THE GREATEST WAR:WHY THE BATTLE WITHIN MATTERS

A man bought battling his thoughts in the presence of Jesus

One of the things I do every day is log on to YouTube to check out the latest geopolitical news. I feel it's good to be updated with what's going on around the world because, regardless of where you are reading this article from, what happens around the world will directly or indirectly affect you in this globalized world.

The current news that is trending right now is the conflict between Iran and the United States of America and Israel. The three countries are already prepared for war; they are just waiting for the President of the United States to start it. Russia and China have already demonstrated interest in joining the conflict. What got me so interested in this geopolitical conflict is that analysts, journalists, and political commentators have already started comparing the forthcoming war to the war in Afghanistan. They are discussing the impact of this coming war, the scale of it, how long it will take, the damage it will cause to both countries, how this war will affect the world, who will win, and how the magnitude of the war would change if other countries join in. Apart from World War 1 and World War 2, they have already ranked this war to be bigger than the war between Russia and Ukraine and any other war between now and the Second World War.

When I saw different war analyses, especially when they started ranking these wars, I asked myself: is it really true? Is it true that World Wars One and Two are the greatest wars mankind has ever seen or experienced? What about this coming war between the USA and Israel versus Iran—is it true that if everything goes on as predicted, it will surpass any other war after World War Two?

The answer that I always get is no. I do not think that World Wars One and Two are the greatest wars in the world. I feel the greatest war mankind has ever experienced and fought happens in our minds. This is the war that happens between different competing thoughts in your mind. It is the war that shapes our world, our lives, and the decisions we make every day. A person's quality of life and decisions are determined by—and become the product of—the most dominant thoughts in their mind. The thought that wins is the thought that reigns in that person's life. The Bible puts it this way in Proverbs 23:7 (KJV): "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee."

So what causes this greatest war within us? What ignites these conflicts between thoughts in our lives? What makes this war the greatest and most dangerous war in this entire world? Well, James 4:1-3 NKJV says: "Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures."

James is telling us that wars come from wrong desires with wrong motivations, which originated from selfish desires—the product of wrong and selfish thoughts that satisfy the self in you so that you may exalt yourself with pride. Is it not the reason why countries fight and go to war? Of course it is. People and countries will tell you various reasons why they must go to war against other countries or systems. Depending on the outcomes of wars, diplomacy through representation and mediation is always chosen, initiated, or sometimes re-initiated to solve or prevent future outward wars, while forgetting the real greatest and inner wars that are happening within their own hearts and minds.

Now that you have known what the greatest war is, you may be asking yourself: how can you stop it from continuously happening in your mind? First of all, you must continuously renew your mind so that you can be able to discern and allow only godly thoughts to dominate your mind, for the will of the Father to be established and fulfilled in your life (Romans 12:2). Secondly, you must submit your thoughts and mind to God. 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 (NKJV) says: "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled." Try to apply this to yourself in love before you do it to others.

Furthermore, if you want to employ diplomacy in your own effort to end the war between conflicting thoughts in your life, then who is the best person in the world to carry out that assignment for you than Jesus Christ? If part of His office and role is to represent you before the Father through mediation and intercession by His Spirit, as 1 Timothy 2:5 (NIV) says, "For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus," then definitely He is more than capable to clear your mind and end those wars that set themselves up to destroy you and your quality of life, and allow only the thoughts that are aligned with the Father's perfect will to prevail. Jeremiah 29:11 (KJV) says, "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end." So trust Jesus to carry out that mediation for you, because He knows the thoughts of the Father in their perfect divine unity.

Let us pray:

Heavenly Father, we come before You with humble hearts, acknowledging that the greatest battles are not fought on foreign fields but within the quiet spaces of our own minds. Lord, we ask that You guard our thoughts and renew our minds daily. Help us to recognize the selfish desires and wrong motivations that wage war within us, and give us the strength to bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. May Your peace, which surpasses all understanding, guard our hearts and minds. As we watch the events of this world unfold, keep us anchored in Your truth, and let the thoughts that reign in us be thoughts of love, humility, and surrender to Your will. We thank You for Jesus, our Mediator, who represents us before Your throne and intercedes on our behalf. Trusting in Him, we surrender the battlefield of our minds to You. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen.