Skip to main content

Principles of War: Offensive, part 2

 


Whether the offensive is directed against the whole front or against one segment of the enemy army, “in either case it should be well understood that there is in every battlefield a decisive point, the possession of which, more than any other, helps to secure the victory by enabling its holder to make proper application of the Principles of War. Arrangements should therefore be made for striking the decisive blow upon this point” (Antoine-Henri Jomini, Jomini and His Summary of the Art of War, The Military Classics series, ed. Lt. Col. J.D. Hittle [Harrisburg: The Stackpole Co., 1947[, Article XXXI).

There are two things that determine a decisive point. The first is the relative importance of that point compared to the rest of the front. The second is the feasibility of taking that point. If it is not important, it is not decisive. If it is important but not feasible to take, then it is not decisive. This is very important. Be alert for teaching on the decisive point in succeeding posts.

Whether the offense is made along the whole front or at a decisive point, it has several basic characteristics. In attitude it is bold; in direction it is forward toward the enemy at the objective; and as its means it uses effective weapons.

The offensive in the spiritual war is conducted in the same manner. It is directed against the enemy, not against the objective. Satan is the enemy. We fight in order to wrest from his possession those who through fear of death are subject to his bondage (Heb. 2:14–15).

Most of this spiritual war is already history. Jesus Christ delivered the decisive blow at the decisive point at the decisive time. The blow was His death for sin and sinners. The point was a cross outside the city of Jerusalem, and the time was the feast of the Passover about AD 30. The Bible tells us that this blow destroyed the enemy and set the prisoners free. When Jesus died on the cross, He cried with a loud voice, “It is finished.” What was finished? The defeat and ultimate destruction of Satan! This was the emancipation proclamation that sets us free from Satan. “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed” (John 8:36).

(To be continued on Wednesday...)


*Excerpted from Principles of War. To purchase, visit ccmbooks.org/bookstore.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Why Is Obedience So Hard?

There are several reasons why obedience seems hard. I will comment on some of them and then speak positively on how obedience is easy. We think: 1) Obedience is an infringement on freedom. Since we are free in Christ, and obedience is somehow contrary to that freedom, we conclude that obedience is not good. Yet we know it is good. Thus, we become confused about obedience and are not single-minded. 2) Obedience is works. We who have been justified by grace through faith are opposed to works; therefore, we are opposed to obedience. 3) We have tried to obey and have failed—frequently. Therefore, the only solution is to disobey and later confess to receive forgiveness. It is easier to be forgiven by grace than to obey by effort. 4) We confuse obedience to men with obedience to God. Although these are sometimes one and the same (see Romans 13, 1 Peter 2-3, Ephesians 5-6, Colossians 3, and Titus 2), sometimes they are not the same (see Colossians 2:20-23, Mark 7, 1 Timothy 4:1-5, a

Getting Old

This is a post for those who are getting old or considering themselves old, from 65-100. Right now, I am 91.* I will be 92 in October. I have my own house, but I cannot live in it alone because of my physical inability to move around. One of my sons lives with me. All of us will have to make some adjustments. That includes money, relatives, your own ability and willpower to stay independent, etc. My advice is if physically and financially you can live independently, you should certainly do that. If you do, you will still need to have visits from your family frequently. You need your family. Even if you don’t need them to take care of you, you need them for the fellowship. The more fellowship you have, the longer you’ll live. If you can stay independent do it, but only if friends and relatives can see you often. In my case, I can’t walk, and I can’t do much physically. So, whether I like it or not, someone else has to get me up, get me showered, and get me dressed. I am blessed to have

Lifted Up

In the first thirteen verses of John 3, Nicodemus did not understand what Jesus was talking about. It was nonsense to him. When Jesus said verse fourteen to him, Nicodemus finally understood Jesus. Here it is: “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up…” (John 3:14). The reason it made sense to Nicodemus was because he knew of the event that Jesus spoke of. People who had been bitten by a serpent could look at the bronze snake and did not die. Nicodemus knew the Bible story.   Here it is: “Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, ‘We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us.’ So Moses prayed for the people. The LORD said to Moses, ‘Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.’ So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyo