Not long before he was assassinated on Good Friday, April 14, 1865, President Abraham Lincoln sat down in his White House office to attend to some paperwork. Before him was an appeal on behalf of a soldier who had been convicted of desertion – a firing squad offense. During the Civil War, Lincoln had approved 267 death sentences for military crimes, but this day would be different. “Well,” Lincoln said as he wrote out a pardon, “I think the boy can do us more good above ground than under ground.”

And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last.

Mark 15:37

On the first Good Friday, Jesus made much the same decision for you. He ignored all the evidence of your failures…and determined that yours was a life worth saving. Little is known about what became of the deserter and other soldiers whose lives were redeemed by President Lincoln, but surely they greeted each new morning with profound gratitude. What if you lived every day as if you had been pardoned; spent every hour as a gift that could never be repaid?

As you pray today, thank God for His sacrifice and ask Him to help you “do more good” for your loved ones, your friends, and your nation.

Recommended Reading: Romans 8:1-11