Welcome to the Potter's House Salmon Arm podcast. We are a Bible-Believing Church located
in beautiful British Columbia, Canada. We are proudly part of the Christian Fellowship
Ministries with 3,000 churches around the world. We are a church focused on world evangelism,
discipleship and church planting. Here we will share recent sermons from P.H.S.A. Church
and other sermons from throughout our fellowship. I am Pastor David Bickford and I will be your
host for this podcast. I thank you for listening today and we hope these messages are a blessing
to you and bring you closer to God.
Hello and welcome back to the podcast. Today I've put together a special message for Remembrance
Day or Veterans Day which was celebrated yesterday but it's something that's definitely important
to me and I wanted to do a special message. So again, my name is David Bickford. I'm the
pastor here at the Potter's House Salmon Arm and the title of today's message is Mighty
Men of Valor and we're going to be looking at Remembrance Day and Veterans Day throughout
this message. So if you're following along with me in the Word of God today, you can
go ahead and turn to 1 Chronicles 12 verses 1 through 2 which will be kind of our launching
off point with this message today. As we dive in though, I want to again take a moment to
recognize that Remembrance Day, Veterans Day was yesterday and with that, it can be a very
solemn holiday for a lot of people. Again, in the states where I'm from originally, it
is called Veterans Day now. I'll kind of explain the reasons why but it's more of a celebratory
event versus the more somber event here in Canada. But as we recognize Remembrance Day
in Canada and Veterans Day in the United States, we have to understand kind of the history
behind it. What are we doing this for? Why are we observing these holidays? Remembrance
Day was first observed in 1919 throughout the British Commonwealth and the United States.
It was originally called Armistice Day to commemorate the Armistice Agreement that ended
the First World War on Monday, November 11th, 1918 at 11 a.m. On the 11th hour of the 11th
day of the 11th month, that is the whole purpose behind the date on Veterans Day, Remembrance
Day and originally was called Armistice Day and in some places it's still called Armistice
Day. So like I mentioned, this is a very solemn holiday in Canada that recognizes the sacrifice
of young lives in war. And so it's primarily looking at those who we've lost during this
time during any kind of war that has happened in Canadian or Commonwealth history. The American
holiday was changed into Veterans Day on June 1st, 1954 to become a day to honor American
veterans of all wars. This change changed the tone of the holiday in the States to one
that's more of a celebration than of grief. So in the United States there's also another
holiday that's called Memorial Day that's in May and it's meant to honor those who gave
their lives in war. And it's in a lot of ways more similar or in some ways it's more similar
to Remembrance Day than Veterans Day is today. But this provides us a picture of war that
is made up of both grief and celebration. We remember those who we've lost but we also
celebrate all who have served and the sacrifices made by all who are called, pulled, or pushed
into service. In the Word of God we see similar stories about service, sacrifice, grief, and
celebration as well as duty and honor. The dichotomy between these varying ideas is central
to the Gospel message. Christ had to go to the cross and die for our sins if we were
ever going to be reconciled to our God. Christ's rising allows us to therefore be redeemed
by grace and join in celebration and have direct relationship with our Lord. So as we
set time aside to remember those who have served, let us not forget the one who we are
called to serve and the sacrifice that he made for us on Calvary. In 1 Chronicles 12,
1 through 2 it says, this is about the mighty men of David. Now these are the men who came
to David at Ziglag while he could not move about freely because of Saul the son of Kish
and they were among the mighty men who helped him in war. They were bowmen who could shoot
arrows, sling stones with either the right hand or the left. So right away we get a picture
of amazing men who are willing to sacrifice for something that they believe to be greater
than themselves. And I find it very interesting and I'm sure this is something that might
resonate with many people out there is that when you find someone who's righteous, when
you see someone who you can put your faith in, it's an attracting thing for people. These
mighty men saw King David before he was a king and something drew them to service for
him. As we dig into this idea of Remembrance Day or Veterans Day, it is good to keep in
the right reverence or keep in mind the reverence that King David had for his men. David's mighty
men were courageous and valiant warriors. These men were exemplary and it is one of
the most interesting pieces of scripture when you look at the numbers of amazing people
that King David was able to attract to his service, many whom came to serve him before
he was even crowned king. We know that through the scripture he was anointed king by the
prophet Samuel, but this reality of his anointing drew people to him because he was a righteous
man after God's own heart. As a Marine, I myself, I remember being drawn into service
by stories of amazing and courageous men, men who bore the title of Marine, or bore
the title of Marine. These stories of valiant men galvanized and encouraged me to strive
to be even just a little more like them. I won't bore you with many stories today, but
I do want to highlight one or two. Sergeant Major Daniel Joseph Daly, or also Dan Daly,
retired from the Marine Corps. Marine Sergeant with a nearly suicidal courage was awarded
two medals of honor and nominated for a third. Sergeant Major Dan Daly is the only enlisted
member of the Marine Corps to have earned the Medal of Honor twice. In fact, he is one
of only two Marines to have earned that dual distinction at all. His never give up attitude
and fighting spirit carried him through several conflicts and are still worthy of the highest
praise today. So let's take a look a little bit at Dan Daly. Dan Daly was born November
11th, 1873 in Brooklyn, New York to parents John and Ellen Daly. He had a sister named
Mary and a brother named David, and the family eventually moved to Glen Cove on Long Island.
