What makes a man willing to lay down his life for another? Consider these three examples:
Richard Antrim, a native of Peru, Indiana, was a naval officer and POW in the Dutch East Indies during the Second World War. In April 1942 he attempted to intervene in the harsh punishment of a fellow naval officer. When the officer lost consciousness Antrim stepped in and offered to take the remainder of the punishment. His Japanese captors were stunned. The beating stopped and Antrim was spared.
David Bleak, a native of Idaho Falls, Idaho was an Army medic with the 40th Infantry Division in Korea. In June 1952 he volunteer to go with a reconnaissance patrol. During the patrol he both administered medical aid to the wounded and engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the enemy at several points including, while wounded, as he evacuated a wounded comrade.
Thomas Norris, a native of Jacksonville, Florida was a Navy SEAL officer attached to the US Military Assistance Command Headquarters in Vietnam. In April 1972 Lt Norris lead a 5 man patrol deep into enemy controlled territory in Quang Tri Province to rescue two downed pilots. He was able to locate and rescue one of the pilots but not the second. Two days later, the second pilot was found, and Norris, dressed in disguise as a fisherman, took a sampan, and with 1 Vietnamese aide, traveled all night to locate and rescue the second pilot. All returned safely to base but not before coming under heavy fire as the reach their FOB (Forward Operating Base).
What makes a man willing to do this? There are some here this morning that understand this because they were in situations like these. And we are here this morning to honor them and thank them.
There are also others that we honor today because we have been tragically reminded of the danger they face on a daily basis as they respond to a call or a fire not knowing what they will find. They do it daily in places that are familiar and not far away. And to them we also say “thank you.”
As our main text says “The greatest love is shown when people lay down their lives for their friends.” Those here today who have fought in battle on ridges and trenches or fought a fire alongside a fellow firefighter or fought someone who refused to be arrested by fellow officer understand the deeper issues and the deeper bond of this verse. Love of fellow human beings, love of country, love of family, or love of democracy, or all of these motives are motives that make men, and women, take risks on the battlefield and in the streets and roads of our country.
Today is a day of memory. It is a day for memories. Memories that make us laugh, make us cry, or make us remember individuals that we respected and who made a difference in our lives. My late father was a Korean War veteran, a member of the 2nd “Indian Head” Infantry Division. He saw much. He spoke of it little.
One of his favorite stories that he liked to tell concerned his first encounter with a Tamale, Puerto Rican style. There was a member of his unit of Puerto Rican descent who received some hot tamales and dad took a bite of one. It was bite that he never forgot. He began looking for some relief and was told; “don’t drink water, that will make it worse.” Eventually, he recovered but never forgot.
One of things that I believe we need to reflect on this Sunday and this Memorial Day Sunday, 2002 are the values that we live by. We have spoken of love already, but there are other values, especially as it relates to what we celebrate and remember this week. The cover of our bulletin speaks of three such values. It directly speaks of sacrifice and selflessness, and indirectly it speaks to the value of service.
Probably the most important of these three values we remember on this holiday is sacrifice – The greatest sacrifice we remember on this Memorial Day weekend is that of a life. The three men whose stories I shared at the beginning of this sermon all have something in common; they were all Medal of Honor winners. They were willing to sacrifice their very lives to saving others.
What does it mean to sacrifice? One of the interesting definitions of sacrifice is “to accept the loss or destruction of for an end, cause, or ideal.” Over the centuries of human existence people have been willing to accept loss or destruction for all sorts of causes and ideals. Some of these causes and ideals have been noble and some of them have not.
As followers of Jesus Christ, we are called to sacrifice. For some, that means death. I am reminded of the story of four young men who over 40 years ago went to the jungles of South America to reach a people called the Aucas for God. All four were murdered soon after their arrival. However, that hostile group was not given upon, because others went and over the next several decades the power and love of God did its great work in this people group and soon Christ was proclaim freely and openly throughout their region.
In Luke 9 and verse 23 and following we read: “Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must put aside your selfish ambition, shoulder your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for me, you will find true life. And how do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose or forfeit your own soul in the process?”
What did Jesus mean when He said that if you are going to be my follower, you must shoulder your cross daily? We need to look the phrase that appears before He speaks of the cross: “you must put aside your selfish ambition.” In other words what Jesus said was, if you choose to follow me, then you have to give up your agenda for mine.
Those who have served in our country’s service understand that. When you drive through the gates for basic training, you go not get to wear what you want, nor look like what you want to look like. You do not get up when you want to or go to bed when you want to. Your life is no longer your own. It is the military’s!
