Truth
"Because of God's tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide us to the path of peace" Luke 1 gives us this pearl of wisdom, this spark of enthusiastic Hope.
Naturally, the natural response of man is to weigh up the long list of all that is going wrong, and find Scripture wanting. Thankfully, we are not natural women and men. We are supernatural, seeing as Christ is in us, the Hope of Glory!
We who are seated with Christ in the heavenliness (Ephesians 2:6) have this Incredible and Awe inspiring daily Joy that throbs through us; this unshakable Truth - that no matter what the world around us looks like; we KNOW that the Glory of God will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea (Hab. 2:4), and that the goodness of God will prevail over and against every attempt of the enemy.
One of the ways conflict embroils us is when injustice is done to other humans on earth. Currently there are 47 wars on earth. 40 of those are jihad initiated and maintained. As President Trump encouraged Muslim nations on May 21, 2017:
"Terrorism has spread across the world. But the path to peace begins right here, on this ancient soil, in this sacred land...The nations of the Middle East will have to decide what kind of future they want for themselves, for their countries, and for their children. A better future is only possible if your nations drive out the terrorists and extremists."
Some Muslim nations have responded wisely. They are investing in a Global Center for Combating Extremist Ideology, empowering their women to learn to drive and pursue independence, and seeking to work bilaterally to combat terrorism. But others are embroiled in a vision to control the region more powerfully with a political Islamic unity that belittles the West and keeps reiterating lies until they are believable. If this were simply hot air, it would not be worth repeating. But because of the recent success of creating lies and shaping them into building blocks for the region, it becomes necessary to be aware of these AS lies, so that we do not let them become false truths.
So it is important to say that if a society insists that it's children are encouraged to strap suicide bombs to their bodies and destroy others - this is terrorism and barbaric. If a society or sect within society tells it's girls that hell is populated with women, and that the only two ways to escape hell are to go on a suicide mission or convert someone to their belief system - this is terrorism and barbaric. If girls are kidnapped and forced to be sex slaves, and men are encouraged to see their value in promiscuity and the purchase and use of said girls - this is terrorism and barbaric. These are all active practices amongst some Muslim nations. Having said this, Muslims are the primary victims of the violence of terrorism, and it is because we believe in the inherent rights of all humans to have justice that we point this out. Muslims are innocent victims in these situations, but the path they are being taught to follow is what is wrong.
If members of these societies unity to change these policies, we rejoice. If members of these societies unite to slam the West for holding them accountable for terrorism, then we should see a red flag. If the West is said to be fueling hatred because we believe that they themselves have the power to uproot extremists, we should see this as a red flag. When pity is expressed for Muslims experiencing "Islamophobia" because Western countries uphold their own laws, we need to not only see this as a red flag, we must understand that strong attempt are being made to force the West to change and conform to the same Islamic trends which are at the root of the problems which cause terrorism. This is when we need to make personal choices to weigh in, as supernatural people, and take our places in the courts of heaven, from our knees, and begin to pray.
We can not do this if we remain ignorant.
We can not do this if we pretend that all religions are different paths up the mountain to God.
We can not do this if we lie and say that Islam is a religion of peace.
We can do this when we acknowledge that "even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes." Ephesians 1:4. Jesus Christ is God, who sacrificed His life on the cross to offer salvation to every person on earth who chooses to accept the fact that he or she needs forgiving for their sins and accepts this offer of salvation.
We can do this when we acknowledge that God created men and women with free choice and as such they can choose to follow any religion they wish to, but when that religion dictates terror it has now become a political entity rather than a religion. Whenever that happens, that religion has crossed a political line. It has the free choice to so do, but men and women who care about the wellbeing of people also have not only the free choice, but the responsibility to stand up for the rights of those who are being destroyed by terror. Ironically, it is those who are filled with the love of God which moves into our hearts when we choose to follow Jesus who are standing up for the rights of those who are being destroyed. And those being destroyed are 95% the children and women of those who follow the dictates of Islam.
Simply put, Islam believes that all of society, and all societies must come under the same rules and laws so that "peace" will happen. It is this kind of "peace" that Islam represents - a peace that is not peace - it is a peace of religious laws dictated by what is called Shari'a. Under Shari'a a woman must - for instance - be covered because if she isn't she will lead a man to sexual sin. In contrast, under the belief that God created men and women with free choice, that same man is fully responsible for his own choices and behaviors.
And so, if we believe, as Scripture declares that "Because of God's tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide us to the path of peace" we are actually believing and declaring something quite radical, quite beyond the reaches of the natural man, quite impossible unless there is a breakthrough of Truth.
Please do not remain ignorant. It doesn't help. Pretending something will go away won't send it away. There is a strong invested twisting of Truth and placing blame in all the wrong places as a smokescreen for power to make the West bow to Islamic ideals. Taking a pinch of Truth and twisting it doesn't make it true. The outcome of this kind of rhetoric can easily be seen in Iran. The truth is that the high concentration of people under the age of 30 in the Middle East, along with several decades of terrorist training, and wars, makes the region much in need of us going back to that one place where we make the most difference: our knees.
And as we dwell on "whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-- and put these into practice," (Phil. 4:8-9) we will align our hearts with Jesus who is Truth, and ask for His Truth to break in and transform the hearts and minds of those who are still blinded. Not because we have Islamophobia. Heaven forbid! But because we love those who are experiencing terrorism at the hands of their own people.