Remembering Memorial Day

A U.S. Marine casket team carries the flag covered casket of U.S. Marine Cpl. Sean A. Osterman during a burial service at Arlington Cemetery on January 4, 2011 in Arlington, Virginia. The 21-year-old Osterman, from Princeton, Minnesota, was wounded December 14, 2010 in Afghanistan and died two days later in Landstuhl Medical Center at Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany, according to reports.                       (January 3, 2011 - Source: Mark Wilson/Getty Images North America) 

Tomorrow we will observe Memorial Day, the day which we have set aside to remember the ultimate act of sacrifice made by our men and women in the service of these United States. Originally, this day was known as Decoration Day and was formally established by General Orders No. 11, issued by General John A. Logan, Commander-in-Chief, Grand Army of the Republic, on May 5, 1868.  According to General Orders No. 11,

The 30th day of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village, and hamlet church-yard in the land. In this observance no form of ceremony is prescribed, but posts and comrades will in their own way arrange such fitting services and testimonials of respect as circumstances may permit.

We are organized, comrades, as our regulations tell us, for the purpose among other things, "of preserving and strengthening those kind and fraternal feelings which have bound together the soldiers, sailors, and marines who united to suppress the late rebellion." What can aid more to assure this result than cherishing tenderly the memory of our heroic dead, who made their breasts a barricade between our country and its foes? Their soldier lives were the reveille of freedom to a race in chains, and their deaths the tattoo of rebellious tyranny in arms. We should guard their graves with sacred vigilance. All that the consecrated wealth and taste of the nation can add to their adornment and security is but a fitting tribute to the memory of her slain defenders. Let no wanton foot tread rudely on such hallowed grounds. Let pleasant paths invite the coming and going of reverent visitors and fond mourners. Let no vandalism of avarice or neglect, no ravages of time testify to the present or to the coming generations that we have forgotten as a people the cost of a free and undivided republic.

If other eyes grow dull, other hands slack, and other hearts cold in the solemn trust, ours shall keep it well as long as the light and warmth of life remain to us.

Let us, then, at the time appointed gather around their sacred remains and garland the passionless mounds above them with the choicest flowers of spring-time; let us raise above them the dear old flag they saved from his honor; let us in this solemn presence renew our pledges to aid and assist those whom they have left among us a sacred charge upon a nation's gratitude, the soldier's and sailor's widow and orphan.

National and local observations of Memorial Day have changed a great deal since 1868. Since then these United States have been involved in several great wars and many not so great conflicts. Politicians still gather the last Monday of May, thumping their chests, and hoping to deliver a speech that is as memorable as the one Pericles delivered following the first battles of the Peloponnesian War. In his Funeral Oration, Pericles made the classic statement of the value of a democracy. I regret that very few of the speeches we hear this Memorial Day will concern itself with the high principles of a democracy as practiced in a federal republic such as these United States. Nor will many speak convincingly of the ultimate sacrifice made by our service men and women. Unfortunately, very few of the politicians who will speak tomorrow have ever served in the military. Of the 535 members of the current Congress, only 121 have served in uniform. For most of our Congressional politicians, knowledge of battlefield experiences was acquired second- or third-hand, not personally.

Many speeches will recount individual acts of heroism and selfless sacrifice. This is most appropriate, and we need to be reminded of these accounts. One of the most remarkable facts about the men and women who serve in uniform today is that they are all volunteers and have been since 1973. None are drafted, none are enlisted against their will, not are enlisted to escape jail. Each and every Soldier, Marine, Sailor, Airman, and Coast Guardsman has volunteered to place themselves in harm's way for the sake of their country, their family, and their comrades-in-arms.  The selfless sacrifice of our men and women in uniform did not begin with their actions on the battlefield. The battlefield was their last act of selfless sacrifice. Their sacrifice began when they willingly, without any mental hesitation or purpose of evasion, took the following enlistment oath:

I, (NAME), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.

On Monday, we remember these fine men and women, the best of our nation's youth, for their selflessness and sacrifice. They supported and defended the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. Their actions and sacrifices attest to their bearing true faith and allegiance to the same. They faithfully obeyed the orders of the President of the United States and the orders appointed over them to a degree that those of us who have served have never been asked to give that last final measure of obedience to orders. They selflessly gave themselves so that their brother in arms might live and be victorious. And God helped them.

But, should we remember only our war dead on this Memorial Day? What of the hundreds of men and women who return home physically and mentally scarred by their injuries? What of the servicemen and women who have lost limbs, sometimes both legs or arms, as a result of an IED? What of the young seventeen or eighteen year old Soldier or Marine who suffers nightmares or Post-traumatic Stress Syndrome because of the horrors that they have been exposed to?

I often have opportunity to visit the Naval Medical Center San Diego, more commonly known as Naval Hospital Balboa, and I always see young Marines in wheelchairs because they have lost their legs to an IED. One day, a young Marine walked across the plaza at lunch on his brand new prostheses which replaced his amputated legs. The plaza is made of concrete and while even ground, there were no parallel bars to support him. Everyone who was in the plaza stopped eating their lunch to watch him, and as he completed the 100 feet he needed to, they set aside their lunch for a moment and stood to applaud him. And then he took one more step. God bless the United States Marine Corps and the doctors, nurses, and physical therapists of Naval Medical Center San Diego and those in other military treatment facilities who treat our wounded warriors.

While we remember our war dead and wounded, there is another group that we should remember on this Memorial Day. There are thousands of mothers, fathers, wives, husbands, sweethearts, and children who have suffered the ravages of war every bit as much as the men and women who serve our country. They watched as their sons and daughters assumed their obligation to serve the nation voluntarily. These families gave us their love in the lives of their children. They fully expected that their children would return home and in one piece. But, they also knew the grave risks that their children assumed. And now, many of them grieve. So, in remembering, we should grieve with those who grieve. And we should thank them for their sacrifice. Do you think they consider Memorial Day as the beginning of summer? Or as a day of barbecues?

We must also remember our POWs/MIAs. There are 83,435 unaccounted Soldiers, Marines, Airmen, and Sailors on the Defense Department's rolls, and 1,666 from Vietnam alone. But, there is one POW being held in Afghanistan. The President knows who is holding him. The President knows where he is being held. Former presidents, vice-presidents, and even civil rights leaders can travel to Kosovo and North Korea to free our men and women. The President can track down and kill Al-Qaeda terrorists, including Osama bin Laden. Why then can't the President obtain the safe release and return of Bowe Bergdahl? He should be ashamed, because he shames us and he shames the Bergdahl family. To know your son is alive and unable to be reunited with his family, in the face of all the other covert operations this nation conducts to bring terrorists to their death or justice, is perhaps the cruelest cut of all.

We will always remember Memorial Day as a day to remember our war dead, our war wounded, or our war missing or captured. But, must it always be this way? Are we resigned to the fact that wars will never cease? That there is no hope for humanity? Even if victory is declared in Iraq and Afghanistan, there still looms on the horizons potential conflicts with a nuclear armed Iran and North Korea, an expansive Communist China, a resurgent Russia, and a tottering European Union which could threaten the existence of a NATO alliance. Is peace, true peace and not the absence of war, beyond our reach?

If the we seek to achieve this true and lasting peace by diplomacy, treaty, economic leverage, or military power we will be continuously engaged in wars. War is always the result of sin; it is a condition of man's heart. Failure to understand what God says in his word about war (James 4:1-10) condemns us to engage in war on a continual basis. The only way to a true and lasting peace is if we, as individuals and as a nation, humble ourselves before the Lord and let him exalt us.

The people of God acclaim Jesus Christ as Lord of lords and Kings of kings. We love to recall at Christmas time the words of the prophet Isaiah in chapter 9:1-7:

But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.

The people who walked in darkness
    have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,
    on them has light shone.
You have multiplied the nation;
    you have increased its joy;
they rejoice before you
    as with joy at the harvest,
    as they are glad when they divide the spoil.
For the yoke of his burden,
     and the staff for his shoulder,
    the rod of his oppressor,
    you have broken as on the day of Midian.
For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult
    and every garment rolled in blood
    will be burned as fuel for the fire.
For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
    and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
     Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and of peace
     there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
    to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
    from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.

