This Week's Harbins Post

One of the most spectacular and magnificent 19th-century military invasions was one that conquered no new lands nor won any great war. You won't find it mentioned in many history books or celebrated by any holiday. Yet, this military expedition and invasion, because of the monumental resources committed and logistics involved, is considered by military historians to be one of the greatest military invasions of all time. It took place in Ethiopia in 1868 and is considered to be as much of a military masterpiece as the Allies' 1944 invasion of France in World War II.

The scenario was this: For four years Emperor Theodore III of Ethiopia had held a group of 53 European captives (30 adults and 23 children), including some missionaries and a British consul, in a remote 9,000-foot-high bastion deep in the interior. By letter, Queen Victoria pleaded in vain with Theodore to release the captives. Finally, after exhausting all diplomatic channels, the government ordered a full-scale military expedition from India to march into Ethiopia, not to conquer the country and make it a British colony, but simply to rescue a tiny band of civilians.

The invasion force included 32,000 men, heavy artillery, and 44 elephants to carry the guns. Provisions included 50,000 tons of beef and pork and 30,000 gallons of rum. Engineers built landing piers, water treatment plants, a railroad and telegraph line to the interior, plus many bridges. All of this to fight one decisive battle, after which the prisoners were released, and everyone packed up and went home. The British expended millions of pounds to rescue only a tiny handful of captives.

Yesterday we looked at a different kind of invasion. Not a military invasion into the heart of a nation to win a battle to free prisoners, but a spiritual invasion into the heart of a man to win a soul for the kingdom of God. Saul of Tarsus was a zealous and violent man intent on stamping the life out of the fledgling church of Jesus Christ. He hated Christians and he hated the Christ whom they served. Yet, it was into the heart of this raging man that grace invaded. We read of this spectacular spiritual invasion in Acts 9:1-18. It's an amazing story of undeserved, unearned grace invading the heart of Christ's enemy to conquer him with the gospel and claim him for God's kingdom.

When grace invades, there's never any doubt regarding the outcome. God accomplished His plans, and when He begins a good work in the heart of a man or woman, He sees it through to completion. But our faulty sense of fairness would have us object to this invasion of grace into the heart of Saul. Saul didn't deserve it. He didn't do anything to merit such mercy. Saul didn't pursue Jesus, he persecuted Jesus. Why on earth would God choose to expend the time and energy to invade this guy's heart?

Well, that's the glorious thing about grace. That's what makes it so amazing. Saul didn't deserve to have his heart invaded by the love of Christ any more than any of us do. Yet, God, in His sovereignty chose to penetrate the hard heart of His enemy Saul and change him forever. God was willing to spend the most precious resource on earth, the blood of Jesus, in order to save Saul of Tarsus.

Certainly it's hard to believe that the British would spend so much money, time, resources, and men to try to save the lives of a few European prisoners in the middle of nowhere. Yet, the decision to save those people and the lengths that the British went to to make it happen makes their actions all the more amazing.

Certainly it's hard to believe that God would spend so much to save the lives of men who are so undeserving. Why would God go to such lengths to invade our hearts with His amazing grace? Saul was so undeserving of such grace, and so are we. And only when we understand and consider how undeserving we really are, will we truly begin to appreciate the lengths God went to and the glorious riches he spent on our behalf in order to invade our hearts and save us for His glory.