In case you didn’t know, Saturday, November 11, is Veterans Day. I hope that if you have veterans in your family or know of a veteran or veterans who served this country, you will take a moment to say Thank you to them. We are all very much in their debt.
While thinking about the upcoming Veterans Day Holiday, I began to think, as I stated earlier, about what a debt we owe them. From there, my mind went to the spiritual of life.
There are certainly many, many veterans of the fight of faith that you and I owe a huge debt to today. First, let me talk about the veteran to whom we owe the most. His name is Jesus, the Son of the living God. Like all good soldiers, Jesus had to forsake his home to fight the battle of faith. There is, however, one huge difference. He was, is, and always will be the Son of God. So when he left his home, it was heaven with all its splendor. He came down to a sinful world to fight against Satan and all of the forces of evil so that you and I could have eternal life.
As is the case with many natural veterans, the battle Jesus fought cost him his life.
In John 10:18, Jesus himself spoke, saying, “18 No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again…”
Jesus is referred to as the Captain of our Salvation in the New Testament scriptures.
Any good Captain has his soldiers’ well-being at the forefront of his thoughts. Jesus is no different in that regard. As the Captain of our Salvation, he bought eternal life for us, freely, when he went to Calvary and gave his life’s blood for us to pay our sin debt.
When Captains or leaders in the natural military die, they no longer have the capability of taking care of their soldiers left behind. But Jesus is gone to heaven, at the right hand of God the Father, making intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
All good military leaders teach their soldiers the things necessary for survival and make them good soldiers in battle. While Christ was here, he taught his apostles things that would help shape the faith that you and I can now enjoy and things that would be handed down from them all the way to us. We need to defend this faith and pass necessary things of the faith down to generations following us.
In closing, let me say again I hope that everyone will remember our veterans, not only on Veterans Day but every day, and be thankful for the freedom they brought us. Also, let us remember the Captain of our Salvation, our Savior Jesus Christ, every day. Let us be thankful for the freedom that he brought to us.
Ricky Wilborn
Fort Payne, AL
