August 4
“Earn This”
Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. ––John 8:34-36
It’s one of the most intense lines in modern film history, and takes place at the climax of arguably the greatest American war film ever made, Saving Private Ryan. Spoiler alert: Toward the end of the film, after Tom Hanks and his comrades find Private James Ryan, Hanks is mortally wounded. Ryan knows that Hanks and his men risked their lives—and lost comrades—to come save Ryan, whose three other brothers have all been killed in combat.
As Hanks lays dying, he pulls Ryan close and says through gritted teeth, “Earn this.” Two words. Words that haunt James Ryan, who survives the D-Day Campaign, returns home, marries, and raises a family of his own. But he never forgets that day on the bridge in France when Hanks and fellow soldiers sacrificed their lives so Ryan’s mother would not have to suffer the deaths of all four of her sons.
The symbolism here, is thick. “Earn this.” In this world, it seems everything we possess must be earned. Our friends’ respect, our parents’ and spouse’s trust, that promotion at work. However, though Saving Private Ryan—along with Schindler’s List, also from brilliant director Steven Spielberg—is a nearly flawless film, this line always bothered me. Can you imagine a bunch of guys fighting and dying so you could go back home as the single remaining sibling in your family? I mean, that’s intense enough, right? But then, the man who led the mission, who lays there dying in your arms, says, “Earn this.”
As a Jesus follower, I felt the weight of that line. Not as someone who feels guilty, but as a once-doomed man who feels grateful. Unlike James Ryan, we don’t have to earn this thing called salvation. We don’t have to carry the weight of the Cross our entire lives with Jesus whispering in our ear, “Earn this.”
Instead, He says, “Accept this.”
Our life in Christ is a gift, and is never intended to be something we earn. Yes, life is hard, but remember that Jesus promises that His yoke is easy and His burden is light (Matthew 11:30). There’s definitely difficulty, but the burdens are made so much lighter as we ponder the power of His grace and mercy. And those are gifts none of us have to earn.
Lord, help me release any burdens I still hold about “earning this” thing called salvation. Thank You for giving me the greatest gift ever known.