Memorial Day 2018
Text: Deuteronomy 8:11 – 19
Well, this is Memorial Day weekend. And it’s an important holiday. Not just because people get off work. And not because we get to see so many family and friends. Even though those things are nice. It’s important because of what it’s all about.
Memorial Day began after the Civil War, as a day to recognize the fallen soldiers who died fighting for what they believed in. It was originally called Decoration Day as families would decorate the graves of the fallen soldiers with flowers, flags, and ribbons. It didn’t become an official holiday until 1967. And it’s important that we don’t forget those who have given their lives in the service to their country.
In the American Revolution we lost around 8,000 men. In the Civil War, over 490,000 men died. In WWI – 53,402. In WWII – 291,557. The Korean War – 30,880. Vietnam – around 58,000. And in wars and conflicts since Vietnam we’ve lost over 10,000 soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines. And so we have Memorial Day to remind us of all those lives lost. Each one of those men and women wanted to live their lives just as badly as you or I want to. They probably wanted to raise families, live in nice homes, with 2.5 kids and dog. They had dreams and plans, and hopes for their futures. So we should remember them and honor them, and that’s why Memorial Day was created. To help us remember the high cost of freedom. The high cost of fighting for freedom. But unfortunately; a lot of folks don’t remember… even though we have this national holiday. To many, it’s not about the lost lives, it’s about getting a day off of work and back yard bar-b-ques. The purpose of the holiday seems to be forgotten. But I guess that shouldn’t be surprising… because a lot of people forget about Jesus as well.
I want you to take your Bibles and open them up to Deuteronomy 8, and I’m going to read to you a passage that talks about what happens when we forget. Deuteronomy 8:11 – 19 (READ).
I really think that one of the biggest problems the modern day Church faces is that we forget. We forget that God is God. We forget that He is sovereign, Almighty, and in control. We forget that Jesus is Lord, and that He alone is the way, the truth, and the life. We forget that God’s Word is authoritative and that it’s through His Word that God saves us, changes us, sanctifies us, matures us, and transforms us.
I want to share a quote with you from the late pastor and theologian R.C. Sproul.
“The majority of American’s claim to be Christian, and only a small percentage claim to be actual atheists. But the truth is – many within the Church are functional atheists. In other words; they would never say that they do not believe in God, but they live their lives like there is no God. Truly, they profess Christ with their lips, but their hearts are far from Him.”
Now think about this for a second: Atheists do not pray, and neither do functional atheists… even though they say there’s a God, they don’t pray. Their behavior doesn’t line up with their profession. Atheists don’t believe in the authority of God’s Word, and neither do functional atheists… They might say that they believe it’s God’s Word, but it doesn’t rule their lives. Atheists don’t believe in laying up treasures in heaven, and neither do functional atheists – they’re too busy seeking all their treasures here on earth. Atheists only live for themselves, and live for today. Functional atheists are no different.
Now here’s the difference: Atheists believe that there is no God… functional atheists say they believe in God, but their lives show that they really don’t. Basically; the functional atheist is trying to hedge his bets, just in case. He’s become aware of the possibility that there is a God, and he’s aware of the possibility that God is real, and so he’s trying to play the odds and cover all his bases. But the problem is – it doesn’t work that way. Jesus doesn’t give us the option of riding the fence. He says, “Those who are not with Me, are against Me.” He says, “If you’re lukewarm, I’ll spit you out of My mouth.” He says, “You can’t love two masters.”
All through the New Testament He makes this distinction. He separates the sheep and the goats. He separates the wheat and the chaff. He says, “This is My Church, My Body… and this over here isn’t.”
So basically; the functional atheist is someone who has forgotten God. Now what does it mean to forget something, or someone? Well basically it means that thing, or that person; are not in your thoughts, or in your mind. And that happens when other things are in your thoughts or in your mind. Those other things or people have taken the forefront. You’ve set your minds, and your thoughts, and your desires on them. And you dismiss or disregard the thoughts of that other thing… or other person. And that’s what the functional atheist does. Monday through Saturday, the thoughts of God don’t cross their mind. The thoughts of living for Christ, learning about Christ, loving Christ, worshiping Christ… it’s there only one day a week. But the rest of the week, their hearts are far from Him.
And church – here’s the thing… this is something WE ALL have to be watchful of. You, me, and every other Christian out there. Let’s go back to our text in Deuteronomy and look at verse 11 again. God says this to His people… “Take care lest you forget the Lord your God…” In other words, “Be careful that this doesn’t happen to you.” “Take precautions that you’re not forgetting God.” That’s what this says. But look at the last part of that verse… God says, “Take care so you don’t forget… and here’s how you do that – keep His commandments and His rules, and His statutes.” How do you forget God? By not keeping His commandments, and His rules, and His statutes. He goes on and says, “Take care that you don’t forget God… because when life is good, and things are going well, and you’re comfortable and content with your place in life… you’ll be tempted to forget about God.” You’ll not be going to Him every morning asking for your daily bread. You’ll believe the lie that pastor down in Houston tells, that this is your best life now. Well it’s not!
