The Battle of Thermopylae
- Took place over a 3-day period in 480 B.C. at a narrow isthmus called the “Hot Gates” and became known as the Battle of Thermopylae.
- An alliance of Greek city-states led by 300 Spartans and ~ 6700 men under King Leonidas fought an invading Persian army of ~ 800,000 to 2,000,000 men from many countries led by King Xerxes I.
- The Spartans and the enemy allies held the enemy off until they were betrayed by a traitor. They had hoped to fight until the larger army could join them after a festival and games.
- The Spartans were highly trained beginning at the age of 7 and were the most fierce and feared fighters of all the Greek city-states.
- On the first day of the battle a wave of 10,000 Medes were thrust in a frontal attack of the small Greek army led out front by the Spartans followed by 10,000 of the Immortals both repelled losing thousands of men.
- The second day of assaults also failed. Later that day a traitor led a large army of Persians around the pass to encircle the Greeks.
- On the third day many Greeks either fled or were released except the Spartans and 700 other Greeks. In the assault that followed the Spartans engaged the Persians. In that battle Leonidus was killed, the remaining Greeks were surrounded and killed to the last man by arrows raining down on them.
- Leonidas’ body was taken by Xerxes and in a fit of rage it was decapitated and crucified. Because of the courage and valor demonstrated by the Spartans that day the Greek armies later rallied and finally defeated the Persians in the Battle of Plataea.
Facing overwhelming forces the Spartans gave their lives, not for themselves but for others. When I saw the movie, a fairly accurate picture of what truly happened when you read the actual history of the event, I was struck by the fact that every Spartan warrior depicted bore considerable scars on their bodies—evidence of previous battles.
Key Questions
When you come face to face with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Jesus Christ—and you will—will your life bear the scars of many conflicts with the Enemy, old wounds representing the skirmishes and battles you fought in His honor?
Will you have left every bit of yourself on the field of engagement and acquitted yourself with honor for His sake and the sake of your loved ones?
Will you have given it all for Kingdom purposes or will you have squandered your opportunity to live an honorable life of integrity and commitment to His cause?
What will others say of you when you leave this world?
Will they say there goes a man after God’s heart, a man of honor who gave himself for the sake of others, who represented his King with distinction and service?
What will be your legacy when the day comes for you to depart this earth--when your eyes close and you take your last breath?
What aroma will you leave in the lives of others after you are gone? Will it be a stench or a lingering pleasing fragrance of a life well-lived; a life that finished the race well; a life that was others oriented; a life where your children and your wife or those who knew you well call you blessed?
Will you be able to say what Paul, the Apostle, said near the end of his life?
For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day — and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing (2 Timothy 4:6-8).
Have I cherished my wife and lived an exemplary life for my children?
Have I strategically passed on to my loved ones the lessons I have learned from life and most importantly from the Lord?
Have I given them the greatest gift of all—a life well-lived, a focused life, a godly life?
Have I blessed them by being a guide by the side rather than a sage on a stage?
Nobody cares what you have to say until they observe how you live. What example are you setting?
Will you be able to say I stood firm for the Lord—in the end I gave no ground to the enemy?
Will you be able to say “I lived a strategic life that mattered, that left a mark in this world that left others less fortunate better off because of the way I lived my life?”
Did I give myself wholeheartedly to a cause greater than myself in alignment with what my Creator prepared in advance for me to do as the Bible so clearly states?
Did I rise to the challenges presented to me—did I embrace them as opportunities to live out the destiny God ordained before I ever came to be when He planned for my existence and oversaw my formation in my mother’s womb and set the days I would live on this earth?
Have I lived out God’s ordained purposes for my life?
Have I lived a shotgun existence or a laser beamed life focused on what really matters informed by my Creator, secured by Christ at the cross, and empowered by the Holy Spirit?
Did I receive His gift of life through His Son Jesus or have I resisted His overtures of love and forgiveness offered so many times I’ve lost count?
Have I received His gift of salvation but kept it wrapped up and never opened it to receive the abundant life He so gracefully and mercifully handed me?
Have I made up my mind to live my life in accordance with God’s design or the world’s?
Have I chosen the narrow road that leads to life or the wide road that leads to certain destruction? God has revealed His plan (Titus 2:11-14).
“For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope — the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good…which He has prepared in advance for us to do.”
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