Barabbas, An Undeserving Recipient Series

The last scene of the movie pictures Private Ryan as an old man now. He comes to this veteran cemetery to visit the graveside of Captain Miller and he is wondering if he’s earned it. I want to share with you what is said as he tries to convince himself that he’s been worthy of the sacrifice, as he tries to convince himself that he has earned it.

Private Ryan (talking to Captain Miller’s grave): “To be honest with you I wasn’t sure how I’d feel coming back here. Every day I think of what you said to me that day on the bridge. I’ve tried to live my life the best I could. I hope that was enough. I hope that at least in your eyes I earned what all of you have done for me.”.

Mrs. Ryan: “Ed?”

Private Ryan: “Tell me I have led a good life.”

Private Ryan’s wife: “What?”

Private Ryan: “Tell me I’m a good man.”

Titus 3:5 says, “God saved us, not because of any good work that we ourselves have done (not because we’ve earned it), but because of His own mercy He saved us.”.

Every other world religion says, “Earn this!” You have to work for it. You have to be good enough, and if you do enough good things…If you pray five times a day, give alms, fast, take a pilgrimage, use a prayer wheel, don’t eat certain foods, observe the Sabbath or one of the numerous other possibilities…if you do enough good, then maybe…maybe at the end of time when you stand before God, your life will be measured in His scales and maybe…maybe you will have done enough good. Earn this!

Listen to what John Stott writes. He says, “The repeat of promises in The Koran for the forgiveness of a compassionate and merciful Allah are all made to the meritorious whose merits have been weighed in Allah’s scales, whereas the gospel is the good news of mercy to the undeserving. The symbol of the religion of Jesus is the cross not the scales.” Did you get that? The symbol of the religion of Jesus is the cross; it’s not the scales.

Reader’s Digest had an article about a 67-year-old man named Bill who had given over 100 pints of blood. There’s no doubt many people have had their life saved by this man’s kindness. But I was fascinated by Bill’s motivation. Listen to what he says to Reader’s Digest. He says, “When the final whistle blows, and St. Peter asks, ‘What did you do?’ I’ll just say, ‘Well, I gave 100 pints of blood.’ That ought to get me in.”

I don’t know. He might have just been having fun, but if Bill is counting on giving 100 pints of blood to get him to heaven, then Bill is trusting in the wrong blood.

Romans 3:24 explains that we are “justified freely (freely) by His grace through the redemption (through the payment) that came by Christ Jesus.” God presented Him as a sacrifice of atonement, as a substitute through faith in His blood. But maybe Barabbas decided he was going to earn it and pay it back.

Scenario #4: Barabbas Accepted Grace:

One last thing, one last legend, and this is kind of the one I hope is accurate. It describes Barabbas as an undeserving recipient who humbly accepts. I’d like to think that’s the way it happened, you know? That he would’ve stayed to watch this drama play out. I think that had to have been the case. I mean, don’t you think that curiosity would’ve gotten the best of him, wanting to see what this man looked like who was dying on his cross? Maybe he stayed in Jerusalem that day and didn’t run off into the hills and hide. Maybe he fell in with the crowd and he waited to see this man who was dying in his place…