Grant S. Sisson
Countryside Christian Church, Shreveport, LA
2009-06-28
One of the most profound things I learned in graduate school was taught to me by one of my professors. He is now my Counselor Intern Supervisor, my mentor, and my good friend, Tom Moore. It was really more of a question than a profound fact to puzzle over. On an essay final exam, he asked, “What do you hold sacred?” By “hold sacred” he meant “what is it that means so much to you that you would die for it? What is it in your life that means so much that you simply will not have it any other way?” Once you can answer that question you know the foundation of your value system. It is what you look to as your North Star to navigate your life by. When you come to the end of your life, you will judge yourself by how true you have been to this deepest and most treasured value.
In our world today we are deluged with the thought that we must be tolerant. I believe that we should be tolerant – of people, not of values that are inconsistent with God’s Truth. Many value lives of peace and prosperity – peace meaning being allowed to enjoy our prosperity without interference. But this leaves us with a selfish outlook; what about those in this world who are less fortunate? Do we want to not be bothered by them either? And what of those who have valued peace above all else in history – Neville Chamberlain gave away Europe’s chance to avoid WWII by his policy of appeasement. By valuing peace above freedom he gave away the world’s chance to have peace. Are peace and prosperity values that are to be held above all else? How do we order what’s important in life?
I ran across a Paul Harvey piece that I want to share with you. As we approach the 233rd anniversary of our great nation, I think it a good thing to remember the values that these men sacrificed so valiantly for.
“THEY PAID THE PRICE
Americans, you know the 56 men who signed our Declaration of Independence that first 4th of July--you know they were risking everything, don’t you? Because if they won the war with the British, there would be years of hardship as a struggling nation. If they lost they would face a hangman’s noose. And yet there where it says, "We herewith pledge, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor," they did sign. But did you know that they paid the price?
When Carter Braxton of Virginia signed the Declaration of Independence, he was a wealthy planter and trader. But thereafter he saw his ships swept from the seas and to pay his debts, he lost his home and all of his property. He died in rags…
Thomas McKean of Delaware was so harassed by the enemy that he was forced to move his family five times in five months. He served in Congress without pay, his family in poverty and in hiding.
Vandals looted the properties of Ellery and Clymer and Hall and Gwinnett and Walton and Heyward and Rutledge and Middleton. And Thomas Nelson, Jr. of Virginia raised two million dollars on his own signature to provision our allies, the French fleet. After the War he personally paid back the loans wiping out his entire estate; he was never reimbursed by his government. And in the final battle for Yorktown, he, Nelson, urged General Washington to fire on his, Nelson’s own home, then occupied by Cornwallis. And he died bankrupt. Thomas Nelson, Jr. had pledged his life, his fortune, and his sacred honor…
Thomas Heyward, Jr. was captured when Charleston fell. John Hart was driven from his wife’s bedside while she was dying; their thirteen children fled in all directions for their lives. His fields and gristmill were laid waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves and returned home after the War to find his wife dead, his children gone, and his properties gone. He died a few weeks later of exhaustion and a broken heart…
John Hancock, history remembers best, due to a quirk of fate--that great sweeping signature attesting to his vanity… One of the wealthiest men in New England, he stood outside Boston one terrible night of the War and said, "Burn Boston, though it makes John Hancock a beggar, if the public good requires it." He, too, lived up to the pledge.
Of the 56 signers of the Declaration, few were long to survive. Five were captured by the British and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes--from Rhode Island to Charleston--sacked and looted, occupied by the enemy or burned. Two of them lost their sons in the Army; one had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 died in the War from its hardships or from its more merciful bullets. I don’t know what impression you’d had of these men who met that hot summer in Philadelphia, but I think it’s important this July 4, that we remember this about them: they were not poor men, they were not wild-eyed pirates. These were men of means; these were rich men, most of them, who enjoyed much ease and luxury in personal living. Not hungry men-- prosperous men, wealthy land owners, substantially secure in their prosperity. But they considered liberty [to be] so much more important than security, that they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor. And they fulfilled their pledge--they paid the price, and freedom was born.
