What Does "Godly Military" Really Mean?

Robert L. VanAntwerp Jr., Lieutenant General, USA, and Bruce L. Fister, Lieutenant General, USAF (Ret.), Executive Director, Officers' Christian Fellowship

By now you should be used to our phrase which captures the vision and purpose of OCF, "Christian officers exercising biblical leadership to raise up a godly military."

In Part I of this series we said that a "Christian officer" was one that walks with and has a faith in Christ as Lord and Savior; a professional serving our Lord in our military and who is tireless in the quest for the fulfillment of God's purpose in his or her life; one who trusts in the Lord for strength and purpose and serves as an ambassador for Christ in the military.

In Part II we explained "exercising biblical leadership" as acts of leadership exercised from a position of humility and with the character of a servant who "leads to serve and serves to lead."

In this our final article in the series, we want to discuss the results of "Christian officers exercising biblical leadership." That is, what is a "godly military?" There are many attributes we could assign to a "godly military" but we'll only look at the source of military core values, the leadership attributes of our military, the Chaplaincy, the power of a "godly military" and the attributes of the people in a "godly military."

Source of Military Core Values:

First, in a "godly military" we would expect that the military's core values could be found in God's Word and have biblical values. Our Air Force values are stated as "integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do." General Eric K. Shinseki, Chief of Staff of the Army, says the following about Army values:

"We are, have been, and will remain a values-based institution where loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage are the cornerstone of all we do today and of all our future successes."

The notion of servanthood is common to our services. The Air Force says "service before self," while the Army says "selfless service, respect, loyalty, and personal courage."

Jesus said "…but I am among you as one who serves…" The Apostle Paul said, "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves." And Joshua's instructions before crossing the Jordan and conquering the Promised Land were, "Be strong and courageous."

Our services stress integrity. Proverbs says, "A king takes pleasure in honest lips…" and "Better to be lowly in spirit and among the oppressed than to share plunder with the proud."

And, our services place a premium on professionalism and excellence in duty. The question, of course, is motivation. An OCF "pillar" is to "integrate faith and profession" not just to have a great military, but to demonstrate that as Christians we work for and testify to the Lord of Lords and King of Kings.

Leadership Attributes of Our Military:

Second, we would expect in a godly military that the prevailing nature of leadership would be that of a "servant leader." We discussed this in depth last month. The best military leaders we have known are those who lead to serve our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, Coastguardsmen and their families.

Support of the Chaplaincy:

Third, we would expect that a "godly military" places a premium on and honors chaplains as an indispensable enabler for commanders in the fulfillment of their spiritual responsibilities toward their troops. Support of the Chaplaincy is one of the OCF "pillars." We consider chaplains a critical component of our services.

The Power of a Godly Military:

Fourth, we would expect that a "godly military" would respect God's power. While we are directed to do our very best to prepare to defend our nation and to be victorious in battle, our military should live by the words of Proverbs 21:31, "The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord." Or as David said when facing Goliath, "…it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord's …"

Attributes of the People in a "Godly Military":

Last, we would expect that a "godly military" is composed of a significant number of Christians who live their lives in a way that honors Jesus Christ and who are prepared to explain why they are different than others. This seems to be a realistic view of the OCF vision of a "military transformed for Jesus Christ." This is not to say that everyone in our military would be a Christian or that Christians deserve any type of favor over those who may have other beliefs. We need to respect those of other faiths, yet we should pray for them and be prepared to share the "good news" in a gentle and loving way. We all need to understand the basics of Romans 13, where God appoints those in positions of authority and at His pleasure uses Christians and non-Christians for His purposes. Our view should be one of eternity. As Pastor Paul Barnes said, "Two things on this planet are eternal: God's Word, and people." Our job is to present our bodies as living sacrifices through our military service so those around us may know Him and live with Him for all eternity.

We hope you understand our view of "Christian officers" who love our Lord and live by faith; of Christian officers who "exercise biblical leadership" as servant leaders; and of Christian officers who view a "godly military" as one that derives its core values from biblical sources, values the exercise of servant leadership, supports the Chaplaincy, understands the power of God, and is composed of a large number of Christian Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, Coastguardsmen and their families.

Thank you for "exercising biblical leadership to raise up a godly military."

In His Service,
Bruce and Van