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Sacrifice
“Once in the end of the world hath He appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself” (Hebrews 9:26).
On October 30th, 1991, a Canadian Armed Forces CC-130 Hercules transport plane left the U.S. Air Force base at Thule, Greenland, flying on an Operation Boxtop supply (of mainly fuel) flight. The aircraft crashed about 30 kilometers short of Canadian Forces Station Alert (which is the world’s most northern settlement), on Ellesmere Island in the high Arctic. Captain John Patrick Couch died while waiting for rescue; 13 people survived the accident. Captain Couch gave some of his Arctic clothing to keep others warm and then worked for hours in the freezing cold to keep still others warm. He then laid down to sleep and never awoke. The news headline later read: “Pilot gave his life for his crew.”
Such a sacrifice reminds us of the great love of the Lord Jesus who gave Himself for us in that great sacrifice. We can say with awe and reverence, “He laid down His life for us” (1 John 3:16). “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13).
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