RIGHT at the end of the film Saving Private Ryan there is a really powerful scene.

We flash forward 50 years from the second world war (where most of the movie takes place) and see Private Ryan — now an old man, with his family at the Normandy cemetery where Captain John Miller is buried.

Earlier in the film in the days after D-Day we see John Miller and his small band of soldiers saving Ryan’s life.

In the cemetery scene Ryan turns to his wife and asks her, “Have I led a good life … am I a good man?” What Ryan wants to know is whether he has lived a life in response to the sacrifice Miller made to save him.

That scene reminds me of what Paul (one of Jesus’ first followers) says in a letter he wrote to the people in a church in Ephesus. He says, “… I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.” (Ephesians chapter 4 verse 1). Those who are followers of Jesus have been saved by the sacrifice that Jesus made when he laid down his life on the cross. Nothing we can do can earn that salvation that Jesus offers. However what we do in response to that sacrifice says a lot about us. Are we prepared to live a life that is worthy of the sacrifice that Jesus made? What legacy will we leave? What impact we will have on the world? What change will we make? Who will we serve? What sacrifices will we make?

Chris Porter, Senior Minister, Andover Baptist Church