Paul Harvey, Good Day.”
SOURCE: Paul Harvey, News and Commentary. July 4, 1974
July 2, 2001. http://www.genealogyforum.rootsweb.com/specials/July4/TheyPaid.htm.
Downloaded from SermonCentral.com 6/27/2009
Freedom was sacred to these men. They had it made by today’s standards – they had money, power, prestige, vast estates, and families – but as important as all of that is, there was something that trumped it all. And they were willing to give up all of their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor because they simply would not have it any other way. They knew that their freedom had a Source – that God had shared with them the Truth that set them free.
Jesus taught about how to prioritize our values. He said many things that were hard to hear, and many refused to hear, and turned away from him. But when Jesus said, “Will you go away too?” Peter’s response cut right to the heart of the matter. He said, “To whom would we go? You have the words of life.” Yes Peter, the Words of Life are often hard to hear. Luke 14:26-27:
26“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. 27And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
That’s probably the hardest passage in Scripture to hear. And we know that Jesus would never want us to hate – as in carry malice toward – any person. So I looked the Scripture up and found that the Greek includes the meaning, “Love less than.” So this is a matter of priorities. While we love our parents, and our wives and children, and even our own lives, we love these less than we love Jesus. Our forefathers loved their wealth, their families, even their own lives, less than they loved freedom. Many quoted the Scripture, “You shall know the Truth, and the Truth shall set you free.” And as we consider the manner in which they prioritized their lives, we find a sweet union in another famous quote; “Give me liberty or give me death.”
In Luke 9:57-62 there are other hard to hear sayings of Jesus.
“57And it cameG1096 to pass, that, as they wentG4198 in the wayG3598, a certainG5100 man saidG2036 unto him, LordG2962, I will followG190 thee whithersoeverG3699-G302 thou goestG565.
58And JesusG2424 saidG2036 unto him, FoxesG258 haveG2192 holesG5454, and birdsG4071 of the airG3772 have nestsG2682; but the SonG5207 of manG444 hathG2192 not whereG4226 to layG2827 his headG2776.” Count the cost. The Christian life, with its priorities, is not cheap.
Our forefathers had somewhere to lay their heads. But when push came to shove, they sacrificed not only their luxuries, but the necessities of life as well. This is what Jesus is saying to this man – you’ve got to be willing to give it all up, to turn away from all you have considered important before in order to follow me.
59And he saidG2036 unto anotherG2087, FollowG190 me. But he saidG2036, LordG2962, sufferG2010 me firstG4412 to goG565 and buryG2290 my fatherG3962.
60JesusG2424 saidG2036 unto him, LetG863 the deadG3498 buryG2290 their deadG3498: but goG565 thou and preachG1229 the kingdomG932 of GodG2316.
Here Jesus goes a step further. “Let the dead bury their dead.” What an odd statement. But the world is spiritually lost, people are dead in trespasses and sins, and it is more important to resurrect the spiritually dead than to bury the physically dead. And so Jesus’ instruction to this man was, “Go and preach the Kingdom of God.”
61And anotherG2087 alsoG2532 saidG2036, LordG2962, I will followG190 thee; but letG2010 me firstG4412 go bidG657 them farewellG657, which are at home atG1519 my houseG3624.
62And JesusG2424 saidG2036 unto him, NoG3762 manG3762, havingG5607-G1722 putG1911 his handG5495 to the plowG723, and lookingG991 backG3694, is fitG2111 for the kingdomG932 of GodG2316.
We may be earnest in our desire to follow Jesus; we may have important things in our lives to attend to; we may have people in our lives that are important to us. And these things are not evil or wrong – they simply must be kept in the proper order on our priority list. The American Forefathers had wealth – was that bad? No, but there was something more important. Something valuable enough to give everything for. Something that they held sacred. And if not for their steadfast unswerving loyalty to their cause, their willingness to sacrifice everything, we today would never have known what it is to live in the land of the free. They gave up their security so we could be secure. They went to prison that we might be free. They lost their wealth to buy our freedom. The forefathers were willing to die that we might have a better life. They were willing to suffer incredible hardship for freedom.
