Saving Private Me? (Part 1)

“It doesn’t make sense!”

This statement of protest and its variants were repeated many times in the 1998 American war film Saving Private Ryan.

This box-office and critically acclaimed epic movie, “Saving Private Ryan” was set during the invasion of Normandy in World War II.  

In the movie, eight soldiers were sent on a mission to save one soldier: a Private James Francis Ryan, from the hell of the Second World War within enemy territory, and bring him home to his mother.

The order came about when the condolence section of army headquarters learned that Ryan’s mother was about to receive the news that her three sons were all dead within days of each other in the war. The Chief of Staff of the Army, General George Marshall, ordered Private Ryan  found and "get him the hell out of there.”

The mission didn’t make sense to the eight rescuing soldiers. The reason given to them in their seemingly meaningless objective of saving Private Ryan was just to alleviate some of the grief of Ryan’s mother.

“What kind of deal is this? Eight of us for one of him?

Private Jackson: Sir... I have an opinion on this matter.

Captain Miller: Well, by all means, share it with the squad.

Private Jackson: Well, from my way of thinking, sir, this entire mission is a serious misallocation of     valuable military resources.                                                                                          

Private Reiben: You want to explain the math of this to me? I mean, where's the sense in risking the lives of the eight of us to save one guy?

Medic Wade: Reiben, think about the ….mother.

Private Reiben: Hey, Wade, I got a mother, you got a mother, the sarge has got a mother. I'm willing to bet that even the Captain's got a mother. Well, maybe not the Captain, but the rest of us have got mothers.

Even Private Ryan himself didn’t think he deserved the rescue.                                                                                                

Sergeant Horvath: I don't know. Part of me thinks the kid's right. He asks what he's done to deserve this. He wants to stay here, fine. Let's leave him and go home. But then another part of me thinks, what if by some miracle we stay, then actually make it out of here. Someday we might look back on this and decide that saving Private Ryan was the one decent thing we were able to pull out of this whole god-awful … mess. ..

Why does God love us? Why did he have to go through too much trouble to rescue us?  Why did he have to leave his place of bliss and come to where we are in the midst of war? Why did he have to be like us? And why did Jesus have to die?

I often think of the heavens your hands have made, and of the moon and stars you put in place. Then I ask, "Why do you care about us humans? Why are you concerned for us weaklings?” Psalm 8:3-4 CEV

David was such a genius in his writings.

One way of understanding what he was saying in these verses is this: The psalmist tried to illustrate a seemingly nonsense way that God is so preoccupied with us. He seemed to be saying that compared to the moon and the stars we are so insignificant to merit his attention.

 If God were to be selfishly concerned about which ones are giving Him glory, He should be spending more time thinking and dealing with the majestic and reliable Moon and stars which without fail declare His glory every night, not like us frail and unreliable humans who without fail  “disglorify” God every time.

But David in these verses was actually showing that God is receiving and deserving more glory because of His attention to us “weaklings”, the ones who are unable to or will not return Him glory.  God loves the lovable and the unlovable, the sinners and saints, those who love him back and those that turned their back from Him, His embrace belongs to both the son that stayed and the one who left.

God is Love and he loves everyone. He doesn’t discriminate. Matthew 5:43-48,” You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

God wants us to think like he does, to love like he does indiscriminately. Just as our definition of neighbor should include everyone including our enemy, in the same way God’s salvation belongs to everyone. Yes, even you.

The heavens certainly show how glorious God is, every night and every day without resting, they declare His glory in all their wonders .But with his attention towards us, the ones who tainted his glory, He is magnifying himself more.

