No one has greater love than this: that he lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13, TLV

Love that Changes Lives.  This is a difficult one. Jesus is commanding us to love. Not just the warm and fuzzy feeling kind of love, but the love that has feet and hands. The love that — dare we say it — would be willing to sacrifice their life for a friend.

This is My commandment, that you love one another just as I have loved you.  (vs. 12, TLV)

Once a person truly understands their own sin, we can truly appreciate this type of love. But until then, someone willing to sacrifice themselves for us can seem overwhelming and, well, confusing. But here’s the clincher: Yeshua died for to atone for our sins before we truly understood that we had a sinful heart. Before we cared or even thought it might be relevant to our everyday life.

The natural question is, “Would we give the ultimate price for redemption?” Or “Would we give the ultimate price for a friend or stranger?”

Today we celebrate Memorial Day — the day we acknowledge and remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for freedom. For our country.

Most of us have not known the horrors of war. Seen the carnage. Done things they never thought themselves capable of doing. There are stories of bravery that only our Heavenly Father knows, but here is one that touched me:

Horror gripped the heart of the World War I soldier as he saw his lifelong friend fall in battle. Caught in a trench with continuous gunfire whizzing over his head, the soldier asked his lieutenant if he might go out into the “no man’s land” between the trenches to bring his fallen comrade back.

“You can go,” said the lieutenant, “but I don’t think it will be worth it. Your friend is probably dead and you may throw your life away.” The lieutenant’s advice didn’t matter, and the soldier went anyway. Miraculously he managed to reach his friend, hoist him onto his shoulder and bring him back to their company’s trench. As the two of them tumbled in together to the bottom of the trench, the officer checked the wounded soldier, and then looked kindly at his friend.

“I told you it wouldn’t be worth it,” he said. “Your friend is dead and you are mortally wounded.”

“It was worth it, though, sir,” said the soldier.

“What do you mean; worth it?” responded the Lieutenant. “Your friend is dead.”

“Yes, Sir” the private answered. “But it was worth it because when I got to him, he was still alive and I had the satisfaction of hearing him saying, “Jim…, I knew you’d come.”*

You are My friends if you do what I command you.  (vs. 14, TLV)

As we celebrate this holiday, between the grilling and outdoor fun, let’s remember that both redemption and freedom come at a cost. Pushing back evil and maintaining our humanity is more than honorable it is miraculous. Those moments of bravery — any act of bravery — done out of love shine in this dark world.

And for those who have served our country, thank you.

*https://academictips.org/blogs/military-story-true-friend/