According to the Marine Corps University, Daly was a fighter from the early age, likely
due to his small stature. He was only five feet, six inches tall and weighed about 132
pounds. So already we've set the stage. Here's a man of short stature, a man with a fighting
spirit though. So what's going to happen with this man? As a young man, Dan Daly spent his
time working as a struggling newsboy in Manhattan before enlisting in the Marine Corps in 1899
at the age of 26. Soon after he finished training, he was shipped off to China to serve in the
Peking during the Boxer Rebellion. By early August, 1900, Daly's unit was stationed along
the Tartar Wall, which was a defensive position south of the American diplomatic compound
toward the middle of the month, or middle of the month, intense enemy gunfire forced
them from their fortification. But then Private Daly and Captain Newt Hall managed to crawl
back into the wall to mount a defense. On August 14th, Hall left to get reinforcements
leaving Daly all by himself to hold the position. The young Marine single-handedly fended off
repeated sniper attacks and about 400 soldiers who tried to storm the wall until backup arrived.
His valor at action that day earned him his first Medal of Honor, which he received on
December 1901. So let's highlight real quickly. What is the Medal of Honor? The Medal of Honor
is the highest award that a United States service member can attain for actions in combat.
It is the epitome of achievement, if you will, or recognition for courage and valor under
fire. So it's an amazing thing for people to be awarded this even once. It's another
amazing thing on top of that to be awarded it and to live to tell the tale. There are
not many Medal of Honor recipients who actually live past the actions that they're awarded
for their bravery. Most of them are awarded this medal posthumously or after their death.
So this brings me to my first point, which is Remembrance Day, Veterans Day. What is
the purpose of Remembrance Day? Is it meant to be a day that we all sit around and feel
bad for the loss of life? Is it really meant to be such a somber event that it causes us
to stay frozen by our loss? I don't think that this is the intended purpose of the holiday.
I believe that the intent is to remind us to live our lives to the fullest, to sacrifice
in our own ways in order to make the lives of those around us better. We look to the
past to pay honor to those who go before us, but with the goal that we will pick up the
mantle and move forward with life that we have been given because of the sacrifices
made. In John 14 26 it says, But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send
in my name, he will teach you all things and bring you to remembrance all that I have said
to you. When Jesus Christ died and rose again, this passage came to fruition on the day
of Pentecost. Sometimes a sacrifice has to be made in order to make room for a bigger
blessing. It is not always easy to see the blessing in the beginning, and it oftentimes
does not make the loss any easier to manage in the moment. The reality still remains that
God does have a plan, and as we look back at history, it is hard to discount the sacrifices
made in World War I and World War II and not see the tremendous blessing that came about
out of those horrible events. As we look to the world stage today, it's
the world teetering again towards a large-scale conflict. It is even more important to remember
that we are standing for, or what we are standing for and who we were standing for in this world.
As Christians, we are called to serve an even higher purpose. That is why we turn to the
Word and to the example that we have in David and his mighty men, Joshua and his army, Jesus
our Lord and his disciples. These are the people who we should give the most time and
remembrance. Their sacrifices are why we are here today, able to have a direct relationship
with our Father. I have to cling to this because I have lost friends in military service myself.
I have to believe that God does work these things out for good. What I never want to
do though is to forget those who I've lost, those who served and did not make it home.
With that in mind, I want to read this to you. It is about a friend of mine that I served
with in the Marine Corps. It's somebody that I knew quite well when I was deployed to Iraq.