I thank God for their example. What they did is an example of properly ordered values. They saw what needed to be done, they counted the cost, and then they put their hand to the plow and never looked back.
The spirit of America is alive and well. It lives on in the hearts of every true American – that is, every American who remains true to the values of our Forefathers. But more importantly, the Holy Spirit is alive and well. He lives in each of us who hold to the values that Jesus taught. And we have every reason to be optimistic. Paul and Silas, right in the middle of the greatest persecution of Roman history, from the depths of that Roman prison, were optimistic – they sang songs of praise to the God they loved and gave their lives to. And God is still with us! And because our God is still with us, we will win against Satan today. Now, we’re going to have to envision what will be necessary to win. We’re going to have to count the cost. And once we have put our hands to the plow, we’re going to have to carry it through to its ultimate completion, no matter what the sacrifice. But this battle we are waging, this thing that many call the Culture War, is only a skirmish. It’s nothing to be afraid of. There is something far larger, much more ominous going on – the battle for the hearts and souls of every human being on this earth. The war that we have been waging since even before Rome tortured Christians as a matter of public policy. The war that God has said is already won! Something that’s been happening in heaven between God and Satan since the very beginning – a war of apocalyptic proportions. It is the war between good and evil. This is the war that you and I have signed on for. This is what we come to study and worship each week for – to train in the proper use of the full armor of God. This is the war whose battles are fought every day in little skirmishes and big throughout the world. Every time someone is tempted to misprioritize his values – every time we are tempted to think, “Well, it’s only a little white lie,” Satan has taken a shot. But God has prepared us with the Belt of Truth. Every time we are accused of bigotry or hatred when we have done no wrong, Satan has thrust another stab to the heart; but we are equipped with the Breastplate of Righteousness. Every time we hear “There is no God,” or “You can’t be serious – you want us to teach Creationism in the public schools?” the Devil has attacked – but we have the Shield of Faith. Every time we are threatened by those who would kill the body, but who have no power over the life of the soul, our Helmet of Salvation has saved us one more time. When we hear “You must be tolerant” used as a mantra to pressure us to stop speaking out for Jesus, the Devil, the Father of Lies, is attacking. But we have an offensive weapon as well - the Sword of the Spirit. And we train in weapons and tactics every Sunday and every mid-week Bible study. And the wise among us train every single day.
There is no greater cause to dedicate one’s life to than that of Jesus Christ and Him Crucified. You may have thought as we talked about the relative priorities of peace, prosperity and freedom that I was saying that freedom is the highest value – the foundation of our value system. But it is not. Jesus Christ is our Teacher, our Master, our Savior and Lord. He is the Foundation, He is the One by Whom the worlds were created. It is His commandments that we obey. So what are the Greatest commandments? Jesus replies, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. And the second is like unto it – thou shalt love your fellow man as you love yourself.”
So that is our challenge today. We go into this world, so full of evil and misery and sin, and we see all the pain and suffering and injustice, but our marching orders are not as we might expect. We would think, “Kill the aggressor! An eye for an eye! The one who is guilty must be punished!” – but our Jesus, our Master and Lord, the Gentle and Kind Savior, has given different orders. Love you enemies. Do good for them that harm you. If someone asks to borrow your coat, give to him your cloak also. Go the extra mile. Do this so that those who are lost, those whose North Stars aren’t in the North, whose value systems lead them astray, can be saved. Jesus came to seek and to save that which was lost, not to judge and condemn the world.
Are you saved? Have you been washed in the blood of Jesus? Have you committed your life to Him, that he might take you home, that you might have the abundant and free life now, and live in peace and prosperity later?
If not, give your life to him this morning. Be sure your North Star is in the North. Come, and be baptized, and wash away your sin, and call on the name of the Lord.
