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“…but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom, which God predestined before the ages to our glory; the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory;” 1Corinthians 2:7-8
The Man Who Never Was
The annals of war are replete with stories of subterfuge. In WWII there were a number of elaborate schemes designed to fool Hitler about the invasion of Europe. The most exotic ruse of the war took place before the invasion of Italy, the success of which would have enormous impact on the coming invasion of France.
Before the Allies could invade France they had to get a foothold in southern Europe. Germany had been shoved out of North Africa and conventional wisdom said the next step for the Allies would be to land an army in Sicily. Germany knew this as well.
Winston Churchill famously remarked that ‘everyone but a bloody fool would know’ that the objective was Sicily. If the Allies could make the Germans believe that they were going to invade Greece instead of Sicily, significant forces might get diverted thereby insuring success in Sicily.
So, a ruse was concocted. The audacious plan became the basis for a film entitled, ‘The Man Who Never Was’, in 1956.
The idea, thought up by 25 yr. old RAF Flight Lieutenant Charles Cholmondeley and developed by British Intelligence, was to drop a dead body off the coast of Nazi occupied Spain complete with identification papers, photos of a girlfriend, love letters, a London bus ticket and most importantly, a personal letter from Lt. General Archibald Nye.
The chosen courier was a deceased 34-year-old alleged homeless man named Glyndwr Michael who had supposedly been found in an abandoned warehouse (there is controversy about whether he was a homeless person). For this mission, designated Operation Mincemeat, he was given the name Capt. William H.N. Martin.
The letter from General Nye outlined several sensitive topics. One of the topics was Allied plans in the Mediterranean, specifically the invasion of Greece. It described plans to embark troops from Egypt and Libya under the command of General ‘Jumbo’ Wilson for the landing in Greece. It also mentioned a simultaneous landing on Sardinia by forces under the command of General Harold Alexander currently in Tunisia.
The letter was personally written and signed by General Nye. Nye added the finishing touch in the letter saying ‘we stand a very good chance of making the enemy think we are landing in Sicily’.
Next, the British had to make the dead man look as if he had drowned. The plan was to make the Germans think the body had washed up from a plane crash at sea. To make the death look as authentic as possible, the British stored the body in dry ice in a sealed container. As the ice evaporated the lungs filled with liquid.
The body, dressed in Royal Marine battle dress, was found on the shore of Spain near a town called Huelva with the briefcase of papers attached. He had been dropped in the ocean a mile from shore by the submarine HMS Seraph.
Within days, the contents of the briefcase were in German intelligence hands.
Of course, the Germans would want the British to think that the documents had remained secure so as not to tip the British that the Germans were now in on the Allied plans. So, the Germans had the Spanish return the contents just as they had found them. But British intelligence examined the documents and they could tell they had been tampered with.
The plan was working.
A few days later, German reinforcements were moving to Greece, Corsica, and Sardinia over the objection of Italian dictator Mussolini, who still believed the invasion would be in Sicily. Panzer divisions were sent from France and Russia and Germany’s greatest field general Erwin Rommel was sent to Greece to command.
The great deception worked magnificently, so much so that two days after the invasion of Sicily, Hitler refused to budge from Greece, believing the main invasion was still to come.
How did this ruse affect D-Day?
After the invasion of Sicily, Hitler eventually realized he had been duped. Two days after the D-Day invasion of France, Germans confiscated documents from a landing craft on the shore of Normandy. The documents were real, and they detailed inland targets of the Allies.
Hitler refused to believe they were real, convinced it was another ruse and that the main invasion was still to come at Pas de Calais. When the Germans needed the Panzer divisions the most at Normandy, Hitler kept them frozen inland off the northern coast of France.
The invasion of France may well have been saved by the lasting effects of ‘The Man Who Never Was’.
In a way, Jesus played a ‘man who never was’.
Yahweh the Greatest Con Artist
God tricked Satan, plain and simple.
The Jews were looking for a political and military leader which was precisely what God took advantage of. Jesus intentionally allowed and even fostered their belief that He had come to restore the kingdom of God on earth.
Jesus executed his mission flawlessly, gathering and training believing followers while conning Satan and the unbelieving Jews. Turning the entire nation of Israel’s attention on Himself, He was able to keep His true mission cloaked – to be killed.
Jesus drew crowds of thousands in empty areas near tiny towns and villages. There He preached messages of hope laced with fiery, revolutionary rhetoric. “The kingdom of God was coming”, He said repeatedly. He rebuked, chastised and humiliated the reigning authorities, the oppressive religious overlords who bowed to the pagan conquerors from Rome.
And God spoke from heaven and all who were present heard it – “This is My Beloved Son!” This was the One sent to restore the kingdom of God back on earth to where it belongs – in the hands of the Messiah King reigning from Jerusalem! This was the One that would throw off the oppressors!
What was Satan hearing? “The kingdom of God is near”; “The gates of hell will not prevail”; “I saw Satan falling like lightening”; “Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword!”.
John the Baptist called them out, “Who warned you of the wrath to come?”.
Satan heard what the Pharisees and scribes were hearing – declarations of war and vengeance!
The Pharisees were the imagers, the mirrors, of Satan. Jesus called them sons of Satan. How they reacted is how Satan was reacting. Their authority and power were threatened as was Satan’s power and authority as ruler of this domain earth.
The hook was set. Jesus had to die.
He spoke in parables for the ears that could hear. He knew that only a very few were understanding any of what he said. He knew the crowds would turn on him. But he also knew that in the end He would find the few followers that would commit their lives to Him.
The mission was to die. But it was also to lay the foundation for the Church.
He made sure that His disciples knew He was God in the flesh. He trained them how to become fishers of men. He taught them the message of salvation and how to spread it; to love one another and to live for eternity.
He did this all the while provoking Satan with impending overthrow of his reign on earth.
And Yahweh chose the perfect time to insert His Son into the world.
Knowing He would be rejected, He rightfully claimed the throne of David. But it was never His intent to take it at that time. His intent was to be killed.
It was a brilliant plan, laid out in Eden and flawlessly managed all the way to the cross. From the beginning of creation it was determined – Yahweh would restore man and earth back to Himself by sending His Son to die.
And He rose from the dead to seal the victory.
Satan would not have laid a finger on Him had he understood Jesus’ real mission.
Dan Baker
copyright 2017