Lest We Forget.

 It has been 102 years since the end of World War I, 75 years since the end of World War II, and 67 years since the Korean war.  More recently we have witnessed the conflicts in Afghanistan, Iran, and many other parts of the world.  We are war-weary.  No matter what we do, armed conflict seems inevitable.  

Today we will pause to remember.  We will honour the memory of those who served and died so we can live in safety, enjoying unprecedented freedoms and prosperity.  We should never take that for granted.  We commit to remembering because it might give pause before the next conflict begins.  That would be a good thing.

Forgetting is easy.  Remembering is not.  The passage of time slowly erodes our collective memory, that which is passed from generation to generation unless we make a concerted counter-effort.  

Knowing this tendency, God instructed the ancient peoples to build memorials much like we have cenotaphs today.  Their system of worship entrenched days of remembrance - of God’s creative work (Sabbath), of the Exodus (Passover), of provision while living in the wilderness (Festival of Tents). They erected stone pillars (Josh. 4:3-8; 1 Sam. 7:12) and wrote songs (Psalm 38) all for the purpose of remembering God’s faithfulness.

God remembers.  He remembers Abraham, Rachel, Noah.  He is alert to the events in His creation and not a single detail escapes His attention.  He remembers that we are made from dust, living in a broken environment and He responds to us in grace with compassion (Psa. 103:6-18).  He does not forget.  He is aware of our nature and our needs.  The greatest need He remembers is our need to be forgiven.

Words Matter:  Forgiveness.  Remembering is important but it isn’t enough.  Following God’s own example, there must also be a disposition to forgive.  Jesus taught us to forgive one another in the parable of the stewards (Matt. 18:23-35) and in the Lord’s Prayer (Matt. 6:9-15). Paul echoes this instruction to the church (Col. 3:12-13).  

Conflict is inevitable.  Therefore, forgiveness is essential.  We have little influence on events of the magnitude of World War I and II. However, we do choose our responses to our neighbours, co-workers, family, and other followers of Jesus.  When we remember, we must remember the horror of our own sinfulness before a holy God;  horrors for which we have received complete, absolute, and free forgiveness because of God’s love for us before we remember the offenses against ourselves.  We must remember the nature of grace received - undeserved and unmerited - and willingly extend that same grace to others.  We must not forget our own forgiveness.

We must pause to remember.  We must not forget.  And we must be forgiving.  Without forgiveness, conflict remains unresolved ready and able to raise its ugly head in a constant perpetuation of brokenness.  The horrors will continue.  They may not be observable on the global scale of devastation but the damage to our hearts and relationships is just as real.

As we bow are heads in silent prayer at 11:00 this morning, let us also bow our hearts before God thanking Him for our forgiveness and giving careful consideration to those who we may need to be forgiving. 

Lest we forget.