Hernán Cortés was a Spanish conquistador in the 1500s. After some time as a colonist in Cuba, he set sail with the vision of claiming Mexico for Spain, and he conquered the Aztec Empire in the process.
Josh Howard
What’s it like to find Jesus, discover God loves you, and know you can have eternal life with Him?
Jesus said it’s like, “treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field” (Matthew 13:44).
It’s worth everything. It’s so valuable it’s worth giving up every single thing you have to get it.
My guess is there’s a time you knew that; you felt it. You were amazed at who God is, at what Jesus did for you, that He had a place for you and a purpose for you. Because of that moment, you committed your life to Him.
Awesome.
The problem is that there are so many things – fears, seemingly innocent distractions, the pull of sin, the attractiveness of other pursuits – that can cause you to pull back from your commitment to Jesus.
Hernán Cortés was a Spanish conquistador in the 1500s. After some time as a colonist in Cuba, he set sail with the vision of claiming Mexico for Spain, and he conquered the Aztec Empire in the process. The Aztecs were known to be fierce and deadly – no one had even come close to defeating them. Their very name brought fear into the hearts of men and women in the area. They had subjugated tribe after tribe to their dominion.
According to legend, the Aztecs had built a city from pure gold. Diamonds, jewels, and many other amazing treasures could be found in the city as well. Cortés knew it was worth everything and made a commitment to go and take it all for Spain. For him, the reward far outweighed the risk.
When they landed on the shores of Mexico, his men were tired and scared. He was worried when they saw the savagery of the Aztec warriors, they would turn and run back to their boats in retreat. To ensure this didn’t happen, he commanded his leaders, “Go and burn the boats!”
“What? Burn the boats? That’s our only way home!”
I said, “Burn the boats!”
Cortés did not want retreat to be an option. He did not want the comforts of the colonies or Spain to tempt him or his men to run away. He wanted his men to have only two options: conquer or die. He would not allow retreat. In response to Cortés’ command, the leaders burned and sank all their own ships.
The third option – retreat – was now gone. If they wanted to stay alive, they had only one direction they could go: inland – with swords in their hands and victory on their hearts. This extreme commitment was the spark his men needed.
Hernán Cortés and his men conquered the Aztec Empire. They took the land. The Mexico we know today is the result of this man, his army, and their focused commitment.
What is tempting you to give up your commitment to live for Jesus? What tempts you to pull away from total devotion?
What pulls you away from your commitment to Jesus?
In the spirit of Cortés, it’s time to burn our boats, to remove retreat as an option.
In Scripture, Jesus talks about two roads: the narrow one and the wide one. Francis Chan says we’ve created a third road. The middle road of no extreme. You believe in and are for Jesus; you’re just not extreme about it. Jesus called it being “lukewarm.”
What did Jesus say He would do with the lukewarm? Spit them out of His mouth. (Revelation 3:16)
You don’t want that, do you?
Then it’s time to shut down the third road. Destroy it. Tear down any bridge that might lead you away from a full commitment to Jesus. Remove anything that might pull you away or make you retreat.
Burn the boats!
