Forrest Gump with Tom Hanks
Last Holliday with Queen Latifa
As Good as it Gets with Jack Nicholson
To name a few
Until recently I had never really given much thought to why I love these movies so much. Lately, I have come to realize that, at their heart, these movies are about redemption.
Redemption
It’s a word that we hear a lot…….but rarely analyse. So……what is redemption? At its core, redemption is when someone gives something and some other person benefits from the gift. In Christianity, it is the self sacrifice of Christ that allows believers to enter paradise. Redemption, in a broader sense, usually means that the person who receives it, is rescued from a bad situation……often a situation of their own making. Furthermore, the redeemed person, grows from the experience, becomes a better person.
We hear the word “saved” a lot…….so much so that it has become a catch phrase. And yet that is the best word that I can find to describe the act of being redeemed.
Saved…….but from what?
When you are redeemed, you are saved from yourself. You are saved from the self destructive behaviors that have become a part of your identity.
How does this work in my favorite movie…..Forrest Gump?
Forrest is not a powerful character. He is not strong. He’s not particularly brave. He is mildly mentally retarded. He can run. Sometimes he knows what he is running from. He rarely knows what he is running to. But……his great strength comes from his greatest weakness. Forrest is simple. He lives his life by following a simple code of behavior. He is intensely loyal to his friends. He loves his family. He tells the truth. He follows through on what he says he will do. He does all of this without ever asking “How will this get me ahead?” He adheres to his code and lets the chips fall where they may.
The result is that broken people who come into contact with him are healed from their brokenness. Lieutenant Dan and Jenny. They are saved…….from themselves. They grow into strong righteous loving people. Perhaps they grow into people who can in turn redeem others.
There is a line in “As Good as it Gets”. Jack Nicholson says to his costar, a kind and generous woman. “You make me want to be a better man”.
I think that redemption is something like that. One person lives a kind generous life, guided by a strong moral code…….in a word “Christlike”. That person interacts with those close to them in such a fashion that it changes them…….makes them want to be a better person. And so on and so on.
We tend to focus on redemption from the perspective of the person being redeemed. We tend to dwell on our own redemption. There is nothing wrong with this perspective……we should be grateful. But there is another perspective.
I’d like for us all to consider the possibility that we can also be the redeemer. This is very much the heart of Christianity.
How?
Live your life by following a strong moral code. You can start with:
Love God
Love your neighbor
Interact with your fellow man in such a way that they will see the joy and peace in your life and will want that joy and peace in their life……..so that they will want to be a better person.
If Forrest Gump can do it…….so can I.
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.”
God, NIV
“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
Jesus, NIV
Jesus, NIV
Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us.
Paul, NIV
Paul, NIV