In our country today, we celebrate Memorial Day, a day on which we remember and pay tribute to the many men and women throughout our nation’s history who have given their lives while serving in our armed forces. We honor the fallen who willingly faced death in order to protect and defend the principles and the freedom that we treasure as a nation. In this country, we enjoy such freedoms as the freedom of speech and the freedom to worship God. Those who have died in military service have done so in order to help us retain such freedoms. Theirs was the ultimate sacrifice that a person can make. Jesus said, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13, KJV).
Jesus not only told us what constitutes a love that great, but He also put His words into action. His love for each and every one of us was so great that He willing faced death and gave His life on the cross of Calvary. Just as our fallen military heroes have given their lives for our freedom, so Jesus gave His life in order to set us free from the bondage of our sin. Jesus set us free from the yoke of slavery that we bore due to our sin. We should never take this freedom lightly. We must stand firm in our faith in the One who set us free and never allow ourselves to be burdened by the chains of sin again (Galatians 5:1). God has called us to be free, but we must not use that freedom to satisfy our own worldly and selfish desires. Instead, we should use our freedom to serve one another in humility and in love (Galatians 5:13).
Just as we treasure our freedom as a nation, may we also treasure the freedom that we have as brothers and sisters in Christ, when we choose to believe in Him and to follow in His ways. And, just as we remember the brave and selfless men and women who gave their lives protecting our freedom, let us also remember the One who died for us so that we may have the ultimate freedom – the freedom to come before God and stand in His presence.
A Worshiper's Journal 