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5-30-99 Would you be a Living Memorial? Mat. 28

by Ronald E. George Jr.

We are our own living memorials. As we live day by day we lay the foundation for memories that we leave behind. Ode Coombs said that each of us preach our own funeral by the life that we live. He said that to me on the very day that he graduated from this life to his heavenly home. Each of us carries the living memorials of those who have gone on before us. If we keep these memories alive we are living memorials. We need to tell the stories and share the memories with our friends, family, and neighbors. This enables us to carry the grief by sharing it with another, but it also keeps the memories alive. It keeps our loved ones alive. At times the memories can carry great pain but at the same time this sharing can be one of the greatest blessings to us and to others.

As believers and followers of Christ we have the greatest privilege of being a living memorial for Him. Today's scripture shows that Jesus gave this command to his disciples before he ascended. As living memorials of Christ we can keep his memory alive. That memory is the good news that the Child was born in Bethlehem. He grew to be a man who died for our sins. He arose the third day and commissioned his followers to be living memorials of him. This memorial can be the source of life-giving salvation to our friends and family who listen and follow as we have. That is a memory. Do you remember the day? That Jesus came into your heart? As we bear his memory we keep him with us as we go. We can keep them with us as we go.

Scripture Text: Matt 28:16 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them. 17 And when they saw him, they worshipped him: but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen.

Would you become a living memorial?

As living memorials we worship Him as our risen God. We have grown beyond the doubting stage although many still doubt. We have reached the place were we no longer have questions about his authenticity. We know he is real. We know he is alive. We know that he has ascended. And we await his soon return. One of the greatest memories that we can leave for our loved ones and friends is that we were a worshipper. We grew past doubt. We are a believer and follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. We had given our life to the Lord. We were saved and baptized. We were serving the Lord as members of the local church which we attended. We weren't just attendees but we were servants of the Lord in the church. There is no doubt where we stand with the Lord. We are striving to become a living memorial of the Lord.

As Living Memorials we honor Him by carrying out his purpose. The mission of the Sand Fork Baptist Church is to advance God's Kingdom to this generation. If we fulfill this mission we will be carrying out the purpose that Jesus gave to his disciples. He told them to go to all nations and baptize them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And teach them all things by making them disciples like we are. We carry out his purpose when go, baptize, and teach. As we build our memorial, our friends and family are hearing about Jesus from us. They know who he is because they have seen him in us. As we tell the old, old story of Jesus and his love. They have seen the way we care for others even if they rub us the wrong way. They have seen the way we care for lost, the lonely, and the least of society. They have seen the way we give of our lives including our time and our talents. They have seen the way we were willing to give our money to the poor. They have seen Jesus. They have heard the word that we said as we told them what God has said in the Bible. They have heard Jesus. They have felt a caring hand during times of grief and suffering when the tears of sorrow we shared with them. They have felt Jesus. They have witnessed our faith, testimony, and Baptism and have been baptized themselves, as Jesus commanded for all those who would follow him to take this step of initiation into his life. We have been born again and so have they. They have followed Jesus.
As Living Memorials we glorify Him by living in his promise. Daily we live in the promise that Jesus said that he would never leave us or forsake us. He said that he was with us always even to the end of the world or age. He sent the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost that we may all have the continual presence of the Savior. As we live daily in his presence we can enjoy the power of the Lord who lives within. He is always present to provide the words, the way, or the whatever that we need to continue to abide with him. A living memorial continues to live or it is dead. When it dies all that is left is the memories. That is why it is so important that we pass on the Lord in this generation. This is our generation not theirs. The memory of the gospel and the memory of our loved ones lives will only be remembered if we pass them on. The old song says that it only takes a spark to get a fire going. But there must be that spark that contains the fire of the Spirit that danced on the heads of those believers on the day of Pentecost. It is still carried on through you and me. We can only reach our friends, family, and neighbors. How can we do it unless it is in the power of the Lord. That is why we say to him thine be the glory. We can do nothing, but nothing is impossible with the Lord.