Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand? Luke 14:31
The patriotic song Flower of Scotland is a tribute to the Battle of Bannockburn. The Battle of Bannockburn was a significant Scottish victory in the First War of Scottish Independence, and is a major landmark in Scottish history. The battle was fought on June 23 and 24, 1314 when a large invading force of English troops and cavalry encountered a significantly smaller force under Scotland’s King Robert the Bruce. The Scots were outnumbered by at least two to one, probably closer to three to one. The English had a large number of longbowmen and a strong cavalry, neither of which formed a significant part of the Scottish forces. But, fighting on unfamiliar ground, the English fell victim to the treacherous terrain into which they were led, and eventually proved no match for the ingenuity, ferocity, and the courage of the Scots. English cavalry charges were negated by the Scottish schiltron formations, and the English were badly outmanoeuvred. The battle ended in a rout, with England’s King Edward (nicknamed Longshanks) fleeing for his life. Fewer than a third of the English force made it back to England alive. Does the result of that battle fly in the face of today’s text?
The short answer is no. Although outnumbered, the Scots under Robert were the better force by far at Bannockburn. They had the better leader and they believed they had the better cause. Although our text today is describing the folly of fighting battles that cannot be won, it is also describing the need to consider whether it is possible to win such battles. In the case of the war that you and I are in as Christians, we are badly outnumbered on the ground at any one time, but we are not the weaker force by far. In fact, although some battles may leave us bloody and bowed, we are fighting in a war that has already been won. The devil and all his forces are no match for the power of the Almighty. The Book of the Revelation makes it clear that our enemies’ defeat will be total and our victory will be eternal. But the battles of today can cause us plenty of concern.
The devil’s crowd has been winning, or seeming to win, many of the battles lately. Adding to the deepening immorality of our modern society, the devil has all but destroyed the family unit, the foundation of what God gave to humanity for our preservation. It is now a battle for Christian families to stand firm on Biblical principles in a society that mocks those principles. The legal victories of the homosexual movement in terms of so-called rights and same-sex marriages means that Christians are now in a battle for our own rights if we do not endorse what God has condemned. Are we going to win battles like these? Possibly not, in the short term, although all such evil will eventually be destroyed.
As we face the battles that lie before us, we need to consider the cost of standing firm for God, a cost we may well have to pay. The God we stand for will make our stand worthwhile. -Jim MacIntosh