What happens is that a person becomes content with the poor substitutes this world offers, and their focus shifts. Instead of their goal being going out and making disciples their goal is maintaining comfort and safety. Instead of their goal being; to see more disciples made, their goal is maintaining what they’ve got. Instead of their goal being to strive towards living for Christ, they live for themselves.
You see; here’s the thing. All of us, as fallen human beings are born with atheistic hearts. We are born with a tendency to forget God. But if you go back to our text and look at what the Lord has Moses write in verses 14 – 16 you’ll notice that He reminds them of what He has done for them.
This is the second way God helps us TO NOT forget… first – He told us to keep His commands… Second, we need to remind ourselves of what He’s done in our lives. You know, one of the best ways you can talk to someone about God, and even share the Gospel with them is by sharing your testimony and by telling them what God has done in your life. It doesn’t have to have a whole lot of theological jargon… it’s as simple as saying, “This is what God has done for me!” “I was blind, but now I see.” “I was an alcoholic, but now I’m free.” “I was an angry, violent person, but now I have love and peace in my heart.” “I was promiscuous, but now I’m faithful.” “I was an idolater, but now I love Jesus.” “I once was lost, but now I’m found.”
WHAT HAS GOD DONE FOR YOU?
Has He forgiven you? Has He delivered you? Has He changed you? Has He set you free from sin? We need to remind ourselves of those things. And we need to share those things with others.
So The Lord is telling us… the way we don’t forget about God is – We keep His commands, and we continually remind ourselves of what He’s done in our lives, and what He’s done in history. But then you go on to verse 17 and He gives us another warning. He says, “Beware, lest you say in your heart…” So it doesn’t even have to be with words… you can say this in your heat… “Beware, lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’” Now that’s the sin of pride… that’s the sin of saying, “I don’t need God. I can do it on my own.
I can make it on my own.” And again; most people would probably never verbalize that. But they can say it in their heart… and our lives display what’s in our heart.
Did you know; that in the New Testament, when it talks about Jesus, it refers to Him 24 times as Savior. But it refers to Him over 600 times as Lord. Functional atheism comes from putting yourself on the throne. You are not lord... JESUS IS LORD!
That means He’s our master. He’s the one who is to have control of us. He is our ruler. He’s our boss. He owns us. He bought us with a price. And here’s what Jesus says to us… Matthew 16:24
“If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me.”
The Cross serves one purpose – death. Jesus is saying that we have to die to sin, and die to self, take ourselves off the throne and acknowledge that He is Lord.
Church – the purpose of Memorial Day is so that we don’t forget what it costs to be free. It’s different than the 4th of July… on Independence Day we celebrate our freedom, but on Memorial Day we remember what our freedom cost. But don’t think that taking one day out of the year is enough to adequately remember. It’s not enough… one day out of the year is not enough for anything. If you eat one day out of the year – you’ll die. If you work at a job, one day out of the year, you’ll be homeless and have nothing. If you mow your yard one day out of the year, it’s going to be an overgrown mess. If you bathe one day out of the year – you’ll be one nasty, stinky dude. We know, one day is not enough. We have to continually remember; we have to remind ourselves. We have to diligently maintain what we have. This nation is the greatest nation on earth, but it’s not what it used to be.
And what’s really interesting is that if our nation is going to get back to what it once was… it’s not about taking up arms, and it’s not about voting the right kind of people in, and it’s not about legislation or politics… it’s about what our text says… it’s about remembering God. It’s about remember Jesus Christ. It’s about following Him, and obeying Him, and living for Him. God tells us – in the very last verse of our text, “If you forget the Lord your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them… YOU WILL SURELY PERISH.”
So this morning, let’s ask ourselves – do we live our lives as if there is no God? Are we serving the Lord Jesus Christ, or ourselves? Who is seated on the throne of our hearts? Are we functional atheists or are we following Jesus Christ the Lord? When we sing that hymn – “I Surrender All” Do you really mean it? Maybe you’re here this morning and you’re saying to yourself, “Pastor Ken, if I’m being honest, I’d have to say that there are things in my life that I haven’t surrendered to the Lordship of Christ, and if I’m being honest, I’m scared to do that… what if Jesus calls me to do something that’s hard? What if He tells me to give up something that I really like? What if He calls me to something that takes me out of my comfort zone?” Those are all honest questions, and if you’re asking them you might want to look again at verses 12 – 13 of our text there in Deuteronomy
And then I would encourage you that our God is good. He is a loving Father. And it’s so much better to know Him, and walk with Him, and be in fellowship with Him, than it is to be comfortable in this world. It’s so much better to be in His presence, and in His will than to have anything this world offers. Because this world is temporary and it’s passing away, but eternity is forever
CLOSING
