A Living Memorial

Three Questions for this lesson:

1) Why is it important to “confess” Jesus? (A: Matthew 10:32-33)

2) How do we “confess” Jesus? (A: Romans 10:9-10)

3) What is True a Confession of Jesus as Lord and Savior? (A: James 2:19-26)

2142; ’azkarah – a reminder; specifically remembrance- offering: --memorial.

ASV Matthew 10:32-33

32. Every one therefore who shall confess me before men, him will I also confess before my Father who is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father who is in heaven.

KJV Romans 10:9-10

9. That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

10. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

The term used in both of these passages is the same word homologeo

Pronounced hom-ol-og-eh’-o meaning - to assent, i.e. covenant, acknowledge: --con- (pro-)fess, confession is made, give thanks, promise.

Tomorrow is Memorial Day when we will remember those brave men and women of the Armed Forces, the Fire Departments and Police Departments who have sacrificed so much to buy and preserve our freedom. All over America today sermons are being delivered to praise these brave individuals. People who have served their communities with pride and those who in giving their all, died with Honor. These brave individuals often go into harm’s way to keep our loved ones and us out of harm’s way.

Remembering these individuals and showing our gratitude to them is good and proper. But I want to talk about another memorial a different kind of memorial. I want to talk about a living memorial!

We hear occasionally about the brave soldiers who faced the Japanese Bombs at Pearl Harbor, or the German bullets at Omaha Beach. We hear less frequently now about the brave rescue personal from New York (most of whom perished) who faced the fires created by terrorist. All of us would agree that the sacrifice of any and all of these people was heroic. Yet their life and death are no more and no less tragic than the life and death of the innocent victims of sin. Sin’s hatred created World War I, and World War II and Sept. 11.

KJV James 2:19-26

19. Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.

20. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?

21. Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?

22. Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?

But there is one victim who died also a hero’s death that you will not hear mentioned. There is one victim who is and was the most innocent victim of all these atrocities and many more. His name is Jesus and He unlike another person was the only person completely innocent of any and all sin. All these other brave people sacrificed themselves because of sin. But only Jesus sacrificed himself to save us from sin. And if we can remember these other people and the sacrifice they made then why can’t we remember the greatest sacrifice ever made.

That is and was Christ sacrificing heaven to come to earth and then sacrificing His life to receive our condemnation. We should remember Christ Jesus not once a year or once a week but each and every day of our life. The real truth of confessing Jesus is in the living of your life for him on a Daily basis. That is where the true rubber meets the real road. How do you live your life out in the real world? How do you live your life at work, or at school? If you are not living your life in front of the world so that your life testifies indeed and in word of Jesus then you are a lying hypocrite! It is not how you live your life inside these walls that determines your real testimony. Rather it is how you live your life outside of these walls that says if you really accept, confess, accent, acknowledge, and covenant that Jesus is your savior. If you don’t live your life for him on a daily basis it is not because you can’t but rather that you won’t. And if you don’t live your life confessing Jesus then you won’t be confessed by Jesus, to God as His follower. Put simply your eternal destination is determined by who’s child you are.