His name was Sergeant Michael Teotau. The article is from a more local newspaper because
he comes from a Filipino background. It reads, the Cordilleran warrior spirit and the Igorot
bravery has been reflected when US Marine Sergeant Michael E. Teotau chose the challenging
and most risky job in the world, becoming an explosive ordinance technician of the United
States Marines. Sergeant Teotau served with the 7th Engineer Support Battalion 1st Marine
Logistics Group, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force Base at Camp Pendleton in 2007. Teotau
lost his life while trying to defuse a bomb he was working on in the Anbar province in
Baghdad, Iraq. According to his mom, Michael was able to clear several bombs until there
was only one left that got him. The US military told the family that Michael was defusing
bombs to clear the way for a military convoy when he died. Without Michael, the lives of
more officers in that convoy would have been endangered. A friend of Michael, Sergeant
Pierce said that he remembered him for his competence while disarming as many as a dozen
bombs a day in the middle of an intense firefight. One thing about Mike, he always knew what
was going on, Sergeant Pierce said. If someone asked him what kind of bomb was that, he'd
say it has such and such parameters, you don't want to touch it. Felix Teotau, his uncle,
remembered him as a straightforward guy who since childhood has aspired to become a military
officer. From the time he was a child, he wanted to join the military. He was telling
me before he left that if he came back from Iraq, he was going to help us fix the house
and then go to college, his uncle said. Sergeant Michael Teotau has received numerous accommodations,
including an air medal, presidential unit accommodation, and a Marine Corps good conduct
medal. So when I served with Teotau, we used to call him the Filipino warrior. I was deployed
to Iraq in 2003. We were with the HMH 462 or the screw crew, which is a CH 53 helicopter
unit and he was a crew chief at the time. I was a plane captain. I'd said stopped flying,
but I would, we would work together quite often being in the same part of the unit,
the same shop. We used to sit around looking at like gun magazines and thinking, you know,
little paper magazines for you. Those kids, they don't remember that stuff. Thinking about
things that we wanted to do in the Marine Corps. We discussed going EOD. I remember
having conversations with him and I sometimes even feel guilty about having almost like
talked him into being coming at EOD or an explosive ordinance disposal technician. I
even remember being jealous when I learned that he actually did get to cross deck or
change jobs from being a crew chief to being an EOD tech. He was a little bit ahead of
me about six months to a year ahead of me from our, our, our entry times into the Marine
Corps. So he crossed decked and he went and did it. And by the time the choice came to
me, whether or not I was going to do that, I, I went a different route. I ended up getting,
you know, married, thank God. And, and I was already saved at that point. So God had a
different plan for my life. The Lord took me in that different direction, but I'll always
remember, you know, my time serving with Teotau, the Filipino warrior. It impacted me a lot.
I even still have the clippings from, from when I, uh, from the Marine Corps times when
his obituaries picture was in there as one of the lost during the, during the early parts
of the Iraq war. I have to believe that his impact as you read this article has gone way
beyond his death. His sacrifice has gone on to impact so many people. There's, there's
different things I've read in putting this sermon together that just remind me that even
though someone has passed, that doesn't mean that their contribution has gone away. And
that is what, you know, remembered state really is about. It's about living our lives to the
fullest because of people like Sergeant Teotau who put their life on the line and he put
his life on the line and in first in serving in the military and then in becoming a crew
chief, like, you know, I was a crew chief and it's a very dangerous job in and of itself.
But then he went even further to find a more dangerous job as being an explosive ordinance
disposal technician. This life of service is an example. And that is what we should
be remember is his life of service, which brings me my second point, which is David's
mighty men of valor. And we'll look at our text or look at the text of Sam, second Samuel
23, eight through 12. David's mighty men. These are the names of the mighty men who
David had. Jehoshua, Bass, she Beth, a Tacca might. He was chief of the three. He wielded
a spear against 800 whom he killed at one time. And next to him among the three mighty
men were Eliza son of Dodo, son of Ahoy, Ahoy I. He was with David when they defied the
Philistines who were gathered there for battle and the men of Israel with and the men of
Israel withdrew. He rose and struck down the Philistines until his hand was weary and his
hand clung to the sword. And the Lord brought about a great victory that day. And the men
returned after him only to strip the slain. And next to him was Shema, the son of Aghi,
the Herite. The Philistines gathered together at Lehi where there was a plot of ground full
of lentils and the men fled from the Philistines. But he took his stand in midst of the plot
and defended it and struck down the Philistines. The Lord worked a great victory.
When we look at the word of God, we often see that when righteous men are lifted up,
they tend to attract others with the same spirit. Some call it charisma, but in the
case of David, it was his relationship with God that supernaturally attracted the best
of the best to serve with him. These first three of David's mighty men were the inner
circle. They weren't the whole lot. They were the inner circle. And we see these three again
in 2 Samuel 23, 13 through 17. It says, In the three of the thirty chiefs, men went down
and came about a harvest time to David at the cave of Adulam when a band of Philistines
was encamped in the valley of Repham. David was then in the stronghold in the garrison
of the Philistines, was then at Bethlehem. And David said longly, Oh, that someone would
give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem that is in the gate, that is by the gate.
