Wars throughout the beginning of time have been fought over this concept. Since time immemorial men have tried to come to terms with what power is and how to achieve it for themselves. Power often times seems to take on a perspective of an ability to create and most commonly an ability to destroy. When an individual really studies religion they find that it focuses on the concept of power. Whether it is the power to create them in the beginning and the power to destroy them or condemn them to an undesirable state when they die physically on this planet, this concept lies within all major religions. Power is often times thought of as a sense of a physical presence, but the concept is also used in economics and politics. .
Taking a look at the Bible, the word "power" is used 279 times. An early example of this comes in Exodus 15:6, "Thy right hand, O LORD, glorious in power, thy right hand, O LORD, shatters the enemy." And in 1 Chronicles 29:12, "Both riches and honor come from thee, and thou rulest over all. In thy hand are power and might; and in thy hand it is to make great and to give strength to all." These are just two examples of how power is used in The Old Testament. Both versus talk of power, but in two different ways. The first talks of a power or ability that "shatters the enemy" while in the other verse it is a power to give riches and honor as well as "make great and give strength to all." Once again it seems power has always been a concept to create or destroy. Many people have and will spend their entire lives worshipping their God in order to receive mercy from its power. .
"Mao Zedong, the late Chinese Communist leader, once said that power flows from the barrel of a gun" (Magstadt 6). This refers to an ability to control, even when this ability is obtained through avenues of violence. It is hard to decipher whether or not individuals or regimes have throughout time have obtained power and caused the spilling of blood in order to obtain or maintain power for what they felt was the betterment of the people which their power could or did influence.