Hope Reformed Church, RCA

It’s Memorial Day weekend. Kids in our community are out of school. Plans have been made to ‘do something special’ with the long weekend. It an opportunity to proudly unfurl the American flag. Visits have been made to cemeteries to remember loved ones.

But let’s not forget what Memorial Day is about: Honoring those who made the supreme sacrifice of their lives during times of war. Remembering those who gave their tomorrows so we could have our todays.

“In defense of their country” is typically how we describe those who died. And that is so true. Yet those who died gave their lives for something larger than just defending our country; those who died gave their lived to defend everything this country stands for. The closing phrase of ‘The Pledge of Allegiance’ sums up nicely what this country stands for: “…one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

When I think of the word ‘citizen’ one of the words that comes to mind is ‘politics’ – defined as ‘the art or science of government.’

In the early day of our country, a group of people tried very hard to define how this country would work. So here’s the ‘pop quiz’: In what document will you find these words:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

I hope this little ‘pop quiz’ on civics hasn’t been too frustrating for you. Or at least not as frustrating as the civics lesson Jesus taught to the Pharisees and Herodians. The Pharisees were all about religion. And the Herodians were a Jewish political party whose principal objective was to have the Roman governor replaced by one of Herod the Great's descendants. Neither group liked what Jesus was doing. And both groups feared Jesus gaining too much power. So, as the Gospel of Mark tells us, they tried to catch Jesus in his words. The only thing they caught was some indigestion for themselves.

Our Lord was asked if it is proper to pay taxes to the Roman government. At Christ's request, one of them produces a Roman coin and Christ says, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's." Those of us who live in a democratic republic are Caesar. The word "give" (it’s ‘render’ in the RSV) carries a sense of duty or obligation. Christ commands his hearers to do their duty to civil government, and in the United States that means participation in the political process.

Francis Schaeffer spent a great deal of his life helping the church to broaden its understanding of what it means to “give to God what is God’s.” As he wrote in A Christian Manifesto, "True spirituality touches all of life, including things of government and law, and not just 'religious things.’” Life can’t be neatly categorized as ‘sacred’ and ‘secular.’ God is the God of the nations as well as of his covenant people.

In the book of Daniel, King Nebuchadnezzar is humbled to the point of grazing on grass. He had to learn the hard way that "the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes." The Israelites were often guilty of reducing God to a petty tribal deity - Yahweh, the God of the Jews. Amos is sent by God to remind them that just as God brought Israel up from Egypt, so He brought the Philistines from Crete and the Arameans from Kir. The self-interest of Christians today reflects the same error the Israelites made. God raises up his people to be a "blessing to all nations."

In order for us to be a ‘blessing to all nations’ it’s important to fulfill our civic responsibility by voting – and to be selective for whom we vote.

The God of the Bible has concerns that are all-embracing - not only the 'sacred' but the secular; not only his covenant people but all people. That’s why it’s important to elect strong Christian leaders.

On June 8^th, primary elections will be held in the State of Iowa. If you haven’t registered to vote, it’s not too late. If you’ll be away from your polling place, get an absentee ballot. You’ll find information in the Narthex on how to do both.

Here’s the critical thing: If Jesus says it’s important to give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to give to God what is God’s, how can you ‘give to God’ regarding your civic responsibility of voting?

The Iowa Family Policy Council has put together a ‘Voters Guide’ that may be helpful. It’s called “How to Select a Christian Statesman: Pray, Evaluate, Vote.” It’s very thorough. You can view it for yourself by going to the web address you see at the bottom of the screen.

There are also three very basic, very biblical questions you can ask candidates for political office – or try to learn the answers from information they’ve made available. These questions come from Terry Mattingly, who lives and works in Washington DC and writes about government, politics and faith. His idea behind these questions is this: Doctrine matters more than political labels, something that many leaders on the right forget as often as people on the left. By learning how candidates for political office answer (or don’t answer) these three questions, Mattingly says you learn a lot about their ‘Christian World View’ and how they bring their faith into politics.

(2) Is salvation found through Jesus Christ, alone? Was Jesus being literal when he said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6)?

These simple questions might not tell you much in the context of a check-this-box opinion poll. But Mattingly says he’s been asking these questions in the context of interviews, often face-to-face interviews, for many years. What you find, he says, is that the person being interviewed almost always tries to qualify the answer. If a candidate goes around and around and never does say “yes” or “no” it’s clear that he or she does not want to answer. And that is, of course, a very revealing answer.

According to the US constitution, “the blessings of liberty” are a part of our democracy. It’s why it’s important to note only vote but to vote wisely. Pray. Evaluate. Vote. “The blessings of liberty” - including the privilege to vote - are why men and women have laid down their lives for our country. I like to think ‘the blessings of liberty’ are the biggest and best reason why we remember them on Memorial Day.

Independence Day--it seems to me--ought to be the holiday for "busting our buttons" in pride and thanksgiving for our nation, for rejoicing and big fireworks displays. But Memorial Day ought to be more solemn and reflective. It is the holiday to remember the sacrifice of those who have given their lives to defend everything this country was founded upon.