Then the three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines and drew water out
of the well of Bethlehem. And that was by the gate and carried and brought it to David.
But he would not drink of it. He poured it out to the Lord and said, Far be it for me,
O Lord, that I should do this. Shall I drink the blood of men who went to risk their lives?
Therefore he would not drink it. These things the three mighty men did. These men do this
amazing, tremendous thing. And David recognizes what they have done. And he says, I cannot
partake in this water that came from such high sacrifice. David's humility gave him
the right perspective when viewing the actions of his men. Bravery and courage of this nature
should not be overlooked or held as something common. It is worthy to be held in reverence
and to give thanks to God for the actions of such men. So as we look again, let's take
a turn back to the story of Sergeant Major Dan Daly, because we're only halfway through
the story for him. He's only gotten his one Medal of Honor at this point. In the summer
of 1915, a revolt in the Republic of Haiti had begun to jeopardize American lives and
property. So Marine Expeditionary Forces were sent in to preserve order and begin a bush
warfare as Marine historians called it. Daly was serving with the 15th Company Mounted
Second Marine Regiment, and they were ordered to carry out extensive patrols into the country's
interior to seek out revolutionary fighters known as the Cacao Bandits. At one point,
several of Daly's comrades had been taken prisoner. He tunneled under the walls of the
prison where they were being held, killed the guards and set his men free. However,
what earned him a second Medal of Honor happened in October during reconnaissance mission from
Fort Liberté. On October 24th, 1915, then Gunnery Sergeant Daly and his detachment were
crossing the river after dark and deep ravine not far from Fort Dipety when they were suddenly
fired upon from three sides by 400 Cacao Bandits who had been hiding in the bushes about 100
yards from the enemy held fort. The surprise Marines were treated to the higher ground
and found a good position that they maintained throughout the night despite being constantly
fired upon. At daybreak, Daly and two other Marines, then First Lieutenant Edward Osterman
and then Captain William P. Upshur led three squads forward in different directions to
surprise and scatter the Cacows. Their efforts worked and there was an instrumental in capturing
Fort Dipety. Daly, Osterman and Upshur all earned the Medal of Honor for their actions
that day. The amazing story of Sergeant Major Daly is not even near over yet. It's an amazing
story of heroism and gallantry. Even better stories are the stories of our savior and our
apostles. But it's a powerful thing to read about what these men can do. But this brings
me to my last point which is Christ our King, the ultimate sacrifice and his defeat over
sin and death. In John 16, 5-11 it says, But now I'm going to him who sent me. None of
you asks me, Where are you going? But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has
filled your heart. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I
go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will
send him to you, and when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness
and judgment. Concerning sin because they do not believe in me, concerning righteousness
because I go to the Father and you will see me no longer, concerning judgment because
the ruler of this world is judged. The Gospel of the New Testament starts a different
epoch for us as Christians and believers. It is the knowledge that even though we experience
loss we are not left alone. Even as the enemy wages war against us, we stand against sin
and the knowledge that the battle is already won. We already know the battle has been won
for by Jesus Christ. John 16, 20, Truly, truly I say to you, you will weep and lament, but
the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy.
Very similar to the idea of Remembrance Day, that we weep and we lament, but we also know
that our sorrow will turn into joy. The sacrifices from past generations, the sacrifices of my
generation and today's conflicts, it will be a very, very hard time of sorrow. It has
been a time of sorrow, but it will be something that can be turned into joy.
So in closing, let's finish off the story of Sergeant Major Dan Daley. As his valor
continues, Daley remained in the military throughout World War I, serving in the American
Expeditionary Forces in France from November 17th to the late April 1919. He is injured
twice while fighting in several major campaigns, including the bloody battle of Belleau Wood
in June 1918. During that fight, he put out a fire at an ammo dump that could have caused
disastrous explosion. Then a few days later, he attacked and captured the enemy machine
gun and placement all by himself before rescuing several wounded comrades while under fire.
At Belleau Wood, when his Marines were outnumbered, outgunned, pinned down, the then first sergeant
famously ordered the attack and leapt forward shouting a battle cry to his beleaguered men
where he says something a little untoward. He says, come on you SOBs, do you want to
live forever? It's a pretty famous saying and it's pretty
coarse, but here he is. He's in battle. Daley's tenacity helped lead the Marines to clear
the woods and win the battle for the Allied forces. His actions earned him an Army Distinguished
Service Cross and the Navy Cross. From the French government, he also received the Medal
Militaire and the Croix de Guerre with a Palm and French Victory Medal with four clasps.
