Memorial Day – Time for Remembering Ultimate Sacrifices

A protest song in the late ‘60s called “War” asked and then answered: “War – what is it good for? Absolutely nothing.” As idealistic as that sentiment sounds, war seems inevitable. It’s been a tragic fact of the human condition throughout history. Sometimes wars have been waged for conquest; sometimes in defense of a city, region or nation; and sometimes to advance deeply cherished values and principles.

 

We all – at least most of us – wish wars would cease forever. But we also wish money grew on trees. Despite its tragic toll in terms of both lives lost and disabling injuries, history informs us that wars sometimes accomplish good.

 

The United States can cite three prime examples. In the American Revolutionary War, 25,000 lives were lost. But it resulted in the colonies gaining independence from England. The American Civil War tragically cost the lives of more than 620,000 people, but slavery in the U.S. was abolished. And World War II, in which more than U.S. 405,000 service members died, stopped Adolf Hitler and the Nazis, responsible for the extermination of six million Jews.

 

Through the centuries debates have raged over the causes and possible remedies for war, but even the Bible’s Old Testament tells of times when God commanded the Israelites to go to war against hostile, pagan peoples and nations.

 

We’re about to observe another Memorial Day, an occasion not for arguing over what constitutes a “just war” or whether war is ever justified. It’s a time for honoring and remembering the many who died in the wars listed above, along with World War I, the Vietnam and Korean wars, combat in the Middle East, and other conflicts. A significant portion of American history has been written in blood.

 

Pondering His imminent crucifixion, Jesus told His disciples, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). Christ was referring primarily to the great love He had for His followers, not only at that time but also through the centuries since. These words, however, can be used to describe to anyone who sacrifices his or her life on behalf of others.

 

It’s often called “the ultimate sacrifice” for a reason. Concerning Jesus, the old hymn says, “He gave His life, what more could He give? Oh, how He loves you. Oh, how He loves me. Oh, how He loves you and me.” Thinking about those who lost their lives in the American Revolution, Civil War and the world wars, we might wonder how many of them would have used the word ‘love’ as they anticipated the dangers of combat. But most entered those wars trusting they were taking part in a noble cause and believed their own lives were worth the risk.

 

My father served on several major battles during World War II. He survived them but carried the scars – physical and emotional – from the battlefield for the rest of his life. Perhaps you’re among the countless people today who did lose loved ones and friends during one of the 20^th and 21^st century wars, making Memorial Day an especially poignant remembrance.

 

Regardless of one’s feelings toward war, it’s good that we have an annual Memorial Day observance. Many of the freedoms and opportunities we’ve enjoyed were made possible through the heroic sacrifices of so many. They deserve our heartfelt appreciation.

 

From a spiritual standpoint, for followers of Jesus every day should serve as a day of memorial. He asked us to do so. Speaking to His disciples in what we know as “the last supper” during the celebration of Passover, He first took a cup of wine and then the unleavened bread: “And He took the 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’” (Luke 22:19).

 

In the first of his three brief letters in the Bible, the apostle John pointed to this incredible expression of love: “By this we know what love is: Jesus laid down His life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers…. And love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 3:16, 4:10).

 

On Memorial Day we will remember the many who died so that we could experience and enjoy freedom from tyranny. In remembering Jesus’ sacrifice we honor the One of whom we can boldly declare, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery [to sin]” (Galatians 5:1). 

Much-Deserved Observance for America’s Fallen

Memorial Day. What’s this weekend all about anyway? A three-day weekend of getting together with family and friends for barbecues and picnics – hotdogs, hamburgers, potato salad (here in the South, it’s ‘tater salad’), and all the fixin’s? The annual running of the Indianapolis 500? Or if you prefer, NASCAR’s annual 600-mile race? 

 

Those are fun activities for the holiday weekend, but in fact Memorial Day isn’t about any of those. It’s former name, “Decoration Day” (which some folks still use), emphasized it’s an annual observance highlighted by decorating the graves of soldiers fallen in any of the USA’s past wars.

 

A popular song from years ago included the lyrics, “War – what is it good for? Absolutely nothing!” Lots of people would agree. War – conflict between one group and another, or one country and another – is one of the worst aspects of the human condition, and it’s been that way from time immemorial.

 

Unpleasant as it is, we can’t ignore the reality of war. For the warriors and soldiers involved, their loved ones, and those who know little about the ravages of war, it’s good that Memorial Day is observed. Ours is far from a perfect nation, but the freedoms we enjoy, the rights and privileges many other nations don’t offer, were hard-earned – at the cost of many lives. Those who died should be remembered and honored for their noble sacrifices.

