Memorials of Faith Inspired Events in Our Lives
EXODUS 3:14-15
14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.
15 And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.
Notice – His name revealed is His memorial to all future generations – and the name of God revealed is the coming to pass of his word for the day that you live in. So whenever we see the word coming to pass, then that is God’s name being revealed for your day – they are memorial events.
MATTHEW 26:6-13
6 ¶ Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper,
7 There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat.
8 But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste?
9 For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor.
10 When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me.
11 For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.
12 For in that she hath poured this ointment on my body, she did it for my burial.
13 Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her.
Memorials of Faith Inspired Events in Our Lives
A Memorial is something that helps to keep remembrance alive – it is something that is placed somewhere in order to preserve remembrance of some important event or a person, like a monument or a statue, or a gravestone, or even a plaque on a wall.
***As we live through our lives, there are many things that can happen along the journey of our lives that do not really account for too much when it comes to memorials, but then there are certain events of our lives that may seem insignificant at the time, but they are inspired out of a conviction of our faith in the word and light for our day, and it is these events (that are motivated by our faith) that even though they may seem insignificant to us, yet they become memorial events in the eyes of God because they are happenings in our lives that have proceeded out of our faith in the word that God has revealed to us for this hour.
MALACHI 3:16
16 Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name.
Books can be a great place for memorials to reside in, because events can be recorded and stored in books as memorials to those events.
EXODUS 17:14
14 And the LORD said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua:
When things are written in a book, it becomes a memorial to that event every time that portion of the book is read. And so the bible is a great memorial book of the events of people’s lives that expressed the name of God in their generation.
**And so when we look through the bible, we find out that the people that were written about in the bible, that not every detail of their lives were written about, but only the events that were the faith inspired events of their lives of the things that showed their faith of how they acted in response to the word for their day, and so it was God that placed these faith events in the bible for a memorial to that person forever.
***And so God is showing us something of our lives also, because the way he deals with a person always remains the same, and so often we fail to see the significances of these small events of faith in our lives of where we have expressed something of faith toward God in relation to the word for our day, but God recognises and remembers those events, and they become memorial events of our lives.
MARK 14:3-9 (this is the same event recorded in Mark of what we read in our opening scripture in the Gospel of Mathew)
3 And being in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at meat, there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard very precious; and she brake the box, and poured it on his head.
4 And there were some that had indignation within themselves, and said, Why was this waste of the ointment made? (Indignation is a form of anger that is provoked by what is perceived as unfair treatment. It is proposed that this ointment was worth about a year’s wages for the average man. A denarii was worth about a day’s average wage at that time, so 300 denarii would be equivalent to about $53,000 U.S. dollars in todays money. The disciples where not only shocked by the cost of the ointment she was using, but of the amount that she was using – when a person devotes that sort of money, then that is usually a good sign that they really believe in the cause – people put their money where their true faith lies)
5 For it might have been sold for more than three hundred pence, and have been given to the poor. And they murmured against her. (When you try to do something for the Lord that you have been inspired to do, then you will almost always encounter criticism and misunderstanding – that is just a part of what goes with these events of your life that are inspired by faith in the word for your day)
6 And Jesus said, Let her alone; why trouble ye her? she hath wrought a good work on me.
7 For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but me ye have not always.
8 She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint my body to the burying.
9 Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her.
***We notice here the complete difference of how the thoughts of man viewed this event, and how God viewed this event.
We must never let ourselves feel harassed by man’s opinion of something of a faith expression event that we have expressed toward God, because you can be certain that God’s opinion is in many cases quite the opposite to man’s opinion.
This event in this woman’s life of her breaking this alabaster box of ointment of spikenard (an extremely costly perfume in those days) and pouring it on Jesus head, this was an event that was inspired out of her faith of how that she recognised the word for that hour, and from her heart she wanted to do a service for the word for that day of what she was inspired to do, but all the people around her just thought that it was a foolish act of waist on her part – but the providence of God had had a purpose for that event from the beginning, and that was to anoint his body for the burying that was soon to take place, and this part fell to this woman, and it was a memorial to her.
It was a memorial of a faith inspired event in her life – we know nothing else of this woman, yet this one small event of her life was recorded in the gospels as a memorial forever for this woman.
MARK 12:41-44
41 ¶ And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much.
42 And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing.
43 And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury:
44 For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.
Notice how this woman’s act was noticed by God, while all the others that were there would have maybe looked on and may have mocked this woman for the small amount that she cast in – but God sees the heart of the person, and unbeknown to this woman, she was immortalised right then by this one small act of her life. This was a memorial of a faith event of her life.
MARK 15:43-46
43 Joseph of Arimathaea, an honourable counsellor, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came, and went in boldly unto Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus.
44 And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead.
45 And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.
46 And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulchre which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulchre.
That was his faith inspired event of his life – and it was written as a memorial to him.
MARK 15:19-21
19 And they smote him on the head with a reed, and did spit upon him, and bowing their knees worshipped him.
20 And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple from him, and put his own clothes on him, and led him out to crucify him.
21 And they compel one Simon a Cyrenian, who passed by, coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to bear his cross.
This Simon appears from nowhere and performs this gallant act of carrying the cross for Jesus, and then he is gone off the stage – yet this one act of his life has been immortalised forever in the eternal word of God, and all that serve God’s purpose will have a resurrection.
*Sometimes we don’t think that we have served God enough in our lives, especially when we read of the lives of some of the great men of God throughout history, yet when we look in the bible, we see that many of these (of what would seem like small events) were events that God inspired for that person to carry out as one of the most significant event of their lives that became a faith inspired event and a memorial before God.
