Remember...
Last fall I was out at my property with my chainsaw clearing some large oak trees. I methodically sharpened the chain and tightened it up. I filled it with gas and oil. I had my safety glasses and gloves and ear protection. I mapped out where I wanted to drop the next tree. I grabbed my saw and raised it up, but... I'd forgotten to replace the oil cap and it all gushed out all over my pants.
There are times when we can we be quite forgetful. We forget where we put our keys, what we were supposed to pick up at the grocery store, where we parked. Sometimes we need help in remembering things. Tomorrow is Memorial Day. Many see it just as a 3-day weekend, but for those who've lost someone in service to our country - it means much more. Every American ought to recognize this day in honor of those who gave their lives for our nation.
Because men and women have died for this country, we have the right to gather here today. We have the right to speak God's Word freely. We have the right to pursue peace, prosperity and happiness. Remember to take the time tomorrow to say a 'thank you' to God for all of those who have gone before us.
Because we need something to remind us - we have Memorial Day. God knows exactly how forgetful we can be, so all throughout the Bible - He gave memorials, too. I want to start out by looking all the way back to the book of Genesis; to when God made...
I. A covenant
In Genesis chapter six, we see that God looked down on His creation and saw that mankind had become very evil. Watching the news this last week, we were again vividly reminded of the presence of evil in our world. Back in Genesis, the only one at this early time in history who pleased God, was Noah. He instructed Noah to build an ark because God planned to cover the entire earth with a flood, destroy everything, and just start over.
After Noah built the ark and filled it - God did just what he said He would do, and He flooded the earth. But God protected Noah and his family and all the creatures on the ark - and then we find that God established a memorial. Let's look at what God told Noah, in Genesis 9:11-17 (NIV)...
"I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth." (12) And God said, "This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: (13) I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.
(14) Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, (15) I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. (16) Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth." (17) So God said to Noah, "This is the sign of the covenant I have established between me and all life on the earth."
God made a promise, and as a sign; as a memorial - He gave us...
- The rainbow
Now, while a rainbow is a rather beautiful thing - it's more than just decorative. The rainbow was given for a specific purpose.
It's been suggested, based on scriptural accounts, that before this event, before the flood - there possibly was no such thing as a rainbow. It may not have been until after the flood that God allowed the weather conditions to be just right to create the phenomenon we now know as a rainbow. - Or it could have been that God simply gave the rainbow a new significance - either is possible since God can do anything He wants. - But the reality was - the rainbow was now a memorial; a visual reminder of the covenant. The rainbow came with...
- a promise
Before it had any cultural or social meaning of diversity or pride - a rainbow was a sign of a covenant, a promise that God made to all life on earth that He would never again destroy the earth with a flood. It's a visible reminder of God's power and mercy. I find it interesting that God said, "Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember". A rainbow is just as much a memorial for God as it is for us. God can't forget something like that, but wants us to see and know that He won't forget His promise.
God wants us to remember vitally important events. These events shape us and make us who we are. I'd say the event of the flood was a pretty big deal - but more importantly, the promise that a rainbow represents - the promise of God's mercy - that's even more important. So even though others have taken the rainbow for their own purposes - we must remember what its original purpose was! Remember!
Now I'd like for us to jump forward a bit in Biblical history to look at a different memorial...
II. A memorial for Israel
In the book of Joshua, we find the nation of Israel on their journey to the land that God had promised them. In the third chapter, we see that God instructed them to start walking to a place where they had never been. They were to carry the Ark of the Covenant out in front of them and it would lead them where they were supposed to go.
God also told the priests who were carrying the Ark, when they came to the Jordan River, to walk right up to it and to then step into the water. God told them, that as a sign that He was with them - He would stop the water from flowing so that they could cross on dry ground. And that's exactly what happened. God performed a miracle and stopped the entire river from flowing. And it's described that the water piled up 'in a heap' - like there was an invisible dam upstream...! And that's where we come to...
- A pile of stones...
After this incredible miracle, we pick up the story in chapter 4...
Joshua 4:1-7 (NIV)
When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD said to Joshua, (2) "Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe, (3) and tell them to take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan from right where the priests stood and to carry them over with you and put them down at the place where you stay tonight."
(4) So Joshua called together the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one from each tribe, (5) and said to them, "Go over before the ark of the LORD your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, (6) to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, 'What do these stones mean?'
(7) tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever."
We see that God asked the people to build a memorial - a large pile of stones from the river bottom that would remain on the opposite bank. Think about it - once God allowed the water to flow again in the Jordan River, there would've been no visual evidence that a miracle had ever even occurred there. God didn't want His people to forget, so he instructed them to make this pile of twelve large stones, one for each tribe of Israel.
It was a simple memorial, but it was to remind the people who witnessed it - with their own eyes - of the miracle that God had performed. But it also had another purpose... Yes, it was - A pile of stones... - but it was meant...