 

Those brave individuals who fought and lost their lives in the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam, and on many fronts in the Middle East, deserve our gratitude and recognition. They didn’t choose to die but were willing to pay the price if necessary.

 

My father, thankfully, wasn't among them. He saw battle in the U.S. Army with both infantry and artillery units as a commissioned officer and was wounded twice, as the two Purple Hearts he was awarded attest. But he saw many fellow soldiers who did die. Dad never wanted to talk about what war was like. Most of the memories he brought back from the battlefields weren't pleasant, and he didn’t want not to revisit them. 

 

Since my dad departed from this life early, at the age of 62, I was only 31 and very much immersed in forging a career and building a family. I wish I could have had more time with him, especially to thank him for his service and the scars from war, both physical and psychological, that he carried for most of his adult life.

 

Thinking about the many thousands who died for the freedoms and rights we so often take for granted, I’m reminded of the words Jesus Christ spoke to His closest disciples. He wasn’t talking about war, but what He said resonates just the same. Jesus declared, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:13). 

 

In the most important sense, Jesus was speaking about what He was about to do on the cross, dying to make once-and-for-all atonement for our sins. As Romans 5:8 states, “…God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” That was the very ultimate of ‘ultimate sacrifices.’

 

But when we think about it – there being no greater love than laying down one’s life for one’s friends – this is exactly what fallen American heroes through the centuries have done. Whether at Bunker Hill and Cowpens, Bull Run and Gettysburg, Somme and Verdun, Pearl Harbor and Normandy, Inchon and Heartbreak Ridge, Khe Sahn and Hamburger Hill, or the Gulf War, many breathed their last to serve and defend people like us. They need to be remembered.

 

The book of Ecclesiastes, which many Bible scholars believe was written by King Solomon, often presents a rather cynical look at life. For instance, Ecclesiastes 1:11 declares, “There is no remembrance of earlier things; and also of the later things which will occur, there will be for them no remembrance among those who will come later still.” Let this never be true for what Memorial Day represents. 

Lest We Forget, It’s Another Memorial Day

Recently I received a fund appeal letter about the National World War II Museum in New Orleans. I didn’t know there was such a thing. But the correspondence touched something deep inside since my father served in that war, both in Europe and North Africa. He was wounded twice in combat, receiving two Purple Hearts, a Bronze Star and other commendations.

My dad never spoke of his wartime memories – most veterans don’t. Contrary to what old war movies portrayed, emphasizing the camaraderie of fighting alongside fellow soldiers, war is a terrifying experience most wish they could forget. I remember Dad occasionally would wake up screaming due to nightmares in which battlefield images had resurfaced.

 

I never served in the military but have often said my father’s 22 years in the Army were enough time for us both. So, each Memorial Day I reflect not only on his service but also on the millions who have served and defended our nation, our Constitution, and our way of life through the centuries.

 

War has been a tragic constant throughout human history, and our nation was born at war. The Revolutionary War was the first of many wars in which the United States would engage. It was succeeded by the War of 1812, the Civil War, the Mexican-American War, the Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and now conflicts in the Middle East.  

 

A display at the National Medal of Honor
Museum in Chattanooga, Tenn.

In all, more than 1.3 million people serving the U.S. armed forces have lost their lives in combat, with countless thousands of others suffering serious wounds physically, mentally and emotionally. We owe a huge debt to each of these individuals for what we commonly refer to as “the ultimate sacrifice.”

War is detestable, and most of us wish they all would cease. Sadly, the sinfulness and brokenness of humankind have not allowed that to occur. In Ezekiel 13:10 we read about God condemning false prophets, “Because they lead my people astray, saying, ‘Peace,’ when there is no peace.” Strife, rather than peace, has been universal.

 

The biblical narrative does not whitewash human history, recounting how greed and the lust for power have kept various peoples at war. It does, however, promise a day when all that will end. “Come and see the works of the Lord, the desolations He has brought on the earth. He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth; He breaks the bow and shatters the spear, He burns the shields with fire” (Psalm 46:8-9).

 

Nearing the end of His earthly ministry and just hours from betrayal that culminated in His crucifixion, Jesus Christ told His followers, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). Jesus was primarily making reference to His own impending death, but the principle applies to anyone giving his or her life on behalf of others. This certainly applies to the many we remember on this Memorial Day.

