Welcome And Why The Blade Matters

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Welcome to the Daily Blade. The word of God is described as the sword of the spirit, the primary spiritual weapon in the Christian's armor against the forces of evil. Your hosts are Joby Martin and Kyle Thompson, and they stand ready to equip men for the fight. Let's sharpen up.

Why Crusades History Speaks Now

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Welcome to a new week of the Daily Blade. So, like many of you, I am drawn to the history of ancient warfare. And specifically as a Christian, I am drawn to the history of the battles that took place as part of the many crusades in the Middle East. So we are going to look at five of the most important men in reference to the Christian side of the fight this week. So I know that many of you are currently feeling the angst of our times. So depending on your eschatology, you may feel that history will soon come to a close, right? So I think that all of us have that internal instinct to fight and to defend Christ. And there may be fast-coming a day for some of us where the fight will come out of the realm of the spiritual and actually into the physical. So I think there is a lot that we can learn from these five great men that we're going to talk about this week. So I'm basing my material on the incredibly important work of one of the foremost living historians of the Crusades, and that is the great Raymond Ibrahim. So he has three tremendous books that cover the warfare that has taken place between Christianity and Islam. It's Sword and Scimitar, The Two Swords of Christ, and Defenders of the West. And Defenders of the West will actually provide the scaffolding for the material this week. And I'm just telling you guys, all three of those books are required reading for all of you.

Duke Godfrey Reaches Jerusalem

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So the year is 1099. And after three incredibly brutal years, years of pestilence, starvation, and watching the brutal slaughter of their brothers, a band of crusaders marched across the deserts and mountains in their conflict against Muslim armies, and they are finally standing before the walls of sacred Jerusalem. Their leader is a man named Duke Godfrey of Bullion, a direct descendant of Charlemagne. This man was a ferocious warrior. Contemporary accounts show that he once split an armed knight in half with a single sword strike. So we actually see this account in many places, and yet Duke Godfrey's own men, when they were put under oath and asked what the worst thing they could say about Duke Godfrey was, said this. So a man that was very familiar with bloodshed wanted to be most familiar with the truths of God. This man was totally and completely devoted to war and also to God. And after Pope Urban II came for the first, or really called for the first crusade in the year 1095, Duke Godfrey did not hesitate. He immediately sold his own castle and lands in order to fund the campaign. He took 80,000 men under his command, he guided them through the politics of the day, and he led them through the siege of Antioch and helped sustain them through plague and despair. Then on July the 15th of the year 1099, when he had finally made it to the walls of Jerusalem, he scaled the walls himself. At the top of his own siege tower with arrows flying by him, he was the one that threw a bridge across to the city wall. The walls of Jerusalem quickly fell thereafter, and he and his men took control of the city. When it became time to elect a king, every man obviously chose Duke Godfrey. But the Duke refused

Refusing The Crown With Reverence

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the crown that was his for the taking. And his exact words echoed and have echoed through history. God forbid that I should be crowned with a crown of gold, where my Savior bore a crown of thorns. So instead of taking the title of king, he took the title of defender of the Holy Sepulchre, and he immediately went back to the fight. So he died just a year later, still in his harness at the age of forty. But before he passed over, knowing that his death was imminent, Duke Godfrey took off his armor, put on a clean linen garment, and walked barefoot to the tomb of Jesus Christ. He went there to say thank you.

Humility As Strength In Practice

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Godfrey's words and final actions reminded me of the words of the Apostle Paul as recorded in Philippians two, verses three through eight. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant. So think about this, guys. Duke Godfrey had everything. He had the crown, he had the title, he had the glory, he had the war stories, right? He had the accomplishments. He had taken the most important city in the world. And when it came time to simply accept what he had earned, he just let it go. He didn't do so because he was weak, obviously. He did so because his eyes were fixed on something much higher. He knew that his throne paled in comparison to the importance of the throne of God. So here's what I want to leave you with today. Humility is not weakness. Sometimes saying no to what we deserve is exactly what God would have us do. Duke Godfrey was one of the most feared warriors in the world at the time. And in the most humble way possible, he walked barefoot to the tomb of Jesus in order to give thanks for what Jesus did on the cross at Golgotha. And for some of you, you've been working really, really, really hard to get the crown, to get the recognition, to get the fruits of your labor, to get the respect of the men around you. And you need to ask yourself Is this a crown that God wants you to lay down? Just remember that the things that we do on this earth in service to God will earn us crowns in heaven.

Crowns Laid Down Before God

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And where do those crowns eventually go? So the Apostle John actually answers this question in Revelation 4, starting in verse 9. And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created. So men, before you conquer anything, go to the Lord first. Barefoot, nothing in hand, grateful, and give him the glory.

Final Charge And How To Help

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Thank you for listening to today's episode. Before you go, if you want to help equip other men for the fight, share this podcast around and leave us a five star rating and review. Stay sharp.