Why do soldiers in war commit atrocities and lose all sense of morality?
The root cause is the old sin nature, or old Adam. When unrestrained, it drives people to horrendous atrocities and moral collapse, treating others as free game for animal appetites. Scripture teaches that every person shares this same capacity; under like circumstances, we would probably do the same.
Les teaches that the explanation is the old sin nature, or old Adam. He asks how armed forces can commit horrendous atrocities against their enemy, pointing to young men from Bosnia in Yugoslavia who, while fighting a war, lose all sense of morality and get the idea that any female is free game for their animal appetites. No one seemingly takes that away from them; they have full liberty. He recalls a general from a bygone time saying that is just one of the privileges of being a foot soldier. Les says such thinking does not come from what they learned at their mama's knee; it is the old sin nature. He ties this to Romans 1-3, noting every person is capable of the same things. When the old sin nature is shown for what it is and God says all are sinners, we must realize that under like circumstances we would probably do the same.