Living and dieing for others!!!
Yesterday was Anzac Day….
It is a very special, some would even say a sacred day in our national calendar.
It is a day that helps us understand a little more about what it means to be Australian and why our nation is like it is.
For those who don’t participate in the worship life of the Church, Anzac Day is certainly the day with the most reverent public rituals or liturgies.
At shrines, memorials and monuments in places across the country, people gather to remember and honour the fallen,
and to salute and express gratitude to those who survived and can still march.
But Anzac Day commemorations do not sit comfortably with every Christian.
Anzac Day is about remembering the fallen heros of war.
And this is like lemon juice to milk for a Christian for 2 reasons…
Our life and future as Christians should be mainly be understood from the point of view of what God has done, is doing and will do for us….
And secondly as Jesus followers and imitators, we are not followers of a violent Jesus.
But the one who defended injustices, welcomed others and calls us to pray for and love our enemies and even those who persecute us.
When his enemies came against him with military force,
he did not resort to reciprocal violence to defend himself or his cause.
Offering himself as the Prince of Peace, rather than as the Holy Warrior,
Jesus allowed the machinery of might and power to add him to its seemingly endless blood-stained list of sacrificial victims.
War was not an aim for Jesus.
However we also need to remember at times Jesus did get involved with conflict….
In Matthew 21:12-17, there is the story of Jesus confronting and overturning the tables of the money changers in the temple
And regular we see Jesus confronting the Pharisees about their approach to life, their misunderstanding of who God is and how they are treating others.
So where does that leave us in regards to ANZAC Day?
Can we participate in our honouring the fallen without being in conflict with the Gospel of Jesus?
Well like a lot things in life….we can but we should be aware of the good we can obtain from acknowledging ANZAC Day and the dangers if we allow ANZAC Day to be seen outside the context of being a Christian.
In other words we need to allow Jesus to lead us.
Saint Augustine, a saint who lived many years before any world war, made a very profound statement….the goal of participating in any war is peace!!!
Let that ring in your ears…..the goal of participating in any war is peace!!!
Now St Augustine here is referring to true peace….not surface level peace, where everything looks ok but underneath it is not….
And living and working towards true peace is something every Christian is called to work towards as disciples of Jesus….
As Hebrews 12:14-15 says Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.
And Romans 12:18-19 says “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”
And 1 Timothy 2:1-4 says I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Saviour, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.
Peace is a goal that is important for us as Christians not just because it is a nice touchy feely thing…
But because it is one of God’s aims for his relationship with us.
And importantly it helps us be God’s missionaries in life….
Last week on the Shark Tank there was a good illustration of this….
the Shark Tank is a show on channel ten,
where new businesses seek potential investment and mentoring from some of Australia’s successful business people.
One gentleman who had a unique product…
Said at one stage during his presentation that when the world patent is approved which will be shortly….
he will go to court against his competitors…
Immediately one of the successful business people said….
they are out, they are not interested…
because the last place they want to be is fighting people in court
and another said “the last person they want to be in business with is someone who is wanting to fight others”…
In other words these successful business people were saying the best way to keep focussed on what you are called to do….is be focussed on that and not making fighting one of your main activities in life.
And when we look at Church History we see the church grows when Christians are at peace with each other and God….
Why because they are less focussed on themselves and what they want and more focussed on what God is calling them to do and be!!!
But the unfortunate thing about human nature is that peace is not always our goal…
Often we are influenced by sin….
our sinful nature and the sins that others commit…..
And when I look at the Ten Commandments there are at least 5 commandments that we and others break that result in conflict and war….whether it be war in our homes, our families, our congregations, our community or between countries
Think about the conflicts you know about….
Which of the following has resulted in fighting and wars
The desire for more, more property, more power, more control….9th and 10th Commandment….You shall not covet is being broken
The taking of other people’s possessions and land….7th Commandment…You shall not steal is being broken
Unjustly hurting and deliberately killing people….5th Commandment…You shall not kill is being broken
Thinking of oneself above others and above God, doing what you would like rather than what God likes….1st Commandment…You shall have no other gods is being broken…
You can probably think of other commandments that are broken that results in wars or conflict and peace not existing
James chapter 4 verses 1 to 7 speaks of this….