Jesus is the Prince of Peace we acclaim on December 25th. The government shall be upon his shoulders and there will be no end to the increase of his government and peace, according to the plain reading of Scriptures. We delight in Handel's Messiah, and get our spiritual fix that all can and will be better because Jesus Christ has been declared to be the Son of God with power by his death and resurrection. And then, on December 26th, we promptly relegate him to be a king subservient to our interpretation of  creation and reality. 

Man has always performed an exegetical contortion, similar to bending over backwards until the back of your head touches your heels, by explaining that this passage is merely spiritual and not one to be realized in time and space. Oh, really? 

There is another bit of foolishness running around the church, particularly in Reformed circles, that there are two kingdoms: the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, in which Jesus exercises direct rule over his people in his church according to the Word of God, and the Kingdom of Common Grace, in which Jesus exercises his rule simply through common grace. Therefore, the church, and by intension the people of God, cannot bring the Word of God to bear in the public forums because it is the realm of common grace. Such an argument is similar to taking ill on a vacation far from home, and the attending physician refuses to provide you the treatment which could heal you because you come from the wrong zip code. The one thing, the Word of God, that could heal society's chronic and terminal illness is withheld. This appears, at least to me, to be theological malpractice.

Are we then taking the Lord's name in vain when we petition him in the prayer he taught us when we ask, "Your kingdom come, your will be done in earth as it is in heaven"? Are we then being double-minded when we pray the Lord's prayer?

What nonsense, and Jesus will have nothing to do with it. The words Jesus spoke through his prophet Isaiah and to his disciples are altogether trustworthy and will be realized in time and space, prior to his second coming. Will it take place in my lifetime? No. Will it take place? Yes, but because of no other reason than the Lord himself has said so. It is about time the church and its leaders get their eyes of themselves and their circumstances and return once again to the promises that Jesus has spoken about himself.

The only path to peace lies through the Cross. As individuals we must repent of our sin and turn in faith to the Lord. As a nation, our leaders must repent of their sins and turn in faith to the Lord. As a nation, we must repent of our national sins and turn in faith to the Lord. We must humble ourselves before the Lord. Humbling ourselves in not one of the first national traits one thinks of when on thinks of our nation. After all, we have been the world's superpower for so long, we oversaw the collapse of communism, and we believe that the United States is the last best hope for the world, as so eloquently stated by Secretary of State Colin Powell. We believe a rhetoric which is an illusion, and God sits in the heavens and laughs in derision.

The promise of Scripture is that if we repent and humble ourselves before the Lord, both individually and as a nation, he will exalt us. Then, and only then, will Memorial Day be truly worth remembering.

The Apostle Paul Remembers His Mother

I enjoy cable TV for two reasons. First, being a news "junkie" I can get all the news I want, delivered from any particular point of bias I choose, at any time I want. Second, I love movies, preferably older ones, and there are dozens of channels which will satisfy my interest at any given moment. I like a wide variety of genres, but as of yet I have not been bitten by the zombie, werewolf, or vampire flicks.

There are several movie channels which show the same movie over and over in any given 24 hour period, particularly on weekends or holidays. An interesting, and annoying, feature of these channels is that at the end of the movie, the screen goes to a smaller picture-in-picture mode as the credits begin to roll. The larger picture usually shows the beginning of the same movie that just ended. And the credits roll very fast. If you had an Uncle Louie who worked as a grip on a film you just watched, the movie credits just goes zipping by his name, too fast for you to read and in font to small to be legible. You never have the opportunity to say, "Look, there's Uncle Louie!" I guess the movie channels don't have much regard for Uncle Louie, or any of the other people responsible for the production.

The apostle Paul concludes his letters with greetings and salutations to the church and, often, with a note to certain individuals by name. Some of the greetings are quite lengthy, notably his letters to the Romans and the Colossians, and often serve to commend individuals, but at other times to admonish some. We are often tempted to skim over the closing greetings because Paul is just saying goodbye to his readers. After all, the real meat of Paul's message and theology is in the passages which preceded his final salutations to the people of the church he is addressing. It seems okay to skip over these rather quickly because we won't miss much. What can be of value in these closing verses when compared to the overall majesty of the content and context of the letter? It's a bit like reading the genealogies of the Old Testament. If you stop and think for a minute, when was the last time you reflected upon the significance of the genealogy recorded, say,  in 1 Chronicles 1-9 as part of your private or family devotions?

