This song was requested for me to review, so I will do it. However, I want to be clear that while I do find this song entertaining, I find it challenging to call it a “Christian” song. Wait! Don’t they play this song all the time on Christian radio stations; why do you find it hard to call it a “Christian” song? Because it never mentions God and it never mentions God’s Gospel message of the great and completed work of Jesus Christ for our salvation through His death and resurrection.
In other words, it does not have the marks of what it takes to be a “Christian” song. However, saying all of that, I will do my best to try to read between the lines of the song. I know that this band, made up of the brothers Joel and Luke Smallbone, is Christian and has written and performed Christian songs. So, although I know that I will have to stretch a bit, I will see if I can make it seem like more of a Christian song, mainly because the song does have a good underlying message.
Now, as far as I can tell, the first recorded time that the phrase “Burn the Ships” was used, was in 1519 AD. It was said by the Spanish Conquistador, Hernán Cortés, who sailed across the ocean and landed with about 600 men in North America. Spain was highly motivated by the tales of cities made from gold in the Aztec Empire and was determined to discover and conquer it.
Spain eventually did conquer the Aztec Empire and claimed the territory that we now call Mexico. But this would be no easy task. The fighting was brutal and disease was rampant. Cortés had men that desired to return home, even if they had to perform a mutiny to steal ships. However, by burning his ships, and therefore sinking them, Cortés sent a very clear message to all his men: “That there is no turning back! You can either fight, or you will die!”
So, why then would the Smallbone brothers use this phrase as the title and main line of their “Christian” song? And why do Christian radio stations play it over and over? The original use of the phrase by Cortés meant certain death for many of his own men, as well as many more Spanish conquistadors and Aztec people alike.
I suppose one way to look at it, is while the Spanish brought a conquering violence to that part of North America, they also brought Catholicism and the preaching of God’s Gospel. I know that sounds oxymoronic and counterproductive, but the Spanish certainly did spread Christianity far and wide, wherever they conquered foreign lands, despite the violence that accompanied it.
But let’s first look at what motivated this song. It was inspired by Luke’s wife, Courtney, who was battling addiction with anti-nausea medication. Courtney couldn’t stop taking the pills, but wanted to, so they checked her into a treatment program. Luke recalled: “I was at home one day and she had a bottle of pills in her hand. I was like, ‘What do you have the bottle of pills for?’ And she said, ‘Luke I need to flush these pills because these pills represent so much guilt and shame in my life. I don’t want to be consumed by my past anymore. I want to move into a new day and to what’s before me.’”
You know, there are lots of addictions out there: drugs, alcohol, tobacco, gambling, pornography, sex, stealing, lying, shopping, technology, social media… I could probably go on and on with this list for a while, but I think you get the point. Some people are more prone to addictive behaviors than others and some people are capable of quitting addictions easier than others.
I do like the message that this song portrays when it comes to addiction. Typically, when someone is battling an addiction, they can only stop it once they have reached the bottom of the pit; when they are at their worst. That is typically when the motivation level is high enough to reach an inflection point; the point at which you change direction.
This is where the phrase “Burn the Ships” could actually come in handy. Like Courtney, to burn her ships, she needed to physically flush the remainder of her pills down the toilet. For her, in conjunction with her treatment program and I’m assuming lots of prayer, flushing her pills was her “no turning back” action. And I think it’s important to remember what Paul wrote: “[God] said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.’” (2 Corinthians 12:9a ESV).
The following phrase in this song reminds me of an early Bible story: “So light a match, leave the past, burn the ships, and don't you look back.”
This phrase reminds me of Lot’s wife in Genesis 19. After Abraham bargained with God to spare Sodom and Gomorrah from His wrath, God sent two angels to rescue Lot and his family from the wicked city. So wicked was Sodom, that the entire city wanted to fornicate with the angels. Lot had brought them into his house and pleaded with the people of Sodom to not act so wickedly.
The next morning, the angels seized Lot and his wife and daughters by their hands and took them outside of the city. They were all told: “Do not look back or stop anywhere in the valley.” (v. 17). As God rained sulfur and fire on the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot’s wife looked back and died, because she became a pillar of salt.
The point of this Bible story is: by looking back at the wicked city they had left, Lot’s wife demonstrated that she desired the debauchery of that city over God and she was punished severely for it.
In my opinion, the best verse of this song is: “Don't let it arrest you. This fear, is fear of falling again. And if you need a refuge, I will be right here until the end.”
Now, because I know the Smallbone brothers are Christian artists, I’m going to assume that the “I” in “I will be right here until the end” is speaking of God, and not just Luke, Courtney’s husband. Because God is with us, always. And “if God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31 ESV). So really, if you put your trust in the Lord, there is nothing to fear at all, not even fear itself.
“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10 ESV)
Jesus Christ stepped down from His throne in heaven and was made one of us, to be with us. Out of His abundant, everlasting, unfailing love for each one of us, He stepped into the void sin caused between us and God. He took all our sins onto Himself and bore them on the cross. As He died, our sins died with Him. And as He lay in His tomb on that silent Saturday before Easter morning, it seemed that all hope was lost. But behold! Christ rose from the dead and defeated death itself! He now sits on His throne in heaven, filling all of Creation with His presence as He waits for the time that He will return to judge all the earth.
If you are struggling with any type of addiction, you are not alone. Seek Jesus and His Kingdom above all other things. And reach out to someone and ask for help.
And above all else, remember that God loves you, more than you could possibly imagine; more than He loves Himself. His love for you is evidenced in Jesus’ suffering and death on the cross. There is no sin bigger than God’s love for you. And know that NOTHING can separate you from God’s love!
Soli Deo Gloria!
Philip Frank
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