We just celebrated the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ this past Sunday. I hope you had a great Easter weekend. For most of us, it was more than just chocalate, family and fun. It was a time to consider the great cost that Jesus paid for us.
Above is the "earn this" scene from Saving Private Ryan. An old man now (okay, older), Ryan considers the cost that was paid for his life. His family is with him on this visit to Arlington Cemetery. You can see his wife, children and grand children. They've come to share in his tribute to his fallen friends, his fellow soldiers.
You can watch the clip here (it's a clean clip).
When he says to his wife, "Tell me I'm a good man," it seems that he is actually asking his wife if he is a good man.
He needs to hear that he is.
His wife seems surprised to be asked that. I assume for her, the answer is a resounding yes. But he needs to hear it at that moment, standing in front of the cross which marks his friend's grave. The weight of responsibility he carried to live a good life, to "earn this", because of the sacrifices made for him is immense. I assume it must have motivated him to live as good a life as he was able.
We're going to consider tonight at youth group what it means to carry the weight of Jesus' sacrifice for us. What does that mean to us in our every day life? Should it change the way we live? Let's be honest, do we really feel like we owe our lives to Jesus?
In understanding Jesus' sacrifice we have a bigger, better and more important view of our lives. We're going to find that if we live like we owe it to Jesus to live our best life possible, nothing can stop us.
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