In my opinion one of the most poignant greetings of Paul is recorded in the closing of his epistle to the Romans. But, if we let it run our eyes and minds over it too quickly, just like the movie credits, we will miss a gem altogether.

"Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord; also his mother, who has been a mother to me as well."

(Romans 16:13 ESV)

Paul sends his greetings to Rufus, chosen in the Lord. Perhaps this is the same Rufus, the son of Simon the Cyrene, who is mentioned in Mark's gospel. In Mark 15:21, the writer records, "And they compelled a passerby, Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross." Maybe. The only thing we can certainly conclude is that Rufus is "chosen in the Lord," as are all believers.

What is more to my point is the greeting written to the mother of Rufus, who ministered to Paul as his mother. Paul is not recognizing this woman as his natural mother, but acknowledging that her service to him was that of a mother to a son. Godet, in his Commentary on Romans puts forth the case:

"The following words: “his mother and mine,” prove that Paul was united to this family by the closest ties—that he had even lived in it. And if we remember that Mark, writing his Gospel at Rome, was pleased to designate Simon of Cyrene, who carried the cross of Jesus, as “the father of Alexander and Rufus ,” we shall be naturally led to hold that this family had removed from Jerusalem to Rome, where Rufus occupied a distinguished place in the church. It was therefore during the years of his youth, when he was studying at Jerusalem, that Paul had lived in the bosom of this family, and had enjoyed the motherly care of Simon's wife."

Whether Godet's point that Paul was united to this family by the closest ties can be proven is not really relevant. What is remarkable is that Paul took the time to acknowledge her service to him. Even more pointedly is that the Holy Spirit, writing through Paul, acknowledged her service.

This is the day on which we remember and express our gratitude to our mothers for their love and care for us. But, there exists a group of women in the church who often go unrecognized. They are mostly among the more mature women of the church (I avoid the words "older" or "elderly" when referring to these women. I invariably always choose the wrong word.). They often form the prayer "backbone" of the church. And they are the ones who often serve as "mother" to the pastors of the congregation.

It appears that in Paul's day, there was a greater, deeper, and more pervasive sense of a family relationship within the church. In the book of Acts we read of how individuals within the church sold their possessions and distributed the proceeds to those who were in need. Today, many churches struggle with God's requirement of tithing. We far too often measure our spiritual maturity by the degree of our doctrinal accuracy and precision, and forget the weightier matters of the law - justice and mercy and faithfulness. We ought to do these things without forgetting the others. Hopefully, Paul's greeting to his mother will serve to remind us that we are one people, bought by the blood of Christ and bound to one another by that blood.

So, to the women who have served Christ so faithfully in their service as mothers to pastors and congregations, thank you. 

"For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do."        (Hebrews 6:10, ESV)

When I Was in Prison...

Charles W. Colson died a short while ago at the age of 80. Mr. Colson was the one-time special counsel to President Nixon, and he served seven months of a one-to-three year sentence in a federal prison for obstruction of justice. He pleaded guilty to the charge because he defamed Daniel Ellsberg during the Pentagon Papers case. Mr. Colson entered his  guilty plea directly contrary to the advice of his legal counsel because, having become a Christian, he was eager to shed off the "old man." Based on his experience in prison, as short as it was, he founded Prison Fellowship which ministers to prison inmates.

My experience with Prison Fellowship began in 1988, about one year after I became a Christian. I was among a group of people associated with Prison Fellowship who were permitted to minister to the inmates of California Department of Corrections Honor Camp, located on the grounds of Soledad State Prison. The inmates had been sentenced to the Honor Camp because they were first-time felons of relatively minor crimes and were considered to be low risk. They often assisted the California Department of Forestry firefighters during the perennial autumn brush fire season. 

The inmates were young, usually less than twenty-five years old, married, and many had not completed high school. Some had been in and out of the state juvenile and foster care system. Most of the inmates had an edginess about them, and several of them recognized that their time in the Honor Camp was their last chance to get their act together. If they were to get into trouble with the law again, it was very possible, and in fact probable, that they would wind up behind the walls of Soledad.