 “Although the infinite majesty of God shines forth in the heavenly bodies, and justly keeps the eyes of men fixed on the contemplation of it, yet his glory is beheld in a special manner, in the great favor which he bears to men, and in the goodness which he manifests towards them…the design of the Psalmist, which is to enhance, by this comparison, the infinite goodness of God; for it is, indeed, a wonderful thing that the Creator of heaven, whose glory is so surpassingly great as to ravish us with the highest admiration, condescends so far as graciously to take upon him the care of the human race. That the Psalmist makes this contrast may be inferred from the Hebrew word, אנוש, enosh, which we have rendered man, and which expresses the frailty of man rather than any strength or power which he possesses.” Commentary on the Psalms, Vo1, by John Calvin

“David intended this psalm to direct our thinking toward God's greatness and puny man's insignificance. However, that awesome, majestic, glorious God is glorifying Himself in man! He has chosen what the world considers weak and foolish—us—to appreciate and respect His glory, His name.”John W. Ritenbaug

God’s love is for everyone, even you. Even if you think you are a “Private Ryan.”

“Why this is so, why God is this way, why the Father, Son, and Spirit set the fullness of their love and lavish grace upon us and determined such a glorious destiny for us, can only be answered by peering into the mutual love of the Father and Son and Spirit. For in one way or another, the existence of everything, not least of every human being, finds its purpose in the deep and abiding love of the Triune God. That circle of purity and mutual delight and eternal wholeness, is the matrix, the roux, of all divine thought and activity…Such love, such giving, such excessive philanthropy…and sacrificial care are not unnatural for God…But why the Triune God would turn such giving and care and lavish and determined love upon us is another question. Such an astonishing act is consistent, perfectly consistent with the being of God as Trinity, but it is not necessary; there is no compelling reason that it should be directed toward us. Before such love, we can only stand amazed, astonished and thrilled. Christian faith begins with such astonishment.” C. Baxter Kruger, Jesus and the undoing of Adam p19

You have been chosen by God to come home. To rest from all the fighting in and around you.

So to the question, “Why Me?” we answer ,’Why not?”

“Head Over Heels in Love"

“How do I love thee? Let me count the ways”

So begins a famous love poem by Elizabeth Browning, a favorite of romantics around the world.

“I love thee with the breath, smiles, tears, of all my life! --- And, if God choose,

I shall but love thee better after death.”

Has anyone ever loved or is loving you like that?

Definitely! We do have a lover not only far more poetic but also loves us with an overwhelming love.

Throughout the scripture God depicts himself as our ardor suitor….our persistent lover.

Beloved,

My love for you began even before you were conceived.

 I loved being with you. If you fly to the highest heaven or dive into the deepest sea, I’ll be holding hands with you. I take great delight in watching the moment you lay down to sleep and greet you with a smile when you awaken.

What your mind is thinking and what your tongue’s about to say, preoccupies my thoughts.

You’re always in my mind.

And if you’ll try to count my thoughts about you it will outnumber the grain of sands on the beach. How can I take you out of my mind when your name is written on the palms of my hands?

I love singing with you when you’re rejoicing, and quietly stay by your side when you’re sad. My loving embrace protects you from harm.

My love reaches to the heavens; my faithfulness to the skies. You cannot measure the height and depth, the length and width of my love for you.

I love you with an everlasting love.^*

It almost sounds like blasphemy, seems so absurd, may be at the very least shameful to describe God’s affectionate embrace of us the way it is described above. But those are taken from the scripture. How could the ruler of the universe be so enamored with clay creatures like us in that manner?

Why do You care about us humans? Why are you concerned for us weaklings? Psalm 8:4 CEV

Scripture after scripture, story after story it is so dumbfounding to realize how much God loves us.

“Jerusalem…When you were born, no one cut you loose from your mother or washed your body. No one rubbed your skin with salt and olive oil, and wrapped you in warm blankets. Not one person loved you enough to do any of these things, and no one even felt sorry for you… Then I solemnly promised that you would belong to me and that I, the LORD God, would take care of you. I washed the blood off you and rubbed your skin with olive oil. I gave you the finest clothes and the most expensive robes, as well as sandals made from the best leather. I gave you bracelets, a necklace, a ring for your nose, some earrings, and a beautiful crown. Your jewelry was gold and silver and your clothes were made of only the finest material and embroidered linen. Your bread was baked from fine flour, and you ate honey and olive oil. You were as beautiful as a queen, and everyone on earth knew it. I, the LORD God, had helped you become a lovely young woman.” Ezekiel 16:1-13.

