2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 – Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.
In many battles, great sacrifices are made, including lives lost, to secure small areas of land. Once ground has been taken, it must then be secured and kept, or the entire victory is in vain.
One such example from American history is the Battle of Bunker Hill on June 17, 1775, during the American Revolutionary War. Colonial and British troops grappled for control of the strategically advantageous Bunker Hill in Massachusetts, which helped to safeguard a nearby harbor. Some 1200 Colonial soldiers stood guard to solidify this and other surrounding hills, but the British attacked them and eventually overtook the hill because Colonial soldiers ran out of ammunition.
The British, however, could not secure and retain the hill they won in battle, losing around 1,000 soldiers, including 100 officers, and running low on supplies and leadership. Even though the British soldiers outgunned the Colonials largely comprised of farmers by a margin of 2-1, the Colonials retook the hill. The British lost many lives to take ground that they would quickly lose, making their entire effort in vain and demoralizing, a classic example of a Pyrrhic victory.
What does this have to do with Paul or 2 Thessalonians? We will look more at this connection in tomorrow’s devo.
To learn more about perseverance, read Matthew 24:13; Romans 5:3-5, 8:35-39; James 1:23; Jude 1:17-21.
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