“Worth Dying For”
John 15:13
Remembrance Day Service
Today is a day that needs little help in terms of explanation or description. The sacrifice of Canadian troops, along with allied nations, fighting for the freedom of the world, is not hard to understand. What is difficult to grasp is the price paid. We cannot appreciate the living conditions of the trenches. Our minds cannot grasp the horrors that live in the minds of soldiers to this day. We must not forget the 60,000 plus Canadian soldiers of World War I and the 45,300 Canadian soldiers of World War II, who gave their lives in battle. We must not forget the world wide casualties of World War II where the war took 62.5 million (62,537,400) lives. The civilian count was catastrophic as the count of deaths numbered 75% more civilians than soldiers. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II_casualties)
“Lest we forget” – the slogan that accompanies the poppy is most appropriate. We must never forget. To forget is to commit a ghastly act against the many lives caught in the crossfire of bloody battle and the troops who fought to protect our freedoms.
This is also a time to remember present World War battles of another sort. It is the world’s war against terrorism. An October 28, 2009 report states that Afghanistan, so far, took the lives of 132 Canadian soldiers during their tour of duty since 2002.
(http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/afghanistan/casualties/list.html) 26 of those fallen are listed as 2009 casualties of war, to whom we will pay a special memorial in a few moments.
I never enter this time of remembrance without the story of another “fallen soldier” flooding my mind. He waged a war of unsurpassed sacrifice, even when we put all the suffering and deaths of every war together. His anguish and sacrifice deserves its own recognition “lest we forget” and the world forgets. Too many have never even heard about it – or Him. Just as it is unconscionable to consider forgetting the sacrifice and death of soldier and civilian lives during the world wars and the ongoing terrorism war, it is equally a grave travesty and dishonor to His service and sacrifice if we let ourselves forget. I am speaking of Jesus Christ, God’s Son.
What do we know about him? How do we approach conversation concerning him? He existed, there’s no doubt about that. But the controversy of his claims and his placement in the Christian church is another entirely different story.
For many, he is
1. A Respected Man with Religious Influence
One of his close advisors and trusted friends was Matthew. He records the fireside casual for us. “13When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" 14"Well," they replied, "some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets." (Matthew 16:13-14)
Reverend Dr. Mark Roberts, a pastor, author and retreat leader, cites the Barna Research group in relation to startling discoveries in American research, much of which fits the Canadian climate. Roberts quotes Barna as saying, “only 4% of American adults have a biblical worldview. This worldview centers around belief that absolute truth exists, and this truth can be found in the Bible.” Roberts continues, “Perhaps the most unsettling finding of Barna’s study was that only 9% of born again Christians have a biblical worldview. That is to say, only 9% of those who have accepted Jesus as their Savior and committed their life to him have learned to think as he thought.”
We must be concerned that followers of Jesus are allowing external influences affect their understanding of Jesus. What is equally alarming is our unwillingness to stake our reputations and lives on it. The view of who Jesus is continues to be a fast-changing reality and not for the good. Post-modern culture has a value system that works counter to the traditional place and person of God through Christ. For instance, pleasing people rather than God is a value. Society is tolerant of things that God explicitly said we should not be tolerant of. Truth and Scripture is subjective, always changing by the culture and climate. Pluralism is widely endorsed, meaning all religions lead to the same place if in fact they lead anywhere. Today’s society rejects authority, favoring group consensus. To quote one source, faith is “based on feelings, imagination, mysticism and group consensus.” Society is squeezing Jesus Christ, the Messiah, out of our frame of reference and conviction.
(http://www.crossroad.to/charts/postmodernity.htm)
Jesus Christ is not a mythological figure; he lived on this earth and for the most part as a respected man. But he is more than that. He speaks of himself as
2. An Intimate Friend
When soldiers go to war, they know the risk of not coming home alive. So what drives a man or woman to take such risks? There are things like values and a sense of what could happen if they do not prevent an opposing force. You will hear many reasons for deciding to enlist. It seems that one of the underlying reasons is always connected to families and children. They fight for their freedom or they think of children who do not have the joys of their own children and so they want to try and make a difference. I’ve yet to hear anyone say they’re going to fight for the Prime Minister or for the people ten provinces away. It is usually more closely connected to home.