Tell me whose woman in the world won’t fall in love with a man who’ll do these things to her.

Yet, after all this… we still broke his heart. We all chose anything and anyone over him.

Starting from Adam, the predeluvian people, the post flood nations, the people of Israel and up to all the people of our days, none ever reciprocated his love; no one was ever faithful to him.

“Not one of them understands, or even searches for God. They have all turned away “Romans 3:11-12

But this didn’t stop Him from loving us. His plan to pursue us will not be stopped.

For I know the plans I have for you…plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11).

Starting form Adam, the predeluvian people, the post flood nations, the people of Israel and up to every single one of us, He remained faithful. His love never wavered.

He took the step to adjust to our situation; to fix any compatibility issues, to save our relationship.

“Don’t be afraid or ashamed and don’t be discouraged. You won’t be disappointed. Forget how sinful you were when you were young. The Lord…he is your husband and he will rescue you. You were like a young wife, brokenhearted and crying because her husband had divorced her…I am taking you back…with love and tenderness I will embrace you again…and love you forever.” Isaiah 54:4-8 CEV

Whatever it took; anything that was necessary, even to the point of death he was willing to do and he did.

“But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.” (Titus 3:4-5)

This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is Love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4:9-10)

People argue how much love-ratio should couples invest in their relationships.

Some says 50/50. Others insist 100/100. And certainly not 0/0.

Yet God gave everything even when we gave nothing at all.

 *Psalm 139:1,3,15, 17 34:18 Romans 8:31-32; Jeremiah 1:4-5;Isaiah 49:15:16;Zephaniah 3:17;Jeremiah 31:3;Isaiah 41:13 Adaptation and Paraphrase mine

The Prodigal Gospel

If you were asked to describe the Gospel in one word what word would you use?

Amazing! Perhaps?

That’s the way, at least, how John Newton who wrote the hymn, “Amazing Grace” described his encounter with the love of God.

Or maybe you’ll use the word Scandalous.

This is what some modern authors use to describe their impressions of how God showers His mercy: indiscriminate, seemingly random, totally without regards to human standards of honoring the first, the rich, the religious, the king, those who worked longer or harder  or even the faithful son.

Cool! Awesome!Rocks!Maybe used by kids today.

Someone even used the word really, as in Really Good News.

Of course we can use the word “life-changing” (that’s one word right?)

Power. Revolutionary. Dangerous.

Rest. Comforting. Inspiring.

Each one depending on the circumstances surrounding their first or life encounter with the gospel will use a different word.

And of course who will forget the word Love.

But I would use one more word, a word that has received a negative connotation.

So negative that believers don't want to be branded with it.

The word is Prodigal.

Prodigal is defined by any typical dictionaries as rashly or wastefully extravagant, given in abundance, lavish or profuse, recklessly spendthrift, extremely generous.

Prodigal, I would argue, leaves a bad taste because of its association with the wayward son in The Parable of the Prodigal Son. Maybe even perhaps because of the economic situations of so many people in the world throughout history.

Rightly so the word is branded negative from the story of the lost son who took his inheritance and wastefully spent it, “squandered his wealth in wild living (NIV)” with anything he thought will make him happy. Thus, the word prodigal was associated not only with wastefulness or irresponsible decisions but also with wild living and disobedience to God.

The economic reality of life made being thrifty, being careful with your OWN resources and thinking of your OWN  needs first as non-negotiable values. Wastefulness, irresponsible spending or not saving up for your OWN future first is looked down as simply stupid.

Nowadays some would use it even casually to mean someone who left home or disassociate himself from a group.

In this blog, we will capture the value of the word Prodigal as God lives it and as we believers should live it.

After all isn’t the Gospel a Prodigal Gospel?