We were permitted into the Honor Camp once a week on Thursday evenings. Since there were four ministry teams, my commitment was to meet with the inmates on the last Thursday of the month. We held our Bible studies in the visitors room of the camp's administration building, using materials provided by Prison Fellowship and supplemented by our own study. The studies were not too difficult to prepare, usually because the two or three inmates who regularly attended were very eager to learn more of the Bible. They had more questions to ask me than I had to discuss with them!

There were two valuable lessons I learned from my time with these men. First, and I am recalling the lesson that one man in particular taught me, was the pouring out of one's heart in prayer. This man would plead with God to deliver him from all of his sinfulness. He freely acknowledged to God the weaknesses of which he was aware existed within himself and would prevail upon God to be conformed more and more to the image of Christ. There was no tacit presumption that God will sanctify him more and more. No, this man actively pursued God to perform that sanctification within him.

The men of the Honor Camp also taught me that time is a valuable commodity to an inmate. It is what they do - time. When they were out fighting fires, they were marking time. When they were cleaning the facilities, they were marking time. Whatever they did, they were marking time. So, if you were late to a study, as I once was, they had no compunction about telling you in no uncertain terms what the value of time was to them. In the Honor Camp, time was never in short supply; there was always too much of it.

My best experience with these men occurred on Thanksgiving evening in 1988. I was attending postgraduate school in Monterey, and my widowed mother and youngest sister (fifteen years-old) were living with me. My wife, however, was living in San Diego, where she was also attending postgraduate school. We saw each other about every six weeks, and I was very eager to be with her for the long Thanksgiving weekend. However, the issue of time kept nagging at me.

At our October study, the inmates mentioned to me that since the next time we personally met as a group would be Thanksgiving, they thought that the study would not be held because, they assumed, I would be home with my family. Their faces lit up when I told them that in fact, Lord willing, I intended to spend Thanksgiving evening with them. The man who admonished me about the value of time to the inmates said, "Well, I guess you learned your lesson." It was the most left-handed thank you I have ever received. And it is one of my most cherished. 

That Thanksgiving evening only three of us met. (Bible studies are sometimes in a tough competition with Thanksgiving Day football!) We read a bit of Scripture, prayed in turn, and repeated this process until it was time to leave. That night we prayed earnestly. We prayed for grace and wisdom; we prayed for each others families; we prayed for safety and holiness; we prayed for the guards. The guards, who would pass through the room quietly every half-an-hour or so, seemed reluctant to break us up in the middle of our prayer time. They were kind enough to allow us an extra twenty minutes beyond our stop time. See, even to the prison guards, time is everything.

And time is everything. A prayer of Moses is recorded in Psalm 90, "So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom." (Psalm 90:12, ESV) I give thanks to God for Chuck Colson and the ministries which he started. Mr. Colson was right. The judicial and prison systems do need reform. While I do not believe in a "social gospel," the meaning of which varies depending upon whom you talk with, I do believe that the Gospel is social. The Gospel has a transforming power over society because it has a transforming power within the men, women, and children of society. It has a transforming power because it is the Word of God.

 

For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?                                                                                                                                      Matthew 25:35-37 (ESV)

I encourage you to examine the ministry of Prison Fellowship and ask yourself if there is a role there that you can fulfill in it. It will be difficult and challenging. It will be an additional scheduling conflict. It will bring you into contact with people whom you would not ordinarily meet. It will push you out of your comfort zone. But, we Christians know that we too were once bound and shackled and lying helpless and hopeless in a dark prison. And then Jesus visited us. The darkness was dispelled and we were plunged into light, the glory of the only begotten Son of God. The chains fell off of us when the Son cried aloud to us, "Come forth!" And we were set free from the guilt, the shame, and the power of sin. We are set free to live unto righteousness.

If Christ so visited us, let us go therefore, in his Name and in his Spirit, to visit those who are not only imprisoned in cells, but who are also imprisoned by their sin. Let us carry that Gospel into the walls of prison so that these men and women may finally be set free.