In John 15, Jesus is not speaking to strangers or cordial acquaintances. Those to whom he speaks are his twelve disciples or followers, people who spent three years doing ministry with him; being ridiculed because of him; denying themselves some fairly standard comforts by spending time with him. It is his relationship to them that he speaks in verse 5. He refers to their relationship, as offered in The Message, as being “intimate and organic”. This speaks of the highest, deepest and most cherished of relationships. Jesus goes on to outline how he reveals to them all his joint plans with the Father and shares His Father’s heart. He suggests this revelation is the result of one thing. That one thing is verse 15…
Now, here’s the exciting news of this passage. Jesus did not leave us these words as a history lesson. He speaks these words this morning to us! He invites us to be his friends! He invites us to enter into an “intimate and organic” relationship – alive, real, close, and vibrant. This ‘soldier’ sacrificed himself for people – with names, families, interests and a life-signature that is not like anyone else’s in all the world! He died for YOU.
I remember a speaker giving an invitation to read John 3:16 but in doing so, to replace “the world” with a reference to me. I invite you to do the same. Please read the verse on the screen with me. “This is how much God loved me: he gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that I need not be destroyed; by believing in him, I can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling me how bad I am. He came to help, to put me right again.” (John 3:16-17, The Message)
To many, Jesus is a respected man. He desires however, that his relationship with us be more than that. He wants an intimate and organic friendship. This leads to His higher purpose for fighting the war of Sin. He is
3. Sent by God to Bring People back to Relationship
I’d like us to think for a moment on the incident of Matthew 16 that we read earlier. Jesus “asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" 14"Well," they replied, "some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets." His followers gave the popular answers. Then Jesus moved the question to a personal stance and questioned his followers in Matthew verses 15-16, “15Then he asked them, "Who do you say I am?" 16Simon Peter answered, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God."
J. Michael Shannon tells how some young people put up a web site to encourage atheism. The site invited people to dare God to send them to hell. More than 400 young people took the challenge. People who took the challenge received a free copy of documentation that promotes atheism, entitled “The God Who Wasn’t There.” Shannon tells how one man filmed his declaration in the back of a church during a worship service. The site, www.blasphemychallenge.com, is the brainchild of filmmaker Brian Fleming, and founder of the web site “Rational Responders”.
This story serves as a jarring reminder that people are stumbling over Jesus. They hold positions that are politically correct or socially acceptable. They can deny His existence; challenge God with an personal dare or appeal to rational thinking. Yet, the Bible forces people to face that dilemma. But isn’t that the nature of a warrior? When the mission is clear and the Commander outlines the battle tactics there’s no standing down or white-washing the game-plan. Jesus demands an answer to what we’ll do about him in our politically-correct, pluralistically-charged society. We can play Him down, stumble over our response to the controversy and even deny certain things rather than create a scene. We can stand at a distance, speak user-friendly language, tolerate what is socially acceptable and repeat what everyone else is saying. Or, we can stand on the ledge and accept him, without apology, for who He says He is! With St. Paul we can say, “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes…” (Romans 1:16) We can say with Peter, “You are the Messiah, the son of the living God!” The fact is what we believe doesn’t change who He is! He is Messiah! He is God and that’s that. We come to a point when we have to answer the question for ourselves.
Whatever our decision, we need to know how Jesus feels about us. He made the decision that we are
4. Worth Dying For
Earlier I mentioned people caught in the crossfire of battle. Civilians are innocently bombed or the war machine uses them to deflect enemy attacks.
When Jesus decided we were worth dying for, there were many caught in the crossfire. Our Father God faced incredible pain as he watched Jesus’ interrogation by the Enemy. Mary, the mother of God, wretched with horror at his bloody spectacle. Close friends wept; a forgiven prostitute remembered how he accepted her while the world rejected him. His followers remembered times of laughter and lighter days.
Jesus did not start the war but he was certainly prepared to fight it as he put himself on the front lines of battle and gave his life to the roadside bombs of hatred and religious indifference.
WRAP
- He is more than just a good man, a prophet or miracle-worker, though he’s all that
- He said he’s our Friend – intimate and organic
- He paid the ultimate price of death on a cross to bring us back to relationship with God.
Soldier memorial presentation
“Jesus, all for Jesus”
