Faith in the Fog of War: How Christians Lost Sight of Jesus and How We Find Him Again

"If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.” — Sun Tzu, The Art of War

“My kingdom is not of this world.” — Jesus, John 18:36

A Still, Small Voice in the Noise

You love your country. You love your faith. You’ve tried to stay grounded while everything around you feels like it's spinning out of control.

Maybe you’ve lost friends over politics. Maybe your church feels different—less about Jesus, more about winning the next cultural battle. Maybe your prayers are harder to focus. Maybe you’re angry and can’t explain why.

You didn’t choose a war—but somehow, you're in one. Every news cycle feels like a battlefield. Every conversation with someone who disagrees feels like a skirmish.

And somewhere in the fog, something got lost.

The Enemy You Didn’t See Coming

Sun Tzu taught that if you misunderstand the enemy—or worse, don’t even realize you’re in a war—you’re already defeated.

The greatest danger right now isn’t “the Left” or “the media” or “the globalists.” The real danger is far more personal:

• It’s spiritual confusion disguised as moral clarity.
• It’s fear masked as righteousness.
• It’s propaganda delivered in the language of faith.
• It’s a version of Christianity that lets us stay comfortable, proud, and angry—without ever confronting our own hearts.

You didn’t set out to be manipulated. But the most dangerous battles are the ones that happen quietly—inside your own soul.

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood…” — Ephesians 6:12

Know Yourself—Have You Been Changed Without Realizing It?

Ask yourself honestly:

• Do I react defensively when someone questions a politician I support?
• Do I feel more loyalty to a political tribe than to biblical truth?
• Do I dismiss uncomfortable facts if they challenge “my side”?
• Do I listen to Scripture with open ears—or with a filter tuned to my favorite news outlet?

You haven’t abandoned Jesus—but has your view of Him subtly changed?

Has He become a mascot for your politics instead of the Master of your life?

Christian Nationalism doesn’t require you to leave the Church. It just requires you to redefine Jesus so He fits neatly inside your political goals.

That’s not discipleship. That’s idolatry.

The Jesus Who Is No Longer Welcome

In today’s politicized faith, there’s less and less room for the Jesus who said:

• “Love your enemies.”
• “Bless those who persecute you.”
• “The first shall be last.”
• “Take up your cross and follow me.”

If that Jesus walked into some pulpits today, would He be celebrated—or shouted down?

We’ve traded the Lamb of God for a lion of partisanship. We’ve replaced servant-hearted love with fear-driven control. We’ve become more focused on defeating our enemies than redeeming them.

And in that fog, the voice of Jesus has grown faint—not because He stopped speaking, but because we stopped listening.

Sun Tzu’s Warning—and Jesus’ Invitation

Sun Tzu warned: “If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”

That’s where many Christians are now—exhausted, confused, angry, afraid. Fighting everyone and everything. Winning arguments. Losing peace.

But Jesus offers something the culture war never can:

• A clear mind.
• A clean heart.
• A purpose rooted in love, not fear.

“Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” — Matthew 11:28

A Call to Courageous Faith

The most radical thing a Christian can do in this moment is not to fight louder—but to follow Jesus more clearly.

• To speak the truth, even when it costs us our side’s approval.
• To defend the vulnerable, even when it’s politically inconvenient.
• To love across divides, even when the tribe says, “Don’t you dare.”

Jesus never asked for partisan loyalty. He asked for obedience.

He never said, “Take up your slogans.” He said, “Take up your cross.”

That’s the only way out of the fog.

Final Reflection: Come Back to the One You First Loved

Maybe you feel like it’s too late. That you’ve gone too far down this path. That changing your view now would mean admitting you were wrong.

But Jesus isn’t asking you to perform. He’s asking you to return.

• To remember who you are.
• To rediscover who He is.
• To trade fear for faith.
• To choose the kingdom not of this world.

Faith over fear. Truth over tribe. Jesus over everything.

Because when the fog clears—and it will—only one voice will matter.

And it won’t be a president’s.

🗣️ Call to Action

If you feel this tension—if you're wrestling with what’s real and what’s right—don’t shut it down. That wrestling may be the Holy Spirit, calling you back to clarity, back to courage, back to Christ.

Not the version made in America’s image—but the One who made you in His.