Jihad for the Early Muslims

The question asked is if Jihad was necessary for security for the early Islamic community; also asked is what Jihad was to them. Jihad was very important to the security of the early Muslim BECAUSE OF what it meant to them.

The early idea of Jihad was a fight against temptations and improper living, among other things, and these religious laws brought unity amongst tribes that were enemies at one time. Necessity is another story, though; perhaps Jihad was key to the earliest years of Islam, but after the relatively rapid unification of the Arabs, Jihad became more important to spreading the Muslim empire. In fact, many non-Arab converts made the change for trading purposes, and conquered Christian and Jewish communities of the early empire were not converted.