 

Thankfully, my father survived the horrors of the battlefield, but many did not. Let’s pause for a few moments today in gratitude to those who died for the freedoms we now enjoy. Even more, let’s be thankful for the One who said, “I am the good shepherd…I lay down My life for the sheep” (John 10:14). Let us never forget. 

Recognizing the Wartime Dead and the Cause for Which They Died

Today marks a solemn observance, Memorial Day, when our thoughts turn to the men and women who have sacrificed their lives in service to our country. The first national observance, then known as Decoration Day, was held in May 1868. More than 100 years later, Congress declared Memorial Day a federal holiday to be observed the last Monday in May.

 

An American flag flies
proudly in Burlington, VT.

Wars are terrible. We hate them, as we should. But as history has proven time and again, sometimes wars are unavoidable. Why? I believe we find the answer – at least for the U.S.A. – in the final and least-known stanza of the poem by Francis Scott Key that became our National Anthem, the Star-Spangled Banner.

Written by attorney Key during the War of 1812, that concluding verse affirmed what most Americans believed at that time:

Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the Heav’n-rescued land

Praise the Pow’r that hath made and preserved us as a nation.

Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,

And this be our motto – ‘In God Is Our Trust.’

 

As I’ve been reading through a hefty volume called The Founders’ Bible, the complete Bible plus hundreds of articles, commentaries and notes about what the America’s founding fathers truly thought about the Bible and Christianity, I’ve been amazed. George Washington, the first President of the United States, said:

“It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly implore His protection and favor.” 

 

Washington’s successor, John Adams, echoed those sentiments:

“The safety and prosperity of nations ultimately and essentially depend on the protection and the blessings of Almighty God, and the national acknowledgement of this truth is…an indispensable duty which the people owe to Him.”

 

The Founders’ Bible presents hundreds of quotations from dozens more of the founding fathers, including those with names like Thomas Jefferson, John Quincy Adams, Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, John Hancock, and Noah Webster. Contrary to common contemporary belief, the framers of our Declaration of Independence and the Constitution saw no cause for excluding matters of faith and piety from conduct and policies in the public square.

 

So, as we honor and memorialize the self-sacrifices of the countless thousands of men and women who have given their lives on battlefields at home and abroad, we can be assured they did not do so without purpose – or in vain. 

 

Proverbs 14:34 declares, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin condemns any people.” We’re living in an age when virtues of righteousness are sneered at and disparaged. As a consequence, we seem to be reaping the result – sin that condemns any people.

 

As the ancient Israelites were poised to finally enter the Promised Land, which would necessitate doing battle with hostile, pagan nations, Moses gave them this charge:

“See, I have taught you decrees and laws as the Lord my God commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land you are entering to take possession of it. Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, ‘Surely, this great nation is a wise and understanding people.' And what other nation is so great as to have their gods near to them the way the Lord our God is near to us whenever we pray to Him?" (Deuteronomy 4:5-7).

Despite our nation’s spiritual heritage, which was necessarily bathed in bloodshed of noble soldiers, we seem to have forgotten admonitions from our founding fathers and the Scriptures themselves. As we soberly and thankfully remember those who lost their lives in defense of the United States and its underlying principles, may we pray to see a return to the beliefs and practices that make for a nation that is exalted by righteousness. 

Remembering Sacrifices Many of Us Can’t Even Imagine

My father fought on several fronts during World War II, both in Europe and northern Africa. He was wounded twice, for which he received two Purple Hearts, along with a Bronze Star for valor and meritorious service. However, contrary to what theatrical films from the late 1940s and ‘50s seemed to indicate, he didn’t find war a time for forming fond memories. As a friend of mine who served in Vietnam has often said, “John Wayne lied.”

How do I know how my father felt about his military service? First of all, Dad never talked about his wartime experiences. They weren’t things he wanted to spend reminiscing. And second, many times I heard my dad wake up screaming in the middle of the night from some nightmare, probably war-related.

Those days were before the term Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) was created to describe the lingering, devastating effects of taking part in combat. During World War I, they used the term, “shell shock.” “Battle fatigue” was the term utilized during and after the second World War. No matter which term is used, those of us who have never fought in a war can’t begin to understand what it must have been like for those who did.

 

Since 1868, our nation has observed Memorial Day – formerly known as Decoration Day – to honor U.S. military personnel who have died during wartime service. On this federal holiday, many people visit cemeteries and memorials, paying respects and decorating graves to honor and mourn those who gave their lives to protect freedoms and values embraced by our nation.

