March, 2001

I received the following story through e-mail today sent by one of our members to her fellowship group. I would like to share it with you. The story is lengthy; therefore, I have to concise it in order to "fit" the page of the newsletter. I’ll try my best to retain its originality.

The story goes like this: Before the pastor gave his Evening Service message, he told the congregation that a guest minister would like to share before he spoke. An elderly man stepped up to the pulpit and began to speak. "A father, his son, and a friend of his son were sailing off the Pacific Coast. A fast approaching storm came and it was impossible for them to return to the coast. Though the father was an experienced sailor, yet he wasn’t able to keep the boat from being capsized by the waves. Grabbing a rescue line, the father had to make the most excruciating decision of his life: to which boy he would throw the other end of the life line? He only had seconds to make the decision. The father knew that his son was a Christian and he also knew that his son’s friend was not. The agony of his decision could not be matched by the torrent of waves. The Father yelled out, ‘I love you, son!’ He threw out the life line to his son’s friend. By the time the father had pulled the friend back to the capsized boat, his son had disappeared beneath the raging swells into the dark of the night. His body was never recovered. The father knew his son would step into eternity with Jesus and he could not bear the thought of his son’s friend stepping into an eternity without Jesus. Therefore, he sacrificed his son to save the son’s friend. How great is the love of God that He should do the same for us. Our heavenly Father sacrificed His only begotten Son that we could be saved. I urge you to accept His offer to rescue you and take a hold of the life line He is throwing out to you in this service." With that, the old man turned and sat back down in his chair. After the service, two teenagers who listened with interest during the service went to the old man. "That was a nice story," one of them said, "but I don’t think it was very realistic for a father to give up his only son’s life in the hope that the other boy would become a Christian." "Well, you’ve got a point there," the old man replied, "its sure isn’t very realistic, is it? But I’m standing here today to tell you that story gives me a glimpse of what it must have been like for God to give up His Son for me. You see—I was that father and your pastor is my son’s friend."

It is unusual to experience what it’s like to give up the one you loved to save another. God doesn’t ask everyone to do the same, yet God does expect us to sacrifice "some" in return for His giving His only Son to us. That’s what Missions is all about. The question remains: What are you willing to give up?

Pastor Larry