What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:
“God opposes the proud but shows favour to the humble.”
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
The reality is when we sin…peace has been broken between us and God
And have you ever noticed when a physical war or conflict happens….. it doesn’t happen out of the blue…the truth is peace has been lacking for some time….
Take for instance what we call the First World War….
the common understanding is that the beginning of World War One was in 1914, following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of the Austro-Hungarian Empire….
but many historians believe that there was a whole series of events and circumstances from 1906 that encouraged First World War to break out
The assassination was simply what many of us call the straw that broke the camel’s back.
So a question for me and you to ponder……
Are you living a life focussed on there being true peace between you and others?
Think about it
Are you living a life focussed on there being true peace between you and others?
The truth is if you are not….you can expect to be involved in ungodly conflict forever!!!
And this raises the question does living in peace mean we avoid conflict all together???
Well this leads us back to Saint Augustine’s quote…. the goal of participating in any war is peace!!!
There is a great example of people being in conflict so peace could occur.
In Northern France there is a village of just over 4000 people called Villers-Bretonneux, where the Australian National Memorial stands. This is not some little shrine, but includes a large tower and cross….and walls with around 11000 Australian soldiers names, plus the following inscription
To the glory of God and in the memory of Australian Imperial Force in France and Flanders1916 to 1918 and of eleven thousand who fell in France and have no known grave….
The reason the Australian National Memorial exists in Villers Bretonneux is that Australian soldiers retook the village from the German Army….
so the people of Villers Bretonneux could return to living in freedom and peace.
In doing so around 1200 Australian soldiers lost their lives.
They died so others could live, and live in peace.
As a result the French in Villers Bretonneux consider Australians very good friends…
and in appreciation built this memorial.
The local school also has a big sign that says DO NOT FORGET THE AUSTRALIANS.
Australians are considered great friends because they laid down their life for those who lived in Villers Bretonneux.
What happened in Villers Bretonneux is something along the lines of what Jesus talks about in John chapter 15 verses 12 to 13…
“My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
Now Jesus calls each of us to have such selfless love.
Doing things and giving up things…not for our own benefit, but so others can benefit…
And did you notice in this short reading from
John that the command to love each other is one that comes with the encouragement to look to Jesus in how to love….
Jesus says love each other as I have loved you!!!
Everyday I encourage you as your interact with God through the scriptures to keep asking….how is God showing me how to love others?
Love from Jesus is what we celebrated at Easter a few weeks ago….
Remembering not only that Jesus loved us….but how he loved us
St Paul when he is writing to the early Christians in Rome, expresses it this way…
Reading from Romans chapter 5 verses 6 to 8
You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Now think carefully about what Jesus has done here….
The great thing about Jesus’ actions is he doesn’t just want to have peace with everyone who says they love him.
God wants to have peace with everyone….including those who are enemies of Him.
Fortunately this is a good thing for each of us…..
Because of God’s standards…
And because of sin we are all enemies of God….
Every time we sin…..we are rebelling against God….we are making a statement that we are going against God
So the reality is all of us…can be thankful that Jesus had this unselfish approach to life
He died not for his benefit
But for ours and mine….
And because he was prepared to die all of us who trust in these actions are considered now His friend
and being His friend means we also gain the great the gift of eternal life.
But the actions of Jesus don’t stop there
Because we live on this earth as people who know and have received His love
Jesus calls us to imitate him
Remember he said, “Love each other as I have loved you!!”
Paul reinforces this sort of approach to life when he encourages people to not imitate worldly ideas and actions…but ideas and actions that come from Christ and the Christian community following Jesus….
Such as from 1 Thessalonians 1:6
You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit…
And from 1 Corinthians 11:1
Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.
And why do we imitate Christ….
So others may receive the blessings and gift of eternal life
That Jesus has made possible……
Something we have come to know because others have gone out of their way for us to share His love….
So lest we forget…
Lest we forget those who have lost their lives to bring peace and life to others
And lest we forget Jesus…the one who makes true peace and living with God possible.
Amen
