The Lutheran Hour
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"Forget Me Not!"
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Text: Deuteronomy 11:18-21
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Before the dawn of 9/11 and a little over one hundred years ago, Theodore Roosevelt rose to power as the 26th President of the United States. He came into office in the wake of another act of terrorism, the assassination of President McKinley. TR was a bull moose of a man, charged with boundless energy. His legacy dazzles us even today. He was the Colonel who led the Rough Riders in the charge up San Juan Hill in the Spanish-American war. He was the author and inspiration for our Navy’s Great White Fleet. He secured the Panama Canal treaty and rite of passage. He won the Nobel Peace prize for his negotiating skills to end the war between Russia and Japan. TR was once a sickly child but overcame his weaknesses through self-discipline and courage. After two successful terms in the nation’s highest office, President TR was willing to ride off into the sunset, but within a couple of years he positioned himself to make a bid for an unprecedented third term of office. These are the words that announced his intent: “It is not the critic who counts. It is not the man who points out how the strong man has stumbled or where the doer of good deeds could have done them better. No! No! No! The credit belongs to the man in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly. . .who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions of life, who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who have never known neither victory nor defeat.” Works of Theodore Roosevelt, Vol. XIII, pp. 506 ff.
The credit belongs to the man in the arena. Are you in the arena? Are you still in the fight? If the devil can rip true faith from your heart, he will do it. If the world can seduce you from true faith with its tinsel, trinkets, and toys, it will do it. And if our very own fleshly desires can saturate our minds with impure desires, longing lustfully to addict us and captivate our souls, then we would all perish eternally. Whose side are we on? Are we still in the fight? Have you forgotten, O Christian, the Lord’s Word for your life?
What has God said? “Fix it! Tie it! Bind it! Teach it! Talk it! Write it!” So the Lord commands us. And what is the “it”? Why it is the unforgettable Word of God. And why must the Lord of the Church remind us so often and so strongly to remember His Word? Could it be that the unforgettable, life-changing, soul-stirring, history-making deeds of Almighty God in Christ Jesus could ever be forgotten? Could it be? “Never!” we cry. But therein lies our greatest problem this side of heaven for what we would never dream of doing naturally we often do spiritually. We Christians can and do forget the Word. We can forget the Word of God in Christ Jesus in so many ways. So my friend, my message this morning is plain and simple.
I. Don’t forget who you are!
2. Treasure your destiny!
Who are you? Who are you really? “Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also,” Jesus said. Your treasure is your identity. In your waking moments when no one is watching you, where do your thoughts run? What do you play over and over again in your imagination? Perhaps it is money, making money, and lots of it. Perhaps it is power, prestige, and recognition by others for your great achievements. Or perhaps your preoccupation is with things negative; sickness, old age, accidents, diet, medicine, and lack of income. Our preoccupations will either enslave our minds or set us free. In the treasury of our thoughts, our hearts will be found. It all depends upon our focus. And we will never focus rightly if we do not first remember who we are in Christ Jesus.
Focus on this. I am a Christian. No higher name. No higher calling. I have been baptized into Christ Jesus. Through the waters of Baptism the Lord has given me and all believers great and precious promises to escape the corruption that is in the world and in our own life. Focus on this. Through Baptism, you were forgiven, sealed with God’s Holy Spirit, the old man of sin was crucified, and the new man of life was created. But Baptism is not a magical wand, nor a secret password, nor just a ritual to be performed and then quickly forgotten. Baptism rather is a loaded weapon and it’s meant to be fired every day against the devil, the world, and our flesh. Baptism into Christ Jesus is the beginning of your lifelong struggle with sin. And struggle, my friend, is good for our souls.
Years ago, I saw a large poster in a store of a mother Dachshund and her pup. The pup had all of its sharp baby teeth firmly embedded in the mother’s ear, hanging on for dear life, and pulling the mother’s head down severely to one side. The caption simply read, “O Lord, how long?”
Such are the prayers of us all. In the midst of our distress and pain we cry out to the Lord for cessation of our grief and agony. “O Lord, how long, how much longer must I put up with this pain? Is there any relief for me?” We daydream that the Christian life ought to be struggle free with only minor obstructions on the road of life. We imagine that all those other happy Christians are enjoying just such a life. And then the Word of the Lord comes to us, “My grace is sufficient for you. This thorn I will not remove. My strength is made perfect in your weakness.” When you were baptized into Christ Jesus, when the water and Word of salvation covered your soul, there and then the lifelong struggle with sin, pain, weakness, temptation, and despair began. The struggle against sin and all its consequences proves you are still in the fight, still in the arena.
Every Christian has been given lawful orders. The Lord’s call to remember His word is not without content. We read in Hebrews chapter twelve, “Make every effort. . . to be holy, for without holiness no one will ever see the Lord.” And Jesus cries out in the Sermon on the Mount, “If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. . . If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be tossed into hell.” Peter puts it this way, “Just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do.” And Paul leaves us all nervous when he writes, “Work out your salvation with fear and trembling!”
Is God serious? Every Christian knows that the cross of Christ alone has saved his soul. Every Christian knows that nothing can be added to this once-for-all sacrifice through which God has reconciled the world unto Himself. Every Christian knows that forgiveness of sins, justification, and eternal life are a gift of God, and a gift can only be received, never modified, and never earned. Faith alone in the cross of Christ Jesus saves our souls but faith is never alone in this unique way, the struggle to obey the Lord’s lawful orders is always present and the enemies to destroy this obedience of faith will never give up.
By legend and reputation, London is known as a foggy town. Sometimes the fog is so thick you can hardly walk down the street safely, but in our world of marvelous computers and fog-piercing technology, even fog-blinded lumbering 747s can land safely at London’s Heathrow Airport without mishap. On just such a night the screeching wheels of the 747 had just touched down on the tarmac at Heathrow. The nervous pilot could barely make out the runway lights and the white lines that would lead him safely to the gate. But suddenly a bright yellow service truck darted out in front of him. And on the tailgate in big bright flashing letters the caption simply read, “Follow me! Follow me!” And the lumbering 747 taxied safely home.
Don’t forget who you are. You are a Christian. And Jesus cries out “Follow Me! Follow Me!” Remember your focus. Obedience always gets a bum rap in the Christian life. The devil whispers in one ear that obedience will stifle your creativity, it will restrain your self-expression, it will turn you into a dull person and that such obedience is really the mark of a lower life form. Unless, of course, the Lord’s way is better than our way and His freedom is greater than our wandering self-indulgence. To be the Lord’s slave is the truest freedom in life, to be hooked by the devil’s addictions is the greatest tyranny in life. All Christians know they will never obey their Lord perfectly in this life. “There is not a just man upon the earth who always does good and never sins,” so the Scriptures declare. This is why we can never trust our own righteousness. We only begin to obey Him this side of Paradise. But begin we must. The struggle is good. And by the grace of God we shall prevail.
I believe that inspiration for this battle can come from the strangest of places. If you have ever seen any of the Rocky movies, you know that in the end Rocky always comes out on top. We all know it’s only Hollywood choreography but how many times can a prizefighter be knocked down and still manage to come back and win? Therein lies the inspiration for me. We are often knocked down but never knocked out. In the deepest, darkest moments of my life when failure and pain swallowed up my soul, one small voice still whispered in the quiet, “Get up! Get up! It’s not over yet. Get back on your feet. Get back in the arena!” Precisely at that moment, the Lord of life reaches down to us with His everlasting arms of strength and love. He picks us up off the canvas of life and places us squarely on our feet once again and says, “My grace is all you need. Forget Me not! I am with you even until the end of the world.” There is no easy way out. Sanctification of body, soul, and spirit is a life-long battle. Repentance is a daily event. The righteous may fall seven times but still he rises again. No pain, no glory. “I am crucified with Christ,” Paul writes, “Nevertheless I live, yet not I but Christ lives within me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loves me and gave His life for me.”
