The tragic loss of Abraham Lincoln 150 years ago today

   150 years ago was the tragedy of President Abraham Lincoln being murdered.  He was shot at Ford’s Theater on Friday April 14th, and he passed away at 7:22am the following day.  In the late fall of 2005, I read Lincoln for the Ages, which I think is great, (minus chapter 49)!  The day after Christmas, I had to go to work at my “temp” job showing model homes.  I was in Brighton, Colorado, sitting in a model home.  No one was visiting, so I read in the quiet home, reaching the conclusion of the book.  Reading the chapter on the death of Lincoln, once I reached 7:22am on April 15th, I cried.  There after a nice Christmas, there in a model home, there in Colorado 140 years after he was killed, I cried, because even though I never even lived in this world at the same time as Lincoln, after reading that book, I love him.
   Scripture teaches people are sinful because of the separation between God and man.  Doing that which is opposed to the will of God is wrong and brings hurt.  There are countless tragedies in history because of sin.  There will be tragedies today in this world because of sin.  And Scripture teaches Jesus is the only hope for people, the One who offers mercy for any person, and the One who will in His time carry out justice by judging all people.  Jesus died as the substitute for the consequence of sins of anyone, which is spiritual death, thus now any person who receives His gift by believing in Jesus will be forgiven of sins and will have eternal life.
   The Bible teaches dying for someone is the greatest act of love.  Jesus died for people, because He loves people.
   When Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd took their wedding vows, Abraham place a ring on her finger which was inscribed: “Love is eternal.”[1]  The teaching of Scripture is that such eternal true love comes from Jesus, the One who loves everyone.
Hunter Irvine

[1] Ralph Newman, ed., Lincoln for the Ages (Garden City, New York: Doubleday and Company, Inc., 1960), 81.