A Day to Remember
September 11, 2001…a date which will live in infamy, to quote President Roosevelt’s speech after the attack on Pearl Harbor. For those of us too young or not yet born to experience that tragedy, our ‘Pearl Harbor’ came on the day we now refer to as “9/11,” the day terrorists flew hijacked planes into the twin towers of New York City.
Most of us were not personally impacted by those attacks on 9/11 so we don’t really think of that day throughout the year, until we’re into September and social media floods us with reminders to ‘never forget.’ Sadly, for families who lost loved ones and for the first responders who survived, the memory of 9/11 might haunt them every day.
These dates, September 11th and December 7th, among others, are days we’ll never forget, whether we remember them once a year or every day that ends in “Y.” There is another day that we tend to only remember once a year in spring…the day our Savior died on the cross. Just as horrific…just as tragic…yet the memory of it comes and goes like the wind, until Easter, and even then, it has to compete with the commercialism of the holiday. But to the believer, this day is EVERYTHING!
Even though Easter came after Christmas, there would be no Christmas if there was no Easter. Had it not been for the resurrection, there’d be no reason to celebrate the birth of Jesus. Had He not fulfilled the prophecies, had He not endured the cross on that fateful Friday, had He not rose from the tomb on that glorious Sunday, His birth would not have as much significance. God could have handled the situation Himself or sent His favorite Son as a divine being to deal with His other wicked children on earth. But no…He had a better plan. In His infinite wisdom, He sent Jesus here as a baby, born of a virgin, to live a sinless human life to change the lives of others. During His short time here on earth, He was charismatic; He drew people to Himself, all the while fulfilling His Father’s purpose.
You know the story and how it ends. Without the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we’d all be dead. We are ALL sinners, even on the best of days, and all of us fall short of His glory. (Romans 3:23) So why is it that THIS day, the day Jesus gave up EVERYTHING so that you and I could live and have an eternal life with Him, we can’t bring ourselves to remember and be forever grateful? THIS is the day that should live, not in infamy, but in the highest honor and esteem, something to be thought of and thankful for every day that ends in “Y.”