Point #2: Treasure your destiny. Do you have a purple heart? General George Washington created the Badge of Military Merit now known as the Purple Heart. The purpose of the award was to reward and inspire unusual instances of gallantry and extraordinary fidelity in the American cause for freedom. Since 1932, the Purple Heart has been awarded to thousands of members of our armed forces who have been wounded by an instrument of war in the hands of the enemy.
The Christian lives this side of heaven in the church militant. The cause of Christ demands no less extraordinary valor and devotion to duty. The war against sin in our own life and the pursuit of holiness for Jesus’ sake will turn our hearts purple in the sight of God. We will be wounded. Who is sufficient for this battle? How will we prevail? Do we see the heavenly hosts that surround us to assist us?
Elisha was a great man of God, a thundering prophet of the Lord and the ruin of all the enemies of Israel. The King of Aram, in those days, was one of the bad guys. He sought to end the life of Elisha, who was his perpetual thorn in the flesh. So he sent out a mighty army by night of horses and chariots to surround the city of Dothan where Elisha lived. When the morning sun crested the hills of Dothan, Elisha’s servant arose in fright. A great multitude of horses and chariots surrounded the city. The bad guys were everywhere. “This is the end!” the servant cried out, “Oh, my lord, what shall we do?” Elisha’s answer still stirs our souls three thousand years later, “Fear not!” Elisha said, “They who are with us are more than those who are with them!” And then the Lord opened the eyes of Elisha’s servant and he saw the hills full of mighty horses and chariots of fire from the very heavenly hosts of God. Can you believe it?
What do you think happens when you bend your knees in prayer and believe the promises of God? Is it all just a pious reflection of the day’s events? Is it just a mindless recitation of the same old unconquered sins? Or do you see what the servant of Elisha saw? Do you see the mighty hosts of God moved to battle on your behalf? Do you see that in your deepest, darkest hour, victory could be just moments away? Faith first in the promises of God and the forces of darkness will be routed. “For me to live is Christ, to die is gain!” O Christian, let your heart turn purple for the cause of Jesus Christ.
Travel with me now in your mind’s eye to Arlington National Cemetery in our nation’s capitol. You cross the bridge over the Potomac River, you walk silently past the Marine Iwo Jima Memorial, and you enter the nation’s most sacred military burial grounds. How many lives have been sacrificed on the altar of freedom for our nation? The numbers are approximate but accurate. The Revolutionary War, 4400 dead. The Civil War, 500,000 dead. World War I, 116,000 dead. World War II, 407,000 dead. Korea, 37,000 dead. Vietnam, 58,000 dead. Now Iraq and Afghanistan, 1500 plus dead and thousands more severely wounded from the conflict. You walk slowly among the headstones of our buried veterans. Row upon row of gleaming white crosses stretch across the rolling hills to the horizon. You stoop down and read the names, the years of service given, and whether or not they survived the war they fought in or perished in the midst of it. Your heart is moved to tears by the price paid to secure our place as a nation. Admiral and sailor, General and Private, Captain and Petty Officer lie side by side. You will never forget their sacrifice, their devotion to duty to keep our nation free. But then like the cold rushing waters of a mountain waterfall, your soul is drowned in the thought, “All lives end in death.” No matter how courageous on the battlefield, no matter how brave in the face of death, all lives are laid to rest, finally, forever, unto the end of time, all lives. . . . except one. Jesus Christ. The credit belongs to the man in the arena whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood. Here is the world’s premier warrior. Here is the only one in the war-scarred history of this world that was beaten, slain, crucified, and left for dead but now is alive and resurrected! Tell His story!
Only One. . . Christ Jesus, our Lord, who says to your heart, “Forget Me not!” He is our destiny!
God bless all who serve in uniform, past and present.
