Thursday, February 10, 2005
In every war, battles take the names of previously little-known places and propel those places into the history books. In the war in Iraq, Fallujah will be such a place. As a center for insurgent activity and hostage executions, it became a major combat focus for the U. S. military, and like all such places, a spawning ground for heroes. Sgt. Rafael Peralta was one of those heroes. Before Fallujah, he had already built a reputation for putting his Marines' interests ahead of his own. USA Today reported that, as a platoon scout, he actually was not assigned to the assault team that entered an insurgent safe house near Fallujah. His assignment allowed him to avoid that danger, but he asked the squad leader if he could join their assault team. Sgt. Peralta was, in fact, one of the first Marines to enter that house. Rifle fire wounded him in the face, and he fell to the floor. Then an insurgent rolled a fragmentation grenade into the area where Peralta and the others were seeking cover. Then they made a break for the door - which turned out to be locked. They pounded frantically. That was when Sgt. Peralta grabbed the grenade that would, in a moment, threaten the lives of his comrades. He cradled it into his body and took the full force of the explosion. The squad leader later said, "He saved half my fire team."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "No Greater Love."
Those Marines are alive today because of the sacrifice of one man who died so they wouldn't have to. It's just that kind of love, only so much deeper, that has saved the lives of millions of people like you and me for two thousand years. Because on a hill called Skull Hill, God's Son, Jesus, gave His life on a cross and "took the grenade" for every lie we've ever told, every hurt we've ever inflicted, every damaging thing we've ever said, every selfish thing we've ever done, every adulterous thought or action, every time we've ignored God and done what we wanted to do. It's love that demands something from you - a verdict about what you're going to do with Jesus.
In John 10, beginning with verse 10, our word for today from the Word of God, Jesus announced that "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." That's the life we were created for with the love, the peace, the meaning, the fulfillment we've always wanted but never had. And the life Jesus came to bring is life that will never end. But like those Marines about to die, life for us meant death for our Rescuer. Jesus put it this way in John 10: "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep." The Son of God, the Prince of Heaven, the King of all kings hangs on a criminal's cross, suspended there by spikes in His hands and feet, with His life's blood poured out there in front of a jeering crowd for you. Did you get that? For you.
1 John 3:16 puts it this way: "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us." If you want to know how bad your sin is, my sin is, look at what it took to pay for it. If you want to know how much Jesus loves you, look at the price He paid not to lose you. You can be sure that God will never forget what you do with His Son - not after what His Son did for you. Your only hope is to place all your hope in the sacrifice Jesus made for your sin. Without that, you have no hope.
Do you see why what you do with Jesus is such serious stuff? And why it makes no sense to postpone even one more day giving yourself to the man who gave Himself for you? You're playing with eternity. You're playing with the judgment of Almighty God, which Jesus already took for you on the cross.
Today, tell Him you're ready to turn your back on your sin and put your total trust in Him. If you want that, then let me send you my booklet about it called Yours For Life. Because I don't want you to miss what Jesus paid so much to give you. There's so much to gain if you give you to Jesus, and so very much to lose if you don't.