- to prompt a story
It wasn't just to remind those who saw it, but to prompt them to share that story with their children and the generations that followed. God knows that we have short memories and that even things of amazing significance can be lost in just one generation. God wanted His people to never forget that He was with them so He gave them something tangible - something solid, a large rock pile - to help them remember His power and presence.
Now - if we jump ahead again in history, we see that God continued His practice of making memorials. In the New Testament, we find...
III. A memorial for us
And this memorial is also a visual reminder, but an active, participatory memorial as well. And this memorial is deeper than just a tradition or a ritual. Jesus instituted a memorial that was so much more than that. Let's turn to Luke 22:15-20 (NIV)...
And he said to them, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. (16) For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God." (17) After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, "Take this and divide it among you. (18) For I tell you I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes."
(19) And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me." (20) In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you."
It's in this passage that we see Jesus giving us the memorial of communion. A large part of the reason that Jesus established communion was for us to remember. That's why we offer communion, the bread and the juice, every week - to continually remember Jesus' sacrifice. There are times, however, when we may forget why we do what we do because it becomes 'habit' - we go through the motions, say all the right words, perhaps without really stopping to remember why we do it.
Each week we have a communion meditation; we stop and focus on this special time. But even with all of the emphasis, we can sometimes still get distracted. Sometimes life simply distracts us. We may keep our focus for a while; we may even be completely focused for the few minutes or so it takes to pass the trays - but do we remember to take the meaning of communion with us as we leave here?
We don't just do communion every week out of tradition. We don't do it simply to transition from the music time to the preaching time. Communion has a very important purpose...
- To focus on Jesus
Communion is a living memorial to Jesus and His sacrifice on the cross. That's not something which we're only to remember once a week on Sunday morning. It's something we should carry with us every day. It's a weekly memorial, a reminder, but Sunday is not the only day we're to remember.
Jesus gave His life for us on a cross to pay for our sins so that we could enter into eternity with the Father! He gave up His life to save us from Hell. But reflecting on Christ's life - He gave more than just His life for us. C.S. Lewis explained Jesus' sacrifice for us with an analogy...
"Lying at your feet is your dog. Imagine, for the moment, that your dog and every dog is in deep distress. Some of us love dogs very much. If it would help all the dogs in the world to become like men, would you be willing to become a dog? Would you put down your human nature, leave your loved ones, your job, hobbies, your art and literature and music, and choose instead of the intimate communion with your beloved, the poor substitute of looking into the beloved's face and wagging your tail, unable to smile or speak? Christ by becoming man limited the thing which to Him was the most precious thing in the world; his unhampered, unhindered communion with the Father."
Wow. Imagine all that Jesus gave up just to become a man. He did that in order to save you. That's what we're to remember at Communion time. Paul explained it this way in Philippians 2:5-8 (NIV)...
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: (6) Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, (7) but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. (8) And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death - even death on a cross!
Jesus gave us communion to really stop and remember; to focus on Him. Amazingly enough - just minutes after Jesus introduced this memorial - His disciples lost focus and forgot what they had just experienced. Jesus mentioned that one of them would betray Him. And let's pick up the story back in Luke's Gospel, just a few verses down in Luke 22:23-24 (NIV)...
They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this. (24) Also a dispute arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest.
Jesus had just given them the practice of communion and they started focusing on themselves and who was the greatest. Is it any wonder that we need constant memorials to remember?
So What?
Knowing that even the 12 apostles had trouble focusing on the memorial of Jesus' sacrifice right after it was given, what are you going to do to remember it in your daily life? And going further - what are you going to do because of it?
When Noah saw the rainbow, he was to remember and praise God for His faithfulness. When the Israelites saw the pile of 12 stones, they were to remember and then tell the story of God's power and provision. When Christians partake in the memorial of communion - we are to remember Christ's sacrifice and then follow Him! Remember!
As we saw the tragedy unfold in Texas - the families who are devastated by the loss of their little ones; everyone was clamoring for answers. Politicians were arguing, social media again exploded with opinions and blame... When tragedy occurs and evil rears its head - remember where our hope lies! Answers to evil are not found in politicians and laws and safety plans. All of those absolutely have their place - but our hope must be in God! Remember!
Those who do not know God may scoff at 'thoughts and prayers' - but our prayers to an all powerful God - that is where our answers, our hope lies! Evil has always been present. That's why so many in our nation have died in service to protect us. Tomorrow, let Memorial Day prompt a story - tell your family why religious freedom is important to you and what you will do with that freedom.
God's memorial's are not just for us to intellectually remember - but when we remember, to do something. It's nice to think about Jesus, but we are also called to serve Him.
To sum this all up - think of it this way, what would people say in a memorial service about you? Someday, when you leave this earth - what sort of a legacy will you leave? Will it be easy for others to find good things to say? Will they focus on what things you liked, or hobbies you had - or will they remember you as a servant of Jesus. That's the only memorial worth anything in eternity.
Choose today to do whatever it takes to remember God's promises and then do something about it. Pass on that truth to the next generation!