Heroic Sacrifice

For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. (Romans 5:7 NAS)

Tyler knew he didn't have school the coming Monday because it was a holiday, so he asked his mother if he could stay over at his grandfather's trailer in the suburb of Rochester N.Y. at Penfield. Tyler knew the place very well because he had stayed with his grandfather many times.

At around 4:45 in the early morning on that Monday, an electrical fire broke out and spread quickly while the trailer’s nine occupants slept. Tyler was the first to wake up and he alerted six of his relatives, including two younger children ages 4 and 6, all of whom escaped. He then went back to help his grandfather and disabled uncle. When the firefighters arrived, Tyler's body was found near his uncle, who also perished along with his grandfather.

The heroic deed of 9-year-old Tyler J Doohan was reported in the news in January 2014 by USAToday.com and CNN.com.

Not all of us are likely to willingly die for another, unless that someone is dear to us or is our loved one. The Apostle Paul knew that when he wrote, “For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die.” Thankfully for us, our God is not like man, otherwise all of us would be doom to die in eternity. But God demonstrates His love toward us in that while we were helpless and yet sinners, Christ died for us. He did not send His Son into the world to judge the world but that the world might be saved through Him (Romans 5:6-8; John 3:17).

Are we willing to risk our lives without knowing where we would be in eternity? Are we aware that no matter how noble our intent or heroic we are to even be willing to die for another, without Christ as our Lord and Savior, we would still have to face eternal death?

Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to God the Father except through Him. All things came into being through Him, and without Him nothing came into being that has come into being. But as many as received Jesus and believed in His name, to them God gave the right to become children of God. For in this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world (John 14:6; 1:3, 12; 1 John 2:2; 4:10).

Jesus’ death on the cross was more than just a good deed to save us all. He did it out of love for us, even while we were yet sinners. Although He was in the form of God, He did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, born in the likeness of men. Being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name. This same Jesus is coming back to us in power and glory (Philippians 2:6-9; John 14:28; Mark 13:26; Matthew 24:30). Are we ready when He returns?

Dear Lord, thank You for coming to our rescue when we were lost. We are forever grateful to You for loving us so much that You willingly give up Your all to come in the form of man and die on the cross to save us all. We exalt Your name above every name, for You are the way, the truth, and the life.