Day 11
November 11th and other times as well, we remember those who sacrificed everything they had, their time, their strength, their dignity, their very selves, and some, their lives and limbs, for our freedom. May we give them our thanksgiving and reflect on their service.
Then, may we think spiritually of the very Son of God, who came from heavenly beauty, peace, and the very Presence of our Father God, to be born in a smelly stable, scratched by straw in his first bed, to never own a home, to walk rather than ride, to suffer indignity, and ultimately to sacrifice His very life for us on a Roman cross of shame. We cannot, certainly, miss the parallels.
Today’s Scripture: “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13)
Prayer: Lord Jesus, I thank you for giving up everything for me and for those who follow Your teaching. I thank You for coming to this life so that we can know The Father. I thank You for your sacrifice for us, when I know You could have called angels to take You from the horrors of the Cross, yet You loved us enough to suffer, die, and rise again. Thank You for fulfilling Your purpose.
Today I thank others who have blessed us by serving us in this life. They are faint examples of Your sacrifice but we remember them with thanksgiving. In Jesus’ Holy and Redeeming Name. Amen.
Day 11 Scripture references showing sacrificial love:
“For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord, so whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.” (Romans 14: 7-9)
“…we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” (Hebrews 10:10)
“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding Your blood.” Hebrews 12: 2-4)
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.” (John 10:11)
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