Upon arriving at the New World in 1519 and seeing the sheer scale of the blood thirsty Aztec armies, the Conquistador Hernan Cortes, having only 600 men, gave his most infamous order to them upon their arrival at those hostile shores.
"Burn the ships."
Cortes understood that if the war was to be won, it would require absolute commitment without even the option of surrender or escape.
My brothers in Christ, our Lord demands this same devotion of us.
"Let the dead bury their dead" Jesus replies to the man who bids that he bury his father first before heeding the call.
"The foxes have dens, but the Son of man has no place to lay his head" he tells another, who does not understand the true cost of discipleship.
When Christ tells Peter that "The gates of hell shall not prevail against the Church", you need to understand that those gates are a defensive feature upon the walls of Hades and the underworld.
We are at war. As Leif Enger says,
"Retreat is impossible. Arm yourselves."
Cortes laid waste to all means of retreat, to every option of turning back. He poured literal fire on any doubts, any second thoughts or hesitations and because of this savage devotion, his campaign destroyed the Aztec Empire for all time.
If we are to take up our cross, to put our beliefs before our lives and to sacrifice our flesh in pursuit of them, then we must, as Paul says, "lay aside every hindrance and the sin that so easily ensnares us."
Victory, by the blood of the lamb, will require absolute and unwavering commitment to the cause.
If you want to conquer the gates of hell, then burn the ships you arrived in.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jozef Lalka is a former Infantryman with the Canadian Armed Forces and founder of War Doll.
Since releasing from the military, Jozef has devoted his life to the scriptural motivation of the warrior culture, and the mentorship of the next generation. Jozef works as a graphic designer, photographer and videographer while pursing a passion for current global conflicts and how they relate to historical events.