'Hold and Die'

A war hero who faced almost certain death in Vietnam died in his sleep as an old man, the Associated Press reported on Nov. 3, 2008.

Retired Marine Col. John Ripley, who was credited with stopping a column of North Vietnamese tanks by blowing up a pair of bridges during the 1972 Easter Offensive of the Vietnam War, died recently at home at age 69, friends and relatives said.

Ripley’s son, Stephen, said his father was found at his Annapolis, Md., home Saturday after missing a speaking engagement on Friday. His father appeared to have died in his sleep.

The story goes that Ripley and about 600 South Vietnamese were ordered to “hold and die” against 20,000 North Vietnamese soldiers with about 200 tanks.

“I'll never forget that order, ‘Hold and die,’” said Ripley, who figured the only way to stop the enormous force with his small group was to destroy the bridge. “The idea that I would be able to even finish the job before the enemy got me was ludicrous…When you know you're not going to make it, a wonderful thing happens.” He said that the essence of that “wonderful thing” is that your mind is no longer cluttered by worrying about how you’re going to save yourself.

A Virginia native, Colonel Ripley dangled for three hours under a bridge near the South Vietnamese city of Dong Ha to attach 500 pounds of explosives to the span, ultimately destroying it. His action, under fire while going back and forth for materials, is thought to have thwarted an onslaught by 20,000 enemy troops and was the subject of a book, “The Bridge at Dong Ha,” by John Grider Miller.

After reading about Col. Ripley, I thought about the order he received – “Hold and die.” That sounds a bit like Jesus’ words: “Be faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life” (Revelation 2:10).

St. Paul wrote something similar: “…I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award me on that day, and not only to me but to all who have loved his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:7).

Sometimes Christians die for their faith. Someone said that most of us are required only to maintain our faith until we die. We are, however, to have an attitude of “Hold and die.”

Sometimes the “holding” part is hard. The tedium of day-to-day living can “get on our nerves,” to use an old expression. We may be able to envision ourselves dying some kind of heroic death for the Lord more than we can picture enduring day-in, day-out tensions and trials. But a different kind of dying takes place when we rely on the Lord to endure difficulties. As we “hold,” we learn to “die” to “self.”

“Self” involves one’s “flesh.” The Bible sometimes refers to “flesh” as literal human flesh that covers our bones, but spiritually speaking, “flesh” can refer to one’s physical desires and one’s soul (some say the “soul” is generally made up of one’s mind, will and emotions). “Flesh” can refer to “physical and mental desires in opposition to what God wants for us.”

Paul writes in Galatians 5:24: “And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its affections and lusts.”

Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abides alone: but if it die, it brings forth much fruit” (John 12:24).

Jesus also said to his disciples, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it” (Matthew 16:24-25).

When a Christian commits to “hold” and learns to “die to self,” he is free to experience wonderful things that will take place. His mind is no longer cluttered by worrying about how to save his own life, and his heart’s cry becomes “for me to live is Christ.” When that happens, there’s no telling what “strongholds of the Enemy” he may pull down!

St. Paul said, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21).