Christ Our Captain
In one scene of the miniseries Band of Brothers, Easy Company was making an assault on the town of Foy, which was occupied by the Germans. At this point in the war, they had a captain who was completely incompetent. And he made a decision that resulted in the death of a lot of men under his command.
Easy Company got separated, they stopped advancing, and they were caught in no man’s land. They were like sheep without a shepherd. They were facing enemy fire and being hammered by artillery. Men were dying left and right.
The Major, who was over the entire battalion, was standing off from the battle, watching all of this unfold. He told his best captain to get in there and replace the incompetent guy who was leading his men to slaughter. So the best captain in the battalion grabbed his gun and ran toward the battle. He ran right through enemy fire and connected with Easy Company.
The first thing he did was relieve the other captain of his command. Then he regrouped the men and gave them a new strategy. They continued the assault, and he led them to victory. On that day he became the new captain of Easy Company, and he remained their commanding officer for the rest of the war.
Our first captain was Adam. When he ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he made a decision that resulted in the death of every person under his command. God the Father was up in heaven, watching all of this unfold. And he told his best Captain - his only begotten Son - to get in there and relieve Adam of his command.
The Father sent Jesus into the world to undo everything Adam had done. And through His perfect life, His sacrificial death, and His bodily resurrection, Jesus Christ leads every person under his command to victory.
"For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous" (Romans 5:19).
Jesus Saves
In October 2019, Tyler Moon took part in a 10-mile race in Minneapolis. Wanting to declare his faith openly, Moon decided to put “Jesus Saves” on his race bib hoping to inspire someone in the crowd. Instead, the bib’s message would prove to be eerily prophetic that day.
The 25-year-old had a heart attack and collapsed around mile 8 of the race. About a dozen people rushed to help him, administering CPR and calling an ambulance. Among them, a runner named Jesus Bueno, a certified registered nurse. He was one of the first to reach Moon and to help save his life.
"Jesus Saves” is a popular slogan. We see it on bumper stickers and on signs at athletic events. I often wonder if people who see that phrase really know what it means.
It means that Jesus suffered and died on a cross to save us from our sins. It also means that to be saved we must accept Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior, placing our faith and trust in him alone for our salvation.
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16).
The Heart And Soul of Christmas
I have many happy memories of taking my Mom to Manhattan at Christmas time to look at the department store windows. I will never forget the windows one store had one year. The first window had a scroll which read, "The Smell of Christmas is in the Kitchen." The scene was an old-fashioned kitchen with a black stove and food cooking on it.
The second window was titled, "The Taste of Christmas is in the Dining Room." There was a long table laden with mouth-watering food.
The third window showed a beautiful tree decorated with ornaments and lights, little toys and popcorn strings. The scroll read, "The Color of Christmas is in the Tree."
The fourth window scroll said, "The Sound of Christmas is in the Carols." This scene was a group of animated figures singing Christmas carols.
Then came the store's main entrance. I noticed that, after passing those windows, most people went into the store to do Christmas shopping. However, if you ignored the entrance and kept on going, you would have seen one more window. The scroll in this window proclaimed: "But the Heart and Soul of Christmas is Here!" In this window was a stable with shepherds, wise men, Joseph, Mary, and the baby Jesus lying in a manger.
A lot of people miss the true meaning of Christmas. They get so caught up in the shopping, the food, the decorations, and the gifts, that they fail to see the heart and soul of Christmas: The story of the babe in the manger, of God with us!
"And this will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger" (Luke 2:12).