Lesson 199:SACRIFICES

Kentucky Chaplain David Chaltas

SACRIFICES

Fifty-six men stepped out on faith. They were keenly aware that their actions were considered to be treasonous and they were labeled as traitors. Yet they stood upon the vision of tomorrow for they heard freedom’s bell ringing in the distance. Fifty-six men who, if the great experiment failed, would be hung by the neck until dead, was glad to take upon their shoulders individual sacrifices in order for their dream to be realized. Of those men declaring their vision, five were captured, twelve had their home ransacked, two lost their sons in the war, and two sons were captured. They knew the high cost of freedom’s call and that the penalty of losing the adventure would be death if captured. All were Christians on a mission. (Men of Destiny; Pelton, Robert W.; Infinity Publishing; West Conshohockers, PA; @2007)

Thomas Jefferson knew quite well what would happen if he was captured. Benjamin Franklin recognized that his signature represented and the significance of failure. Francis Lightfoot Lee felt God’s hand in the undertaking He stated, “For one to sincerely believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, is to live happily and with little worry. This I do without reservation. I unquestionably enjoy the peace of mind He brings to me. I trust Him fully.” His brother, Richard Henry Lee understood that freedom had to be won by a clash of wills and weapons. It was Richard who stated, “To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms, and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them.” ALL fifty-six patriots knew the sacrifices of the struggle ahead, yet they offered all for their beliefs. Some names are household items while others are not well known. But ALL are heroes who, if the struggle had been lost, would have been known as traitors. Such are the spoils of war.

The thirteen original colonies heard the call and followed the drum and fife, recognizing the sacrifices for freedom’s sake would be paid in blood. They were Carolinas (Later divided into North and South Carolina), Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Virginia. They were all Christian states.

Ask yourself the following questions asked by the first rebels. Do you recognize these words of subversion? What significance do they have and are they still pertinent today? Note that God is mentioned in both paragraphs. How important was/is God in the formation and maintenance of this government?

“When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.—Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government.”

Sacrifices! Another generation heard the call for sacrifices and was answered by the sons and daughters of Dixie, knowing that they might lose all. Colonel Robert E. Lee was offered complete command of the grandest army in the world, yet for honor and loyalty, to his beloved Virginia, declined the offer. He realized that he might lose all but the call of freedom rang as true for him as his father, Harry ‘Light Horse’ Lee and his granduncles who signed the Declaration of Independence. Mary R. Custis Lee’s (wife of Robert E. Lee), beautiful home which was called Arlington, was seized a couple of weeks later and their other properties were taken or destroyed. Arlington, that stately mansion built by the adopted son of George Washington to pay homage to him, became a cemetery to spite the Lees for their choice. Arlington, the thirty year home of the Lee family was wrongly taken (in 1893 the Supreme Court overruled the possession of the house, stating it was taken illegally) and made into a cemetery. The White House Plantation (south shore of the Pamunkey River, a few miles upriver from Chestnut Grove) where George and Martha Washington were married, and belonged to Mary Custis Lee, was burned in retribution of Lee’s choice to stay with his beloved state. Others too became destitute for following their convictions of conscience. Many offered the ultimate sacrifice by giving their lives for their beliefs.

But all the sacrifices of mortals pale in comparison to the sacrifice made by a man nailed to a cross. He offered His life for the redemption of the world. He realized the cost. He knew the pain. He recognized the sacrifice to be made. Yet He was willing, perfectly willing, to offer up His last breath during a temporary death in order for us to have eternal life. The mocking, the spitting, the hitting, the cursing, the humiliation, and the torture, were the ultimate steps taken to the cross, so we could realize true freedom. John 3:16 states, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Here is love without limits through the willingness to offer oneself for others. John 15:13 confirms this truth: “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” This we know: Jesus laid down His life for us. Is it not honorable to stand up for Him and be willing to lay down our lives for our beliefs?

Our ancestors stood upon sacred principles that they were duty bound to maintain, no matter the sacrifice. They knew the cost yet were encouraged by the promises of a better tomorrow, and God’s word of everlasting days. They were men of faith and followed the carpenter for Galilee. They embraced the words of Romans 8:38-19: “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Compatriots, this day our very religious freedom is under attack. No longer is God allowed in our schools. Public prayer is discouraged, yet in a personal or national crisis, who do we call upon for help? Would he not be more inclined to answer our prayers because we worship Him in the sun instead of calling upon Him in the storm? What is the cost of our freedom? Does it not entail the sacrifices of those brave men and women willing to offer their lives for that very freedom of speech and worship? Did they not follow the example of our one and only Saviour Jesus Christ? What sacrifices have you made this day for God, Country and Honor? You and you alone possess the strength to stand up for Christ in a world gone amuck. I call upon you to pray openly and be an example of sacrifice for others to emulate, as I remain humbled by God’s calling of self sacrifice and serving. The Old General/Army of Tennessee Chaplain

With Sacred Principles to Maintain, I remain humbled to serve as The Old General