Today we as
Americans enjoy a tremendous measure of freedom because of the price that has
been paid by so many in the past. All through the history of our country, those
who love freedom have been called on to defend it, often having to pay the
supreme price.
Twelve years ago,
we had the largest enemy attack on the US
since Pearl Harbor. Actually, the death toll
was even larger than Pearl Harbor. Following
are the events of September 11, 2001, which has simply come to be known as
9/11:
Four commercial
airliners were hijacked. These planes, fully
loaded with fuel, basically became incendiary guided missiles. The
hijackers reportedly took control of these aircraft by using box-cutter
knives to kill flight attendants and at least one pilot or
passenger.
American Airlines Flight 11
crashed into the North
Tower of the World Trade Center (WTC) at 8:46 a.m.
United Airlines Flight 175
crashed into the South
Tower at 9:03 a.m.,
an event covered live by television broadcasters from around the world who
had their cameras trained on the buildings after the earlier crash. Both
towers collapsed within two hours.
American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon at 9:38 a.m.
United Airlines Flight 93
crashed in a field in southwest Pennsylvania just outside of Shanksville,
about 150 miles northwest of Washington, D.C., at 10:03 a.m. Black box recordings revealed that,
after discovering on their phones that planes had been deliberately
crashed into buildings, crew and passengers seized control of the plane
from the hijackers. One of the passengers, Todd
Beamer, had asked for the operator to pray with him before the
passengers attempted to retake the aircraft. After praying, he simply
said, "Let's roll." These brave passengers gave their lives so that others might live.
No one on board
any of the hijacked aircraft survived. There were 2,973 people killed,
including 246 on the four planes, 2,602 in New York City in the towers and on the
ground, and 125 at the Pentagon. Among the fatalities were 343 New York City Fire Department
firefighters, 23 New York City Police Department
officers, and 37 Port Authority Police
officers. Numerous other victims were officially listed as missing, and over
6,000 were injured.
President George
W. Bush addressed the nation and one of his key comments was "Today, our nation saw evil, the very worst of human
nature."
Why do things like this happen? What can we learn from them? We can learn many things, but
following are just three.
1. Evil is real.
Genesis
6:3-8 And the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall
be one hundred and twenty years.” There were
giants on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God
came in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were
the mighty men who were of old,
men of renown. Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of
his heart was only evil
continually. And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was
grieved in His heart. So the Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face
of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am
sorry that I have made them.” But Noah found
grace in the eyes of the Lord (NKJV).
Those who did the dastardly deed of 9/11 were evil. That’s all that can
be said. Satan is behind evil. We have to get past thinking that we are exempt
from evil, pain, and suffering just because we are Americans. Evil is very
real.
2. Death
is real.
Luke 13:1-5 There were present at that season some who
told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their
sacrifices. And Jesus answered and said to them, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they
suffered such things? I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do
you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish” (NKJV).
Did the people who died on 9/11 deserve to die any more than the rest of
us? No. But the reality of their deaths can help us remember that we all must
face death sometime, and we don’t know when.
3. The price of freedom is very high. Many have died
for our freedom.
Revolutionary War (25,324)
Civil War (625,000)
World War I (116,708)
World War II (407,316)
Korean War (36,516)
Vietnam War (58,655)
Gulf War (293)
War on Terror (9,700 – Counting those killed on 9/11 and those killed in Afghanistan and Iraq.)
This is not even a complete listing of all of our
wars, but all of these died so we can enjoy our freedom in this country. However,
we have a far worse problem than not having political freedom. Human beings are
enslaved to sin and are hopelessly lost and unable to do anything about the
problem. Jesus Christ paid a tremendous price so we can be free from sin and
death and enjoy eternal life.
For
He made Him who knew no sin to be
sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians
5:21, NKJV).
And
as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man
be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not
perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His
only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have
everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world
to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved (John 3:14-17, NKJV).
For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures. (1 Corinthians 15:3-4, NKJV).