The Lord richly bless all families who anxiously await their loved ones to come back home. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for May 29, 2005
TOPIC: Contradictory PrayersANNOUNCER: Now, Pastor Ken Klaus answers questions from listeners. I’m Mark Eischer.
KLAUS: Hi, Mark.
ANNOUNCER: I think we have a most interesting question for our discussion today. It comes from a young listener who wants to know, “How does God decide which prayer to answer when people are praying two different ways for opposite things?”
KLAUS: Good question. It’s not the first time I’ve heard it. During the Civil War, the story goes, two pious Quaker ladies were comparing the qualities of the North’s Abraham Lincoln and the South’s Jefferson Davis. They got into the subject of prayer, and one of the ladies said, “I think the South will win because Davis is a man of prayer.” To which the other lady countered, “But Lincoln is a praying man, too.” The first lady said, “That’s true, but when President Lincoln prays, he tells so many stories that the Lord will just think he’s joking.” 150 years ago, that got a big laugh.
ANNOUNCER: But it really does get to the point. Lincoln was praying that the North would win. Davis was praying that the South would win. Both were sincere men. Both believed in their cause. Both believed and followed the same God, and both believed that God was on their side. So, how did God decide?
KLAUS: Difficult question. About twenty years ago I had a similar situation in my congregation in southwestern Minnesota. We were a farming community, which meant we were dependent upon the weather, to a very large extent. If theweather was good, the harvest would be increased. It was not unusual for farmers to come to me in times of drought, and ask me to pray for rain.
ANNOUNCER: And the rain came?
KLAUS: Far more often than not, usually within 24 hours.
ANNOUNCER: So what’s the problem?
KLAUS: Well, it was this: one day some other men of my congregation came to me who were not farmers. They were construction workers. Now in Minnesota, as you might imagine, they have a limited working season. They said, “Pastor, we appreciate your prayers for rain, but the truth is, every time you pray for rain, and it rains, we don’t work.”
ANNOUNCER: So here you had some people praying for rain, and others praying for dry weather. What did you do?
KLAUS: We prayed that the Lord would let it rain, but only at night. True story!
ANNOUNCER: The question is still on the table though. How does God decide what to do when He receives two contradictory prayers from sincere believers. Does He see who prays the longest, or the most sincerely? Or, do the prayers somehow cancel each other out? How does He decide?
KLAUS: I can give you two answers. The first is short. The second a bit longer.
ANNOUNCER: Let’s do the short answer first. How does God decide how to answer two opposite prayers?
KLAUS: The short answer is: I don’t know. My mind is far too small to understand God’s great mind.
ANNOUNCER: And the longer answer?
KLAUS: Well, it begins with, “I don’t know,” but it has this addition. God sees things differently than we do. He sees things more clearly, more accurately, more completely. Take a look at our simple prayer about rain. We want it to rain. That’s simple. But God, who sees things better than we ever could, takes a look and sees what that rain will accomplish. Will it help or hurt people? Will it set the stage for a deeper faith, or will it lead people to riches and pride? Will people thank Him, or will they think they are the ones who are in control?
ANNOUNCER: Martin Luther once said that we pray for things that only seem to be good, but God answers prayers in ways that really are good. And it could be that God is granting our prayer even when He doesn’t do exactly what we’re asking Him to do. Luther said, for example, if he were to pray for God to remove a certain wicked ruler and it doesn’t happen, that doesn’t mean God didn’t hear his prayer. It’s just that God realizes that if He were to do that, five or six guys who were even worse might come along.
KLAUS: Luther said it. I believe God answers prayer for a higher good, a better good, a more complete good. Romans 8:28 says, “We know that in all thingsGod works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” He answers prayer purely out of divine grace. And He answers our prayers for the sake of Christ, who intercedes on our behalf.
ANNOUNCER: Anything else?
KLAUS: Just one thing more. Since we believe God knows better than we do, that’s why we’ve been taught to pray, “Thy will be done.”
ANNOUNCER: Thank you, Pastor Klaus.