Maybe you moved to a certain town because of the word that was being preached in that place at the time – then that led to other events in your life, and so on and so forth, and maybe not everything worked out the best for your natural blessing, but yet because your decision was inspired by your faith, then that becomes a memorial before God, and God will lead you and bless you because of that memorial – but man may look at that and criticise it because they are looking for some natural blessing that would come from that but yet God has a greater purpose.
**Brother Branham was inspired by God to leave Jeffersonville and to take his family to Tucson Arizona, but this was not for the purpose of being a natural blessing for him, but it was a faith inspired event that was necessary for God to fulfil certain parts of the scriptures pertaining to this hour.
A.GREATER.THAN.SOLOMON.IS.HERE.NOW_ DALLAS.TX V-19 N-10 FRIDAY_ 64-0306
118 Watch, those disciples sat still. They never said nothing.
119 I see the doctor and see the Pharisees, said, "See, the Man is out of His mind. He is crazy, wants us to cut up His body now and eat it, and drink His Blood? Human vampire! Well, we, we couldn't do a thing like that. Oh, that's crazy. The Man is out of His mind." Walked away.
120 Then He looked around to those theologians sitting around Him, them seventy, and He said, "What will you say when you see the Son of man ascending up into Heaven from whence He came?" Them Doctors of Divinity looking around, said, "The Son of man ascend up into Heaven from where He came? Why, we know Him, we've been to the stable where He was born. We seen the cradle He was rocked in. We know His mother. We... He fishes with us. He hunts with us. He is out here on the hills. He wears the clothes that we do, eat the food. And this Son of man, where did He come from? He come from Nazareth. This is too much for us." Away they went. He still didn't explain It. See?
121 He looked, and He looked around to the twelve, said, "Will you go also?"
122 Now, they couldn't explain it either, but Something had a hold of them. See, they knowed! That's when Peter said those memorial words, "Lord, we have seen the Scripture a vindicated by You. Where would we go? We know that Thou has the Words of Life. Thou art the Fountain of Life. We are satisfied of This."
***I am sure that when Peter was speaking these words from the inspiration that was in his heart, that he had no idea that his words would be written in the bible as a memorial for generations to come of his faith in the word of that hour.
This may have seemed like a random event that took place in his life of his faith that he spontaneously expressed, but that simple expression of his faith in the word for that day became a memorial that was written in the bible for hundreds of future generations to read.
**If these type of events in people’s lives were important enough to God to have them written in the bible as the eternal word of God, then this is showing us the same thing of the events of our lives that are also a part of the eternal word of God - certain event of our lives become memorials to the word coming to pass in this hour.
GOD.IS.IDENTIFIED.BY.HIS.CHARACTERISTICS_ BEAUMONT.TX V-13 N-1 WEDNESDAY_ 64-0311
This little woman standing there. Said, "Bring Me a drink."
126 She said, "It's not customary, we got segregation, we don't have no such a thing here."
127 He let her know right quick that there's no difference between the Jew or whatever it was. He was God. He said, "Go get your husband and come here."
She said, "I don't have a husband."
128 He said, "You've told the truth. You've had five, and the one you're living with now is not yours."
129 Now watch that woman. Something happened, that little predestinated Seed down in her heart!
130 When He said That to those Pharisees, look at them, they just blacked out what they professed. They professed to be Christians, they professed to be followers, they professed to love Him. But when the Truth came, It blacked them out.
131 But when this come, It brought to Life, It took the blackness out and made it all white. Said, "Where..."
132 She said, "Sir, I perceive that You are a Prophet. Now, we haven't had one for four hundred years, see. I perceive that You are a Prophet. Now, we know that when the Messiah cometh, His identification will be that kind of a characteristic, He'll tell us these things."
He said, "I am He that speaks to you."
133 And, upon that, she dropped the waterpot, went into the city and said, "Come, see a Man who told me the things that I've done. Isn't this the very characteristic of the anointed Messiah which is the Word, that knows the thoughts that's in the heart? Isn't this the Messiah?" Oh, my!
This event that this woman at the well encountered that day when she came into contact with the word for that hour, it was placed in the bible for a memorial to her – she had no previous idea that that event would take place that day – but this event was an expression of her faith in relation to the word for that hour, it was a faith event in her life that became a memorial to God.
**So all these memorials of people’s lives in the bible speaks of the many memorials in our lives of similar events that if the bible were to be written again in our day, then the memorials of certain events and decisions of our lives would have been placed in the bible also, because there are many events in our lives that match these events written in the word, and so we know for sure that they are also recognised by God and become a memorial to God that is just as real as any other event in the bible.
MATTHEW 25:31-40
31 ¶ When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
*Out of all the events of a person’s life, maybe just one event of giving a cup of water to a stranger that was a believer in the word for their day, this one (maybe insignificant) event of their life that had even gone from their memory because it was such a small thing at the time, but it hadn’t gone from God’s memory. What they did was so important to God that it became a memorial to him, and He rewarded them with eternal life for that one small event.
***We must never underestimate these small events of our lives of the expressions of our faith in the word for this hour in whatever way that God inspires you.
TIME.TESTED.MEMORIALS.OF.GOD_ JEFF.IN SUNDAY_ 57-0818
E-16 Now, memorial is a--a great thing. We appreciate memorials. And many men in this life has tried to leave behind them some sort of a memorial. Nearly all men love to do that, put up at their graveyard a great marker. That's all right, sure. I appreciate that. That's--that's okay. And then many try to build great shrines.
**That is man’s idea of memorials - to leave some great stone or monument or something to mark the fact that he was on the earth, but your expression and response to the word revealed for you day is the greatest memorial that you will ever leave behind you – the memorials of your faith inspired events of your life will last far longer than any grave stone with your name on it or anything else that you could leave behind you.