At our last DECODER RING, we witnessed the moving story of fictional boxer Maggie Fitzgerald in Clint Eastwood's Academy Award winning MILLION DOLLAR BABY.
Determination and drive brought Maggie out of her poor upbringings. Persistence led to a reluctant trainer coming aboard. But it is her character that really shines through, transforming the lives of everyone around her. And just as Maggie reaches the height of her prowess... tragedy strikes. It is in her response to this horrific event that the unfortunate agenda behind this film is revealed.
We engaged the true, hidden message behind MILLION DOLLAR BABY: the controversy surrounding Assisted Suicide, also referred to as Euthanasia. This is one of the toughest subjects to tackle, because there are so many questions: What about pain and suffering? How do you determine Quality Of Life? And what about a patient's choice? Who ultimately is in charge of a person's life?
In MILLION DOLLAR BABY, we are led down a path that would have us believe there is no other option for a person in this situation. And eventually, this leads to the supposedly compassionate decision to help that person kill themselves.
If we go the way of the world, we will only run into confusion and deceit. So we turned to God's Word, the only light of truth in this dark age, to clarify our response. God has made it abundantly clear in the scriptures that we belong to Him:
who is in you, whom you have received from God?
Therefore honor God with your body.
1 CORINTHIANS 6:19-20
"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life,
what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear.
Is not life more important than food,
and the body more important than clothes?
Look at the birds of the air;
they do not sow or reap or store away in barns,
and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.
Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
MATTHEW 6:25-27
God loves us! And He holds us in the highest regard, far above dogs or birds.
Ultimately, Christ paid the price for our sin and brought us into a right relationship with God. This is not some far-off, remote creator, looking down on us as we writhe in pain and suffering. Instead, His suffering proves to us that he understands what we are going through.
For we do not have a high priest who is unable
to sympathize with our weaknesses,
but we have one who has been tempted in every way,
just as we are—yet was without sin.
Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence,
so that we may receive mercy and find grace
HEBREWS 4:15-16
This ultimate sacrifice should move our hearts to minister to those we know who are suffering. If God loved us so much that He sent his son to suffer and die for us, shouldn't our response be to care for others? In fact, James puts it rather bluntly:
What good is it, my brothers,
if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds?
Can such faith save him?
Suppose a brother or sister is without
clothes and daily food.
If one of you says to him,
"Go, I wish you well;
keep warm and well fed,"
but does nothing about his physical needs,
what good is it?
if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
JAMES 2:14-17
As is our tradition and focus, we ended our time by lifting up the cast and crew, especially writer/producer Paul Haggis, in prayer. May God lead all these talented people to Jesus, so they can use their gifts to bring honor and glory to Him.
See you next time at THE DECODER RING.