If we have sought and accepted the forgiveness of Christ then what Jesus says to us as His followers, His soldiers, is “you are mine. Follow me. Do what I tell you to do.” In other words, we give up for a great cause, a greater deal, a great mission that our own – HIS!
This day is also about the value of selflessness. It is the opposite of what seems to be in abundance these days – selfishness – a “me first and you second” attitude- that seems to be everywhere.
What if that had been the case on September 11th in New York? Reports of that tragic day indicated that those who were attempting to get out of the twin towers did so as they helped others to escape. The selflessness of some cost them their life.
Have you heard the Fireman’s Creed? This is what it says:
When I’m called to duty God, wherever flames may rage
Give me strength to save a life, whatever be its age.
Help me to embrace a little child before it is too late
or save an older person from the horror of that fate
Enable me to be alert to hear the weakest shout
and quickly and efficiently to put the fire out.
I want to fill my calling and to give the best in me
to guard my neighbor and protect his property.
And if according to your will, I have to lose my life
bless with your protecting hand my children and my wife.
“Help me embrace a little child before it is too late or save an older person from the horror of that fate.” On daily basis, in our community, and all across this country, the men and women of our fire and EMS departments rush into situations that they have only partial knowledge of. They have only 911 information to go on when they get to a scene. They don’t know what they are going to find. And when they find a fire or a medical emergency, they forget about themselves and concentrate on insuring the safety and survival of any and all persons concerned through their acts of selflessness.
Some here today know that the church I served in Michigan, the Orchard View Church of God in Grand Rapids, burned to a total loss on December 6, 1999. Two things I found out that night: 1. Firefighters do not like to lose to fire. 2. While the building was burning they were all around that building and in the building trying to put it out with minimal damage.
In Philippians 2 Paul speaks of the attitude that Jesus Christ had in coming to this earth. Verses 7 and 8 read, “He made himself nothing; he took the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form. And in human form he obediently humbled himself even further by dying a criminal’s death on a cross.”
It is my understanding that crucifixion was a very public event and took place along side the roads of that day. So the thought has occurred to me that Jesus walked those same roads that he would later hang alongside of on a cross. He knew what was coming. He had come to earth for this very purpose. God wanted his greatest creation – us – back and went to this great length to make it possible. It was the greatest act of selflessness the world has ever known and it has brought about such great freedom for humanity. What if Jesus would have decided in those agonizing moments of Gethsemane to not go through with the plan? You and I would not be here today.
Behind sacrifice and selflessness is service for without service sacrifice and selflessness cannot happen. But without sacrifice and selflessness service is hollow.
One of my favorite TV shows is “Cops.” It is an honest and realistic portrait of Law Enforcement across this country. Probably my favorite episode takes place in Southwestern Florida around Fort Myers.
Two sheriff deputies are called to a very nice mobile home park to investigate a situation involving an alligator. When they arrive they find a small alligator underneath a car. So the officers set about capturing the small gator, tying its nose with duct tape and its four feet together. Then they are off to a local pond where they release the reptile back into the wild.
One aspect of the show takes place in the opening segue to the location where the officers being filmed share a little bit about themselves. Without fail, most all of the officers talk about serving, giving back something to the community, trying to make a difference.
In the closing days of his ministry, James and John ask Jesus for places of honor next to Him in God’s kingdom. This gets the other ten ticked off at them. So Jesus, as recorded in Mark 10:42, has a chat with all the twelve So Jesus called them together and said, “You know that in this world kings are tyrants, and officials lord it over the people beneath them. But among you it should be quite different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be the slave of all. For even I, the Son of Man, came here not to be served but to serve others, and to give my life as a ransom for many.”
As followers of Christ, we are servants. And service is just plain hard work at times. We are called to serve people that sometimes are hard to serve. They are difficult. They are ungrateful. They are demanding. But, we are called to serve, to care, in Jesus’ name. It is a part of our mission and ministry. It is central to our mission and ministry. And remember this; there were people who were served through healing by Jesus who did not say, “Thank you!”
Ask any Law Enforcement person and they will tell that there are people who they would like to escort to the end of the earth, or at least the next county, and say, “Have a nice life! Good-bye!” But, they still go out and patrol the streets of our towns, cities, counties, and highways to keep us safe and to protect us and we thank them for that this day. Amen.
This morning, we are going to conclude with some moments of silence as we remember both those living and dead who have served our nation in both peace and war sacrificially and selflessly.
Then we are going to honor both our vets and our public safety personal present this morning with a small gift that cannot do justice to their acts of service but hopefully says, “thank you and we love you.”
As we are able let us stand for a moment of silence. (Playing of “Taps”).
