Earn This

Probably my favorite line in all of moviedom is one from Saving Private Ryan... Captain John Miller (played by Tom Hanks) is fatally wounded trying to blow up a bridge at Ramelle, and with his dying breath, he says two words to Private John Francis Ryan...

"Earn This"

The scene then flashes to Arlington National Cemetery current day, and the now 80-year old John Ryan is standing in front of the grave marker of Captain Miller, tears streaming down his face... he is remembering that day almost 60 years before when those words were burned into his memory forever.

It makes for a nice ending to a great story. And the analogy to what Christ did for us - gave himself for us so we could live - is striking...

But, much like Private Ryan, we can never 'earn' that gift... oh, we can try to live a life worthy of the unimaginable free offering at Calvary, and we should! Paul encourages us to do just that in his letter to Ephesians (and again in his Thessalonian letter):

"...I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received..."

... but there is absolutely nothing we could ever do in a million lifetimes to earn that gift. So, if that's your mindset... if you find yourself forever trying to go and do and be something that will finally pay back that debt...

stop

Stop trying to earn salvation. You never will...

What you will do is miss the whole point of His sacrifice...

"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this:

While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

So, instead, do what any person would do when presented with a gift: accept it. Period.

and once you do that, your life will be a wellspring of serving and giving and doing and being just what God designed you to be:

His.

God Bless!