Have You Ever Heard A Memorial Day Sermon Like This?
Does scripture agree with culture's 'toxic masculinity' view of the military, or take a different view?
The military trains for precisely one thing: to neutralize threats.
That’s a polite way of describing hard decisions, destruction, and carnage, to say nothing of the personal sacrifice of those called upon to execute that task while wearing the nation’s flag.
Memorial Day Weekend is the day set aside on America’s calendar to remember those who don’t come back from such service.
Academia, Hollywood, political activism and others have been throwing mud at the military for generations now, especially when they could do so to undermine a President they dislike. Even Christians are pulled in different directions on the question of what a Christian should believe about military service.
We could pull out individual examples like when (not-yet-king) David viewed the sacrifice of the three mighty men of his outlaw band who went across enemy lines, and brought David back some water from the well in Bethlehem that he longed for. David bcouldn’t drink it, since it represented the lifeblood and sacrifice of his men, but poured it out as an act of worship to Almighty God.
John the Baptist never told Roman soldiers to desert. Instead, he told them to be just and fair in the use of the power they have over others. (Luke 3)
We all know that a couple of texts, out of context, can be twisted to support almost any position. History has shown us a range of Christian positions from pacifists to soldiers marching off to faraway Crusades.
What does the wider scope of scripture teach us to think about the sorts of sacrifices we remember on Memorial Day, and the people who make them?
Click play and find out.