Twenty-five years ago today, America was attacked.

2,977 people were murdered by Islamic terrorists in a coordinated attack on our nation. Two hijacked airliners were flown into the World Trade Center in New York City. A third, American Airlines Flight 77, was flown into the Pentagon—the headquarters of our nation’s military. A fourth, United Airlines Flight 93, crashed in Pennsylvania after passengers and crew fought back against the hijackers.

Men and women went to work. Passengers boarded airplanes. Firefighters, police officers, military personnel, and other first responders ran toward danger. Before the morning was over, countless lives had been changed forever.

For 25 years we have called it evil, and we should do no less today.

Christians do not honor the dead by pretending evil is something less than evil. Scripture tells us, “Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good” (Romans 12:9).

And in the face of terrible evil, we saw remarkable good.

Firefighters and police officers climbed the stairs of burning towers while others were coming down. At the Pentagon, where 184 people were killed, military personnel, civilians, and first responders rushed toward fire and destruction to help the wounded. Passengers and crew aboard Flight 93 fought back, preventing the terrorists from reaching Washington. First responders worked until exhaustion. Americans gave blood, opened their churches, cared for grieving families, enlisted in the military, and stepped forward to serve.

In the days that followed, a wounded nation came together with a unity that seems almost unimaginable today.

Tragedy can reveal what is worst in humanity. But it can also call forth courage, sacrifice, duty, compassion, and love of neighbor. On September 11 and in the years that followed, countless Americans rose to the occasion.

So today we remember those who died. We honor those who ran toward the danger. We remember the families who still carry the loss. And we give thanks for those who served our nation in the long years that followed.

We also give thanks for our country. America is not perfect, and it is not our Savior, but it is our home. We can love our country, defend her, honor those who have sacrificed for her, and pray that God would preserve her and turn her heart toward what is good, true, and righteous.

And as Christians, we know something else.

Our confidence is not wishful thinking. It rests in Jesus Christ, who died, rose from the grave, and reigns today. The evil we witnessed on September 11 was real. So was the death and destruction it left behind. But neither evil nor death will have the final word.

Twenty-five years later, we remember. May God comfort those who still grieve, preserve our nation, and give us the courage to hold fast to what is good.

Worth The Cost is a discipleship series from Built On Christ | Mike Sorrell Ministries about following Jesus faithfully, whatever the cost.

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