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On November 19, 1863 President Abraham Lincoln met with others at the site of the battlefield at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania to dedicate a part of that battlefield to be the Soldier's National Cemetery for those who fell there. This was only four and one-half months after the Union forces had defeated those of the confederacy on that field.

The Hon. Edward Everett, a politician, preacher, educator and diplomat of the day gave a two hour oratory just before President Lincoln spoke, but it was Lincoln's speech, of just over two minutes, that goes down in history as one of the greatest English speeches of all times. In that two (plus) minutes he iterated the principles of the human equality that was espoused by the Declaration of Independence. Among other things he spoke those now iconic words, "The world will little note nor long remember what we say here, but we must never forget what they did here." Men and women have fought and died for freedom since the world began and it remains one of our most precious and sought after ideals. It is altogether fitting that we should have such a memorial, as Memorial Day, to celebrate the ones who have given the ultimate sacrifice that we might be a free people. Because of this we know...freedom is never free.

Dictionary.com defines "memorial" thusly: "something designed to preserve the memory of a person, event, etc., as a monument or a holiday."

While it is a wonderful thing that we have a national holiday to memorialize those who died for our freedom we, as Christians, observe another memorial that celebrates a different kind of freedom...freedom from sin. For us, every Sunday is Memorial Day. Just as we must "never forget what they did" at Gettysburg and on other battle fields, so we also must never forget was Jesus Christ did when he submitted to crucifixion on the cross of Calvary. He instituted a memorial that we should observe on each Sunday so that we will "never forget" the sacrifice that He made. Freedom is never free.

Today, let us partake of the emblems in memorial to the death of Christ for the sins of the world. Tomorrow, please take some time to reflect on the why and how America is still the greatest country on the face of the earth.