Memorial Day
Pastor David
Today on Memorial Day many people will gather to remember and honor the sacrifice that men and women in uniform made to defend our freedoms. Through their actions, they put other people who they didn’t even know before themselves.
And yet, we who are serving the Lord in the United States are even more blessed. Not only do we have the freedoms of this nation provided by those individuals, but we also have an even greater freedom in Christ.
Romans 8:2-4-So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.
Because I belong to Christ and have been made free to the chains of sin and death, the freedom I also have living in the United States is experienced even greater than someone who doesn’t have Christ.
I am not the biggest fan of eating out at a local Mexican place. Their food doesn’t have much flavor because they are missing sour cream (which to my knowledge, costs extra) and of course, their tacos are missing ketchup (and they have no ketchup in the restaurant at all). Because of this I don’t look forward to eating there. Experiencing the freedom of living in the United States is like eating at this taco place without sour cream and ketchup. The tacos aren’t bad, but the tacos really come alive when you add sour cream and ketchup. In the same way, experiencing the freedom of living in the United States is good, but it becomes more alive when you don’t have the burden of sin and death weighing over you, when you don’t have to worry about being thrown into a lion's den when praying in public or private (like Daniel). When you don’t have to worry about being told to stop sharing about Jesus like Peter and John were in Acts 4:18. Or, you don’t have to worry about government forces bursting into your church and arresting everyone (like many of our modern-day brothers and sisters in Christ who live in countries who don’t share the same freedoms we have, like China, Iran, Iraq, North Korea). Because we serve Christ, the freedom we have by living in the United States becomes more alive because we get to exercise that freedom more than someone who isn’t serving Christ. An example of this would be saying you use more freedom when you come to church, worship, pray, read your Bible, tithe, or evangelize than … say an Atheist who only uses his freedom to debate about not believing in God.
So today, pray for those who will be mourning soldiers who have given up their lives defending the United States. Pray that the Lord comforts them and gives them peace. And also pray to God and thank him for sending his son to die on the cross for us, because like the ketchup and sour cream, it makes the things we experience here on earth (like freedom) become more alive.
It says in Ecclesiastes 2:25 "For who can eat or enjoy anything apart from him?"