A Call to Remember: Lest We Forget

Intro:

This morning is going to be a slightly different service. We are sticking with our series, A Call to Remember. Last week the big point I hope you took away was the fact that remembering from the biblical perspective is not just about recalling something. Remembering inspired action. When Godd remembered Israel and his covenant with them, it wasn’t that he forgot, rather that he was acting on the covenant that had been made.

This morning, we are going to do some remembering, and my hope is that this morning won’t be just a one time action we take, but that this would be the first day of a life long act of remembrance. That the memory of those whom we remember will influence our actions, our words, our families for everyday following.

So we are going to start this morning by remembering those who have fought and died for the freedoms we have today. Since there won’t be an official remembrance day service, I thought it was appropriate that we take a few moments to remember the men and women who fought so valiantly, and honor those who continue to fight for our freedoms and keep us all safe.

with that, we are going to play a short video.

Video

Let’s all stand and have a moment of silence for all those who gave their lives for the freedoms we enjoy.

Over 118,000 have given their lives in service of our country, protecting the freedoms that we all to often take for granted.

On top of that, over 18,000 RCMP officers who put their lives on the line to keep us safe each and every day

That doesn’t include our firefighters, paramedics. So many people choose to put their lives in harms way in order to protect us.

How do we remember? We live our lives in a way that honors those who gave and continue to give everything to protect us and this great country of ours. Freedom comes at a cost, and just because we didn’t pay the price personally doesn’t mean we can live in such a way that the price wasn’t paid.

I invite everyone, right where you are, online or in person, to just take a moment and pray. Thank God for those who fought on our behalf, pray for the safety of those who continue to uphold justice and order in our country.

Pray

November is also a time to pray for those who do not enjoy the freedoms we do.

1 Corinthians 12:26 CSB

So if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.

Hebrews 13:3 CSB

Remember those in prison, as though you were in prison with them, and the mistreated, as though you yourselves were suffering bodily.

November is the month where the PAOC pray for the persecuted church

in our world today 260 million Christians are persecuted, beaten, imprisoned, and killed for their faith in Jesus Christ

their are 50 nations in our world today that continue to be hostile towards the church, and yet these are the areas where the church seems to thrive the most.

there are believers out there that wish the worst persecution they faced was to slap a mask on their face while they sang.

260 million brothers and sisters, because that’s what they are, wake up wondering if today will be their last day on earth. 260 million believers made the decision to follow Jesus, despite the immediate and devastating cost to them personally, but also their families.

how do we remember them? What is our response?

We pray for them. Though we cannot be there physically, defending them, we can pray to our father who loves all of us and see their pains and groanings

Ephesians 6:19–20 CSB

Pray also for me, that the message may be given to me when I open my mouth to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel. For this I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I might be bold enough to speak about it as I should.

this is how Paul wanted to be prayed for, and I would imagine that those who are going through such persecution would want to be prayed for as well. We pray that they would remain bold in the face of opposition.

We allow ourselves to be inspired by their example. If those who are persecuted are willing to risk so much for the cause of Christ, are we not willing to do the same? In light of our brothers and sister in the faith that have paid so much, we can’t help but wonder what following Jesus has cost us. What price are we willing to pay for Jesus?

Luke 14:25–33 CSB

Now great crowds were traveling with him. So he turned and said to them, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, and even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. “For which of you, wanting to build a tower, doesn’t first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, after he has laid the foundation and cannot finish it, all the onlookers will begin to ridicule him, saying, ‘This man started to build and wasn’t able to finish.’ “Or what king, going to war against another king, will not first sit down and decide if he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? If not, while the other is still far off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. In the same way, therefore, every one of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple.

these are the words of Jesus. There is cost. We must take up our cross, we must put to death the old way of life so that the Holy Spirit can lead us into the new life we are being called to. There is a cost. Following Jesus will cost you everything, but what we get in return so far surpasses.

Why can Jesus ask such a high cost? Because he paid it all so that we could even have the choice to follow him. Jesus knows a little something about paying the ultimate price for someone else’s freedom.

1 Corinthians 6:19–20 CSB

Don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought at a price. So glorify God with your body.

this is the ultimate act of remembering. You were bought at a price, a steep price, so live in such a way that honors the price that was paid.

How do we remember? We live in a way that honors those who paid the price for us. We pray for those who daily face severe persecution and denial of rights because of their faith in Christ.

lets pray