Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
I enjoyed westerns as a young person in the 1960' and 70's. One of the favorite action scenes was of a covered wagon circled to ward off an attack by "Indians," as Native Americans were once called. Eventually you could hear the distant sound of a bugle signaling that the cavalry was coming to the rescue. This was often just in time to save the day, although occasionally a hero would die saving someone else's life.
I thought of the cavalry coming to the rescue and saving the day recently and because the Easter season was approaching, I immediately connected it to Jesus giving up his life on Calvary to rescue us and save our souls.
When Jesus was hanging on the cross at Calvary, the Jewish leaders taunted him, saying that he could save others, but he couldn't save himself and that if God wanted him saved from death, he would do it (Matthew 27:41-43). The implication was that God wouldn't save him because he wasn't God's son. In reality, God didn't save Jesus because he wanted to save us and the only way he could do that was to let Jesus die. In fact, God delivered him up to death on the cross using the Jewish leaders and then saved him by raising him from the dead (Acts 2:22-24).
Zechariah, John the Baptist's father, stated that Jesus was God's agent to rescue us from our enemies (Luke 1:67-79). Satan is the enemy who holds the power of death against us and Jesus rescued us by giving up his life and being raised from the dead (1 Peter 5:8; Hebrews 2:14, 15; Romans 7:24, 25; Galatians 1:3-5).
Death could not keep Jesus because death is the wages of sin and Jesus had no sin of his own (Romans 6:23; 2 Corinthians 5:21). Consequently, through his death, burial, and resurrection, Jesus could give us eternal life and rescue us from the punishment for sin — the second death, which is actually everlasting torment (1 Thessalonians 1:8-10; 2 Thessalonians 1:5-12; Revelation 20:11-15).
The cavalry's job was to protect the citizens from "hostiles" (Acts 23:27). To be rescued from hostile attacks, early settlers had to circle up their wagons and fight together as a unit until the cavalry arrived.
While we don't know when it will sound, there will eventually be a trumpet signaling Jesus' return to take all the citizens of his kingdom to heaven (Matthew 24:23-31, 36-42; 1 Corinthians 15:51-58; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). To take advantage of eternal life in God's presence, we must participate in Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection, dying to sin and being raised to the new life (1 Peter 2:22-24; Romans 6:3-18; Colossians 1:9-14).
Satan will still assault us as individuals, but he cannot be victorious over the church (Luke 4:13; Matthew 16:15-18; Ephesians 1:22, 23). So, we must work together as the body of Christ to encourage one another in the faith until Jesus comes back (2 Peter 2:4-9; Hebrews 10:22-25; 3:12-14).
Leonard Lauriault is a member of the Church of Christ in Logan. Contact him at