doubt struck out in a fit of blind rage. There
seems to be nothing in Scripture indicating that the poor
sap whose ear met the business end of Peter’s blade
really did anything to warrant such a response.
God established government, on the other hand, with the
primary function of protecting innocent human life from
those who would destroy it. This purpose originates in
Genesis 9:6 where the mandate for capital punishment was
first introduced.
Instead of consenting to the solemn need to take action
to stop these fanatics seeking to rain untold destruction
and bloodshed upon the civilized nations of the world,
Campolo gallops down a cliched mendacity not even remotely
connected to the crisis directly confronting the United
States. Campolo said, “There’s a swamp out there
called poverty and injustice.” Campolo can engage
in such proto-Marxist posturing until his heart’s
content, but his grand dreams of wealth redistribution
won’t stop one act of terrorism.
One does not have to be an intelligence analysts ensconced
at the CIA or the FBI to realize that Osama Bin Ladin
is a multimillionaire. Lead hijacker Muhammad Atta pursued
graduate studies in urban planning at a prestigious European
university. Another of his colleagues was enrolled at
the Goethe German Language Institute in Egypt and later
migrated to Germany to live in the posh comforts of the
supposedly decadent West.
These scoundrels are hardly hobos simply struggling for
a better existence. Likewise, reporters interviewed a
number of Afghans who had never even heard of Osama Bin
Ladin before September 11th and who could barely scrounge
together the basic necessities of life, much less find
the leisure hours necessary to become first rate revolutionaries.
Much like Rev Campolo, these agitators simply use the
downtrodden as a platform from which to launch their forays
in opposition to our capitalistic constitutional republic.
Yet one ought not be too hard on Dr. Campolo. For while
he might be well-educated as a college professor, he has
displayed a shocking degree of naivety over the years
as to how human nature really works. This is the very
same author who, after all, wrote a while back in 20
Hot Potatoes Christians Are Afraid To Touch that homosexuals
should be encouraged to shack up provided they remain
chaste. Bit like urging an alcoholic to work in a liquor
store if you ask me.
Campolo asserted that the U.S. has set back missions a
thousand years, claiming, “If we’re going to
win that Muslim world to Christ, we cannot make stupid
statements about their religion and we cannot ... engage
in a holy war against them.”
What does he care? A few years ago, Dr. Campolo got into
it with Jerry Falwell on “Crossfire” arguing
that one might very well get into heaven without belief
in the redemptive message of Christ as found in the Gospel.
Why backpedal from such theological universalism now,
unless of course the higher principle happens to be adopt
whatever position allows you to bash the United States
and the average American believer.
Galatians 3:28 says, “There is neither Jew nor Greek,
slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in
Christ.” Christ died to save any Middle Easterner
seeking forgiveness in Him just as He did any American
realizing they are lost in their sin without Him. However,
there will be little for American Christians to contribute
to the important task of world missions if the United
States is reduced to little more than a smoldering crater
glowing in the dark.