The following is an excerpt from my book, Interwoven Love, to be published later this year.
In the early 1800s, boxing was a different sport than we know it to be today. It was called pugilism and was much more brutal and violent; fighters didn’t wear gloves and were allowed to grapple as well as strike. There were no weight classes, no maximum number of rounds, no TKOs or decisions made by judges; fights were fought until one of the competitors was unable to continue. One such fight was held in England between John Rutledge and James Sax. Sax outweighed Rutledge by nearly fifty pounds and was far more skilled and experienced.
The fight began with a right hook by Sax that sent Rutledge to the canvas; after the fight, Rutledge told newspaper reporters that the first punch knocked the breath out of him and it felt like every bone he had was rattled. After the first round, Rutledge told his trainer he couldn’t go on, but the trainer convinced him to go out for one more round.
In round two, Rutledge took a terrible beating that broke his nose and cracked several ribs. Rutledge again told his manager he couldn’t continue, but again his trainer convinced him to just fight one more round.
Rounds three, four and five saw Sax knock Rutledge down twice in each round, the battered fighter almost unable to get to his feet after each knockdown. Rutledge argued to not continue each time he came to his corner, but his persistent trainer persuaded him to just fight the next round. This went on for twenty-seven rounds
After twenty-seven rounds of being brutally assaulted, Rutledge came to the end of himself; with broken ribs, a broken nose, jaw and eye socket, he couldn’t continue, and his trainer agreed.
But when the bell rang to begin round twenty-eight, John stood, not to fight but to leave the ring; however, as soon as Rutledge stood, the referee waved his arms and shouted, “This fight is over!”
John and his trainer were both surprised, neither having notified the referee of Rutledge’s inability to continue. At that moment, the referee pointed to the opponent’s corner and shouted, “Mr. Sax is unable to continue! Mr. Rutledge is the winner!”
This is a fictional story with made up characters; a Google search will verify that.
It goes to show that, if we’ll just keep fighting, our enemy will flee, like James 4:7 says. Who knows but that our perseverance will lead us to victory, even when we feel defeated. Never give up.
