II Timothy 2:3-4II Timothy 2:3-4 3Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs– he wants to please his commanding officer.

3Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs– he wants to please his commanding officer.

John 15:13John 15:13 13Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.

13Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.

7Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.

7Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.

Romans 13:7Romans 13:7

Honor to Whom Honor…A Sermon from Soldiers to Soldiers

Dear President Eisenhower, “After listening to the news about the cold war, I am worried about the people in the world. In thinking it over, I have a plan. Get all the leaders together who want war, put them in a ring and let them fight it out.” -Keith Aiken, Trumbell, CT, age 8

“You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars.

See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place,

but that is not yet the end.” (Matthew 24:6)

General Sherman once said,“You don’t know the horrible

aspects of war. I’ve been through two wars and I know. I’ve seen cities and homes in ashes. I’ve seen thousands of men lying on the ground,

their dead faces looking up at the skies.

I tell you, war is hell!”

WWII qualifies as the most hellish war in history

61 countries, with 1.7 billion people More that 1 trillion dollars 5-6 million Jews in the Holocaust 55 million dead

25 million military 30 million civilian

As someone wrote:

It is the veteran,

Not the preacher,

Who has given us

Freedom of religion.

As someone wrote:

It is the veteran,

Not the reporter,

Who has given us

Freedom of the press.

As someone wrote:

It is the veteran,

Not the poet,

Who has given us

Freedom of speech.

As someone wrote:

It is the veteran,

Not the campus organizer,

Who has given us

Freedom to assemble.

As someone wrote:

It is the veteran,

Not the lawyer,

Who has given us

Freedom to a fair trial.

As someone wrote:

It is the veteran,

Not the politician,

Who has given us

Freedom to vote.

1. Obey the Commander

Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.

No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life,

so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.

(II Timothy 2:3-4)

Jesus is our ultimateCommander-in-Chief!

He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over

all things to the church.(Eph.1:22)

“No you don’t understand.” The officer shot back,“You’re in the Navy!”

“Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’

and do not do what I say?” (Luke 6:46)

2. Engage the Enemy

Our World View

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers,against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of

wickedness in the heavenly places. (Eph. 6:12)

Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. (I Peter 5:8)

3. Fight to the End!

“Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold.

But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved…”

(Matthew 24:12-14)

“Fight one more round. When your arms are so tired that you can hardly lift your hands to come on guard,

fight one more round. When your nose is bleeding

and your eyes are black and you are so tired

that you wish your opponent would crack you one on the jaw

and put you to sleep, fight one more round-remembering

that the man who fights one more round is never whipped.”

-James Corbett

“We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills. We shall never surrender.” -Winston Churchill

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course,

I have kept the faith. (II Timothy 4:7)

“War is an ugly thing but not the ugliest of things.The decayed and disregarded state of moral and patriotic feeling is much worse.The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight is a miserable creature…” -John Stewart Mill

Today we want to honor all our armed service veterans...

…and call on you to fight daily as a soldier of the Cross.