The biggest distinction of Dan Daley was that he was humble till the end. Daley was offered
a commission many times to become an officer throughout his 30-year career, but he always
turned it down on the grounds that he would rather be an outstanding sergeant than just
another officer. Daley was also known to have talked about the exploits of others who fought
bravely, but when it came to talking about himself, he was always tight-lipped. Marine
Q University biography of Daley said that while he was a natural for publicity, he disdained
it and disliked all the fuss made over him. Daley continued to be known as one of the
most decorated men to serve as a Marine, nicknamed Devil Dog by many of his compatriots. He was
described by the famed counterpart Major General Smedley Butler, the only other Marine Corps
double Medal of Honor recipient as the fightingest man ever to serve in the United States Marine
Corps. That term Devil Dog that was used as a nickname for Dan Daley became a name
that all Marines to this day are known by because of that Battle of Belleau Wood. The
actual term used by the Germans was Teffelhunden. When they were talking about the Marines during
this battle, they said that these Marines are like dogs from hell. Their veracity, their
fighting spirit, and to this day that's something that Marines always look back to.
So we all have heroes, heroes in our life, heroes we know and heroes that we don't know.
We also have heroes in the faith, those who went before us and made righteous stands so
that we could be counted as sons and daughters of the living God. So on this Remembrance
Day Veterans Day weekend, let's remember the sacrifice made, but let's also remember why
sacrifices are made. They are made so that we can live and we shall live because of those
sacrifices and rejoice. So I just want to end by reading in Flanders Field. This is
the poem that was written by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae that really sums up the Canadian
into the Commonwealth Remembrance Day.
In Flanders field the poppies blow, between the crosses, crosses row on row, that mark
our place and in the sky, the larks still bravely singing fly.
Scarce heard amid the guns below, we are the dead short days ago.
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, loved and were loved and now we lie in Flanders
field. Take up your quarrel with the foe, to you from failing hands we throw, the torch
be yours to hold head high, if you break faith with us who die. We shall not sleep though
poppies grow in Flanders fields.
This was published in Punch Magazine December 8th, 1915 and it's the reason why the red
poppy is worn in most of the Commonwealth countries to celebrate Armistice Day and Remembrance
Day.
But remember that our Savior who went to the grave for us, he sacrificed himself for us
so that we could come back in to right relationship with God and he is the greatest of things
for us to remember.
If I could have every head bowed, every eye closed, obviously for driving, keep your hands
attendant to, but if you're not, I want you to bow your head and remember that the purpose
for Remembrance Day is obviously to look at the sacrifice of those who have served in
wars and passed away and the idea of Veterans Day is to give honor to the sacrifice of both
those that have passed and both that are living today that have served in our militaries,
who have served honorably protecting Western civilization, which is anchored in the Christian
morality, which is anchored by the Bible.
What we have today is because of what others have sacrificed before us, but no greater
sacrifice is the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.
The sacrifice he made on the Calvary for us is what we should most remember and it's what
many of these service members who have passed laid their lives down for us, is for our ability
to come to Christ in repentance.
So if you're not saved this morning, if this message has impacted you in some way and you
know that you're not right with God, I want you to signify that with an uplifted hand.
Wherever you are, I can't see it, but obviously God can see everything and he can see your
heart right now.
So with that, if you did raise your hand, I want you to repeat this simple prayer after
me.
Dear Lord God, I know that I'm a sinner, but I know that you sent your son Jesus Christ
who died on the cross for my sin.
I accept Jesus into my heart as my Lord and Savior as I repent from my sins and I thank
you for your grace washing me clean by the blood of the Lamb.
In Jesus name we pray, Amen.
It's a very simple prayer, but if you said that and you meant that, I feel the Holy Spirit
will work upon you even in this moment, but that means you have passed from death into
life as a new creation in Jesus Christ.
And now is the time to put that memory of what Christ done for us, who's done for all
of us, because our God is a living God, Jesus is alive.
So he sacrificed in death, but he rose from the grave to bring us that right relationship
with God.
So take that and remember that.
So make Remembrance Day, make Veterans Day, make every holiday about the one who gave
the ultimate sacrifice so that we could be washed clean of our sins.
I thank you for joining me for this special message.
As a Marine myself, these military holidays have a special impact for me and I just felt
it right to make sure that we express both honor for those who have sacrificed here on
earth, service members from the Canadian military, the American military, the British military,
all the militaries from the Western world, but also to highlight the truth that the one
who we should really remember is Jesus Christ who died on Calvary for us and rose from the
grave that we might be saved.
Thank you again and I can't wait for you to come back next time.
Thank you for listening to the P.H.S.A. Potter's House Salmon Arm podcast.
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