 

Thankfully, my father wasn’t among those who lost their lives during World War II. I wouldn’t be here if he had. Nonetheless, what he saw, heard and felt in combat left indelible scars on his mind, as has been the case for so many of our veterans who returned home. Some came back with visible physical injuries, but virtually all brought unseen mental and emotional wounds that were slow to heal, if at all.

So, Memorial Day’s a worthy tribute to those who sacrificed their lives on many battlegrounds, from the Civil War onward. Even though most of us wish there was no such thing as war, wishing does not do away with the tragic events that have transpired almost from the start of human history. We dare not forget the high price our valiant soldiers have paid.

 

What if there were a “memorial day” for people in the Bible? We could trace back to Abel, who gave a more acceptable sacrifice of worship to God, only to be killed by his brother, Cain, in a heinous act of sibling rivalry (recounted in Genesis 4:2-16).

 

Many of us know the story of Samson, a very flawed individual whom God gifted with great strength. His weakness for women brought him many consequences. But despite being blinded, Judges 15 tells us he was able to kill many enemy Philistines by destroying their pagan temple – with them inside.

 

Through the centuries, prophets have been killed for faithfully standing up and speaking out for the Lord. In the New Testament we learn that many of Jesus’ closest followers, including John the Baptist, Peter and James, lost their lives for proclaiming Him as the Messiah, the Son of God. Paul once persecuted and participated in the killing of Christians as a zealous Pharisee. He was transformed by a personal encounter with Jesus Christ, became a leader of the early Church, and was executed for the “crime” of preaching salvation grace through faith in Christ alone. 

 

The list could go on, but Christianity does observe one “memorial day,” in which we remember the greatest, most momentous sacrifice of all – the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. We call it Good Friday. As Romans 5:8 declares, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

 

This fulfilled what Jesus had told Nicodemus, a Pharisee and member of the Jewish ruling council: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Elsewhere, He also said, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

 

This Memorial Day we pause to remember the countless thousands who willingly served and gave their lives on battlefields all around the world, hoping to preserve the rights and freedoms we hold dear. But let’s also remember – not just for one day, but every day – the One who died to set us from the penalty of sin and rebellion against God: “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

Time for Remembering, So We Don’t Repeat What We’ve Forgotten

"Those who fail to learn from history are condemned to repeat it,” British statesman Winston Churchill observed back in 1948. The warning remains important today and it’s fitting to keep in mind as we commemorate another Memorial Day, honoring those who have given their lives defending our nation in war. 

 

Some older Americans still remember when it was called “Decoration Day,” because of being a time to honor the war dead by decorating their graves with flowers. Regardless of how we mark this annual observance, it’s important to call to memory the many thousands of lives of men and women who sacrificed through numerous wars so we can still enjoy freedoms we so easily take for granted.

Sadly, there are factions of our society that want to rewrite history, erasing times and events they find distasteful or offensive, and re-envisioning the past as they would like it to be told. In my view this is problematic on many levels, but within the context of this day we should hearken back to Churchill’s immortal words.

 

We all can point to regrettable, even terrible moments in America’s past. Take your pick. But to remove them from remembrance, or whitewash them to reframe them into something they were not, imperils us for repeating these hateful times when humanity was functioning at its darkest.

 

To reinforce this importance, we need look no further than the ancient Israelites, for whom God had performed unimaginable wonders: freeing them from four centuries of slavery in Egypt; parting the Red Sea for them to cross with the Egyptians in hot pursuit; miraculously providing water, then manna and then quail, enough to feed probably more than a million men, women and children for 40 years of wandering. 

 

How could a people forget all of that? And yet, the Scriptures tell us that repeatedly, they did. 

 

Amazingly, it didn’t take the Israelites long to forget how the Lord had blessed them. While still meandering in the wilderness, a consequence of their failure to trust in God’s protective care, Moses admonished them, “Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands…. Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years” (Deuteronomy 8:2-5).

 

Why did Moses issue this warning? Because as he said soon afterward, “Remember this and never forget how you provoked the Lord your God to anger in the desert. From the day you left Egypt until you arrived here, you have been rebellious against the Lord” (Deuteronomy 9:7). We find many similar admonitions by various prophets throughout the Old Testament. 

 

Apparently things didn’t change much even after Jesus Christ’s earthly ministry. How quickly we forget. The apostle Paul had to remind his protégé, Timothy, where to keep his focus as he conducting his own ministry. “Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained…. Keep reminding them of these things” (2 Timothy 2:8-14).

