Known But To God

Just outside Washington, D.C., across the sparkling blue waters of the Potomac River, lies Arlington National Cemetery. Since 1864 some 45,000 plus courageous individuals have been laid to rest beneath the soil of the gently sloping hill of that impressive field. Among the honored dead is the tomb of the Unknown Soldier. This tomb has become a national shrine and is Arlington’s outstanding memorial. Thousands stand quietly and reverently at its graveside annually. The inscription on the tomb reads: “Here, known but to God, lies an unknown soldier.” That particular tomb has come to represent all the men and women of our armed services who’ve bravely fought and dies defending our nation’s freedom. It’s not only a memorial for every major general, but for every grunt and unknown soldier who’ve sacrificed so much protecting life, liberty and happiness.

It Is The Soldier by Charles M. Province, U.S. Army, November 1, 2004. “It is the Soldier, not the minister; Who has given us freedom of religion. It is the Soldier, not the reporter; Who has given us freedom of the press. It is the Soldier, not the poet; Who has given us freedom of speech. It is the Soldier, not the campus organizer; Who has given us freedom to protest. It is the Soldier, not the lawyer; Who has given us the right to a fair trial. It is the Soldier, not the politician; Who has given us the right to vote. It is the Soldier who salutes the flag; Who serves beneath the flag; And whose coffin is draped by the flag; Who allows the protester to burn the flag.”

[Matthew 6:1-8; 16-18] The Bible has its unknown soldiers scattered throughout its sacred pages; that is, godly soldiers who teach us about sacrifice, courage, love and faith. Their identities are known only to God; however, the good that they accomplished will be forever etched in the annals of Sacred Script. For example, there were the seven thousand who did not bow to Baal (1 Kings 19:18). There was the maid-servant of Naaman who led her master to a cure (2 Kings 5:2-3). Who can forget the poor widow who gave her last two mites to God (Mark 12: 43-44)? In addition, there were those early Christians who, despite persecution, continued faithfully in their service to God (Acts 8:1-4). Just ordinary, every-day people who did what they could for the cause of Christ. Jesus taught in his famous sermon: “Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But, when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then, your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. ...they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so it will not be obvious to men that your are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; ...and He will reward you.” Thus, we learn from Jesus that it is enough to serve simply as an unknown Christian soldier, known only to Him.