In the lead up
to the Revolutionary War, the British Parliament fiercely debated the American
rebellion and the course of action they should take. Despite some opposition,
Parliament overwhelmingly supported King George III’s desire to engage the
colonies with deadly force. The war seemed like it would be quick and decisive
for the monarchy, squashing the Sons of Liberty’s talk of freedom, and teaching
them to think twice before defying the crown again.
John Montagu,
the Earl of Sandwich (and yes, the inventor of the meat between two slices of
bread), famously said of the impending war: “Suppose the colonies do abound in
men, what does that signify? They are raw, undisciplined, cowardly men.”
Echoing those sentiments, General James Grant made the bold claim that with
only 5,000 redcoats he could march from one end of the American continent to
the other. It has been said that Grant did more to bolster American patriotism
than any of the American generals.
The colonial
army, under the leadership of the Commander in Chief George Washington, was
anything but cowardly; and the claim that only 5,000 soldiers could march
across America? 24,000 British soldiers died in their humiliating defeat. How
were an untrained, “rabble in arms” able to beat the world’s superpower? Many
answers have been offered, but it cannot be ignored that the American pride was
stirred into action after the derogatory comments made their way across the
Atlantic. We might say the British unwittingly stirred a sleeping giant.
The church in
America may well be called a sleeping giant. Jesus promised that the gates of
hell could not prevail against the church, but many churches seem to be in a
state of hibernation. We need to be stirred into action, not from wounded pride,
but from understanding our duty. We are soldiers engaged in spiritual warfare,
but for many Christians, we go about our busy day giving little thought to the
spiritual needs of those around us.
Let this serve
as our wake up call. Satan, the accuser of the saints, has called us every name
in the book, hoping to convince God that we are worthless. But God has called
us loved and forgiven, so we should spring into action and be the church we are
called to be.
“For
the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the
body of Christ.”
Ephesians
4:12
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