In April, 1863, in Columbus, Mississippi, after decorating graves of her two sons who died representing their beloved southland; an elderly woman walked to two mounds of dirt at the corner of the cemetery to place memorial flowers there also. “What are you doing?” friends shouted, “Those are the graves of two union soldiers.” Softly, that compassionate mother said, “I know. I also know that somewhere in the North, a mother or a young wife mourns for them as we do for ours.”
That compassionate action set in motion our celebration which has become known as Memorial Day. We honor the war dead once a year, but their sacrifice is evident every single day of the year! Today, we want to honor the memory of all those who have sacrificed their lives on the altar of freedom. Those thousands of sacrificed lives were not given in vain! Because of their sacrifice, we are free today and have the right to assemble ourselves together and worship our God in freedom.
For the child of God, Every Day Is Memorial Day. Today I want to put us in remembrance of another great Soldier and to remember the sacrifice He made. This great Soldier stepped onto a harsh battlefield of this world knowing that it would cost Him everything. He won a great victory, but at a terrible price. He gave His life, not for a nation, but for all humanity. His life was not a life given in vain, but the sacrifice of His life served to set free the captives of sin. This Great Soldier, “Jesus” who stepped out into this earth; commissioned by His Father to redeem people who were lost and without hope.
Ephesians 2:12 Remember that at that time you were separate from Christ——foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.
He paid a debt He did not owe. I owed a debt I could not pay. I needed someone to wash my sins away. And now I sing a brand new song, Amazing Grace. Christ Jesus paid a debt, that I could never pay. He paid a debt at Calvary, He cleansed my soul and set me free. I’m glad that Jesus died and all my sins were erased. I can now sing a brand new song “Amazing Grace” all day long.