 

It's important never to forget what the Lord has done in each of our lives, leading us to become part of His eternal family. Writing to followers of Christ in the ancient city of Ephesus, Paul offered this reminder as encouragement: “remember…you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ” (Ephesians 2:12-13).

 

And it’s critical to remember how God has guided us through hardships and times of adversity in the past to shore up our faith for facing the uncertain future: “Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering…. So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised” (Hebrews 10:32-36).

 

On Memorial Day, we pause to remember the many who gave their lives on battlefields near and distant so we could be a free people. But for those who call themselves disciples of Jesus, every day is a memorial day for bringing to mind all that He has done for us, what He continues to do, and what He has promised to do in eternity future. We dare not forget.

Freedom From a Slavery We’ve All Experienced

Discourse over the COVID-19 crisis has taken a curious turn in recent weeks with restrictions in place to prevent the spread of the virus being slowly lifted. Suddenly, concern has shifted to personal freedom. Does the government – federal and local – really have the authority to tell people not to go to work, or to engage in their favorite activities, including going to their chosen places of worship?

This flag displayed in historic Charleston,
S.C. honors our nation and all who gave
their lives to defend it.

This is particularly interesting as we observe another Memorial Day, dedicated annually to honor many thousands of Americans who have given their lives in wars through the centuries – all in the name of freedom. And I do hope that we all take some time to remember them and appreciate the fact that if it weren’t for them, we’d likely be living in some form of tyranny. They knew – and paid – the high cost of freedom.

Through the centuries, freedom has been at the forefront of the battlefield campaigns, seeking to ensure that citizens of the United States would be free to think and say and do whatever they wish. Blood shed both here and abroad, we recall on this national holiday, should not have been shed in vain.

We’ve become spoiled, but since the days of the Constitution’s writing, it’s become a basic American tradition to enjoy life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Now, unfortunately, many of us take this for granted. When something arises to impede that pursuit, whether a pandemic, government edicts or anything else, we tend to get annoyed – or worse.

Perhaps this a lesson to be learned from the pandemic. Not to take too lightly the right to jump in the car and go to the mall, earn a living, worship as we choose, or root for our favorite sports teams in real-time action

Often, when the subject of freedom arises, there are those who point to its ugly antithesis, slavery. This will always be a dark chapter in American history. In some ways, its repercussions continue to be felt today. Sadly, even though it’s not widely reported, for many nations around the world slavery remains a reality, an unchanged fact of social norms and customs. Whether slavery ever will be extinguished on a global scale remains to be seen.

But when considering both freedom and slavery, in one real sense, we’ve all been enslaved. At least if we’re to believe what the Bible tells us.

“Jesus replied, ‘Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed’” (John 8:34-36). So there’s bad news and good news. First, the bad news: From the beginning of time, sin has been the greatest slave owner of all. Adam and Eve set the precedent, when they defied one simple command God had given them. Since then, like a gene in our individual DNA, sin has been ensnaring us all and fights hard not to let go.

In a powerful passage, Romans 5-8, the apostle Paul explores this problem in depth. He writes, “just as sin entered the world through the one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned…” (Romans 5:12). There are no exceptions to this dreadful fact.

Then, the apostle begins to unfold the good news, expounding on the importance of Jesus Christ’s death and then, His resurrection: “For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:17).

Later, Paul raises the subject of slavery – to sin. “When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life” (Romans 6:21-22).

The apostle continues to expand on that truth in the succeeding chapters, but it boils down to the reality that apart from Christ, even though it seemed we were “free,” we actually we enslaved to sin, its impulses and desires. Being born again, made new in Christ, however, releases us from sin’s destructive tyranny. As he writes elsewhere, in Galatians 5:1, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.”

So as we pause in remembrance of the brave soldiers who sacrificed their lives so we in America could enjoy the rights and freedoms we have, it would be good to reflect on an even greater sacrifice: Jesus Christ giving His life on the cross to provide the necessary atonement for a debt we could never pay, and offer freedom from sin, the tyrant that cannot be bound by nationality or ethnicity, culture, language or gender. Remember – and never forget.

Remembering Those Who Served – Including the Living

These flags proudly remember the
sacrifices of those who served in battle,
and the many who gave their lives.

Today marks the observance of another Memorial Day, one of the most fitting holidays in the calendar year. War is a horror that has plagued humankind since the start of history, but that shouldn’t detract from our honoring and remembering those who gave their lives so that we could enjoy the freedoms we so readily take for granted.

I believe it should also be a day in which we think of those who may not have lost their lives in combat, but suffered serious injuries, both physical and emotional.

