Saving Private Ryan
“Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.” 1 Peter 2:16
Dear Friends,
In 1 Peter, the apostle is writing to Christians across the known world who are enjoying the freedom they have through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Though they are persecuted, Peter encourages them to live good and holy lives, and not to use the freedom they have as a cover-up for evil, but to live as servants of God. In this way, even the pagans will glorify God for their good deeds.
If you’ve never seem the movie “Saving Private Ryan,” it’s the story of a squad of WWII GI’s who are sent to find the sole surviving son of a mother of four boys, three of which had all been killed in action. The fourth son is Private Ryan. The mission is to find him and get him home safely to his mother so that she does not need to lose all of her sons in the war.
The squad, commanded by Captain Miller, finds Ryan, but by the end of the story nearly every member of the squad has been killed. Capt. Miller’s dying words to Private Ryan are, “Earn this. Earn it.”
In the closing scene, the now older Private Ryan and his family are visiting the gravesite of Capt. Miller. Ryan looks to his wife with tears in his eyes and asks her, “Am I a good man? Have a led a life worthy of all those other lives?”
The message of 1 Peter and the message of “Saving Private Ryan” are similar. As Christians, we are to live our lives in a manner worthy of the One who died for our sins. As Americans, we are to live our lives in a manner worthy of the men and women who died for this country.
Praise God that Jesus’ dying words were not, “Earn this. Earn it.” We could no more earn the benefits of Christ’s sacrifice than Private Ryan could earn the benefits of Capt. Miller’s sacrifice. But we do owe a duty to both Christ who died to assure our eternal freedom and those veterans who died to assure our earthly freedom.
So today, do not use your freedom as an American as a cover-up for evil, but live as a servant of God.
In Christ,
David
