No Quarter 1/20/08
There is a principle in warfare known as “no quarter given,” meaning that no mercy will be shown to the defeated foe and that all of the enemy are to be killed. The most famous example of this is the stand at the Alamo. International law declares that “no quarter” orders are illegal, and history has shown this to be counterproductive in some cases - when the enemy learns that they either fight or die, they tend to fight better. To avoid this situation, treachery is often a much better way to gain entry to an enemy’s stronghold. I think that a very good illustration of this is found in a scene in the 1992 movie The Last of the Mohicans, in which the French army surrounds a British fort. The French commander, General Montcalm, offers to allow the British army to depart peaceably under a promise to leave the continent; Colonel Munro, after deliberation and discovering the lack of reinforcements, accepts the offer and thus seems to save his men from absolute destruction. The next scene shows the French-allied Indians ambushing the British forces, destroying them out in the open. While the French would have lost many men taking the fort in combat, they lost none in taking it by treachery.
Why is this lesson lost on Christians? No, I am not advocating that America conduct its self this way; I am instead talking about spiritual warfare. We are equipped by the Creator of the Universe with armor for a reason – our enemy is more powerful than we are. Look at the description of the situation:
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (Ephesians 6:10-17 NIV)
We are set out as an army to fight spiritual forces of evil, and against powers of this dark world; it is very hard to fight the battle when you cannot see the foe (or even the battle, for that matter). We are protected by armor specifically designed to protect our various parts: belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, readiness of the gospel of peace, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, and the sword of the word of God.
Looking at it as armor for our spiritual selves, we see that righteousness protects our hearts, readiness enables us to act on opportunities presented to us, faith gives us cover from attacks, salvation (the hope of salvation, according to 1 Thessalonians 5:8) protects our mind, truth holds our entire armor together, and the word of God allows us to defend ourselves. Notice that everything hinges on truth for us, and our enemy is the father of lies. Should we be surprised that the enemy rarely attacks us at our strong points? Human generals have long found the expedience in using trickery and treachery to overcome otherwise strong (or even invulnerable) defenses – don’t you think the devil knows this?
The Romans had a formation called the “tortoise,” which made use of the rectangular shape of their shields; the soldiers would form a box-shaped formation, with the soldiers on the sides locking their shields together to form a wall protecting the sides, with the soldiers on the inside locking their shields overhead. This formation was very effective against enemy fire as long as everyone kept their shield in place. Our faith, too, is effective as long as it is joined with other brothers and sisters. And just as truth holds our individual armor together, truth also holds this army together.
How many times have you heard of churches tearing themselves apart due to rumors and infighting? How often do people pervert the scriptures to drive a wedge within the formation of God’s people? As Solomon said:
There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood,a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers. (Proverbs 6:16-19 NIV)
Notice that stirring up dissension is something that the LORD finds detestable! It is this that is a sure sign of the treachery of the enemy.
Too often, God’s foot soldiers try to play ambassador by treating with the enemy. We are here to fight, not live at peace with the devil, and not to retreat from the first sign of something scary. If we trust in God, and we equip ourselves with his power and might, we have nothing to fear. Sin is always around us, but it only comes in through treachery on Satan’s part, and weakness on ours. Let us engage the enemy, trusting in God and giving no quarter to the sin in our lives.
-Charles Peterson