Two friends, both veterans of the Vietnam conflict, have wrestled for many years with a common wartime consequence, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This is a malady that most of us who have never served during wartime cannot fully understand or imagine. Yet its toll on countless thousands has been very real, even debilitating.

Today, my friends are devoting much of their time and energy to assisting others who, like themselves, survived combat physically, but have suffered a grave toll emotionally and mentally. The suicide rate among veterans who have suffered PTSD in combat is alarming; others find themselves homeless, unable to function properly upon returning to civilian life.

My father served in World War II; I remember many nights during my childhood when he would awaken, screaming. He never talked of his wartime experiences, but I know the nightmares were a byproduct of what this twice-wounded, two Purple Heart and one Bronze Star recipient had seen, heard and felt on the battlefields of Europe and Northern Africa. We knew little, if anything, about PTSD back then.

I remember how shamefully Vietnam vets were treated in the late 1960s and early 1970s when they returned home. They had gone to serve their country, doing what they thought was right, even though many at home questioned America’s wisdom in its involvement. Their noble, yet largely unappreciated, service reminded me of something Jesus said to His followers: “Greater love has no man than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends” (John 15:13).

Thousands of U.S. soldiers did just that, lying lifeless on East Asian fields of conflict. Others lay down their normal lives, returning to American soil physically, but shattered just the same, not the people mentally or emotionally they once had been. Even if they didn’t think it in so many words, their sacrificial service was truly an act of love.

But as we commemorate the sacrifices of so many, in far too many wars, I can’t help but think of an even greater sacrifice, that of the Lord Jesus Christ. Going to the cross to die for the sins of mankind, paying an incomprehensible price on our behalf, Jesus epitomized that “greater love.” As Romans 5:8 declares, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

This Memorial Day, please take a few moments to remember those who gave so much for us. And especially think of Jesus, the One who gave more than we could ever imagine – so that we could receive far more than we could ever deserve.

Remembering the Courageous, While Mourning the Cause

Wartime memorials, like this in one of Savannah, Georgia's
squares, give solemn and sad tribute to courageous lives.

With Memorial Day approaching, the counter-culture era soul song of the ‘60s, “War,” came to my mind. Originally sung by the Temptations, and later by other artists, its lyrics not only reflected the thinking of many during that era, but also mirrors our feelings today: “War, what is it good for? Absolutely nothing.”

One of the great, recurring tragedies of human history has been the ever-present reality of war – between nations, cultures, and even within nations. The founding of the United States involved the Revolutionary War, and mortal combat has never been far from our collective thinking. The War Between the States, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam war, and ongoing conflicts in the Middle East have been continual reminders of the horrific devastation of warfare.

As some take this Memorial Day to protest wars of every kind and form, this is our opportunity not to commemorate conflict, but to remember those who nobly and bravely sacrificed their lives to protect and preserve the rights and privileges we enjoy today – and often take for granted. Most of us have family members or friends among them, making this observance particularly poignant.

Many whose time on earth ended abruptly on fields and seas of battle were young men and women, with hopes and dreams still unfulfilled. They fought to protect freedom, values and ideals that were threatened by adversarial forces. The conflicts they engaged in may have been distasteful, but their heroic service should never be forgotten.

War, of course, has hardly been an American invention. The annals of time are punctuated by wars waged throughout the world. Sad as it is, warfare has been a permanent part of the sin-scarred human condition. Reading the Bible, we find numerous accounts of war between peoples – often the Israelites in battle against the Philistines, Babylonians, Hittites, Midianites, Amorites, and all the other “ites.”  

We read of the exploits of good and bad kings like Saul, David, Ahab and Jehoshaphat, as well as great warriors like Abishai, Nimrod, and a fiercely loyal soldier named Uriah the Hittite. While Uriah was in the heat of battle, King David chose to have a dalliance with his wife, Bathsheba. War, as we know, often isn’t the source of the highest virtues.

As we contemplate the horrors of war, and those who gave their lives in defense of their cause, it’s good to remember that our hope should not be placed in military might. As Psalm 20:7 states, “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.” Proverbs 21:31 adds, “The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but victory belongs to the Lord.”

Yes, war might be good for “absolutely nothing,” as the song says. And it’s often difficult to discern whose “side” God is on. But in the battle against evil, not only externally but also within ourselves, our trust must always be in the Lord, not any human arsenal.

As He promises in Isaiah 41:10, "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." On this Memorial Day, it’s important to remember this.