(Some of this material is from a sermon by Harold Hazelip, "Disciples Anonymous," 20th Century Sermons, 1977, 108-113.)

There is a real pathos about an old cemetery. Someone set up those markers and thought, "My loved ones will be remembered forever." But the truth is that the winds beat and the weather wears out the inscriptions. After a century or two, the lines are virtually erased. Cracks have come, seeds have blown into the cracks and germinated. After a generation or two have died, the person is no longer remembered. Almost all of us will go into eternity anonymously as far as the majority of humanity is concerned. Very few of us will be remembered beyond our immediate descendants.

Yet, we continue to establish memorials. We want others to remember that we lived on this earth. It is fitting that we remember those who sacrificed their lives for others.

Memorial Day. It is sometimes called Decoration Day because many families decorate the graves of loved ones on that day. Since WW 1 it also has been called Poppy Day. Volunteers sell small, red artificial poppies in order to help disabled veterans.

Several communities claim to have originated Memorial Day. But in 1966, the US government proclaimed Waterloo, NY, the birthplace of the holiday. The people of Waterloo first observed Memorial Day on May 5, 1866, to honor soldiers who had died in the Civil War. It now honors those who died in the Spanish-American War, WW 1 & 2, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.

Many organizations, including the Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and fraternal groups, march in military parades and take part in special programs. These include the reading of Abraham Lincoln’s "Gettysburg Address." Military exercises and special programs are held at Gettysburg National Military Park and at the National Cemetery in Arlington, VA. To honor those who died at sea, some US ports also organize ceremonies where tiny ships filled with flowers are set afloat on the water.

Yet, with all these memorials, man is soon forgotten. Even in the Bible there are many famous names that we know, but many others that are nameless.

Paul mentioned some disciples by name in Philippians 4---Euodia, Synthche, Clement---making appeals and thanking helpers. Then he referred to "the rest of my fellow workers whose names are in the book of life." (Phil. 4:3.) I wonder if anyone thought, "Why didn’t he mention me?" Perhaps when people had to struggle for survival, they did not fret about this as much as we do. Today, we exalt the individual more; they emphasized the needs of the group. This individualism has produced another anxiety---the fear of not being remembered.

This desire surfaces in a strange way when we cannot allow other people to go unnamed. Think of cases from the Bible. Do you know the names of the wise men? Tradition could not let them go unknown; they have been named Gaspar, Melchoir and Balthasar. Whose wedding feast was Jesus attending in Cana of Galilee when he performed his first miracle? Tradition says it was John, the son of Zebedee. The woman who had the issue of blood twelve years, touched Jesus garment and was healed, has been named Veronica.

We do not know the names of any of the seventy disciples which Jesus sent out, but tradition has it that two of them were Barnabas and Matthias, important characters in the book of Acts. Matthias took Judas’ place and Barnabas sold his land and gave the proceeds to the apostles. Tradition has not been satisfied to let the two thieves to go unnamed. The thieves crucified along with Jesus are called Dysmas and Gestas. Pilate’s wife, who was concerned when he was sitting in judgment on Jesus, is named Procula. The soldier who pierced Jesus’ side is called Longinus.

There are some interesting speculations about Luke. Remember Paul’s vision of someone saying, Come over to Macedonia and help us? (Acts 16:19.) Luke records, And when he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia. The first "we" sections of the book of Acts begins here. When he had seen the vision, we set sail. William Ramsay’s conclusion is that Luke was the man Paul saw in his vision. Luke was a Gentile, perhaps a Macedonian. He wanted Paul to pursue the great missionary opportunities across the Aegean Sea. God used those conversations as a backdrop for a vision to awaken in Paul a burning concern to enter Europe.

All of this illustrates the fact that we do not want to be forgotten. There is something wholesome about wanting our lives to make a difference and for us to be remembered. But there are some things that are not so wholesome.

1. Something is distorted when we allow others to determine our self-worth. Imagine the President of the US being moody about opinion polls or what someone thought about one speech that he made. If the person at the top politically is so easily moved by the opinions of others, then we can see how vulnerable we all are. We should not allow others to determine our self-worth.

2. There is an artificiality about life that is wrong. Is life just about what others think of you? Whether you are invited to this party or not? Being recognized and honored by others? Do people want to be a celebrity for all the wrong reasons? President? Senator? There is a lot of pretending going on in our world!

3. Many are plagued with feelings of inferiority. "An epidemic of inferiority is raging throughout our society! From the moment our children enter the world they are subjected to an unjust value system which reserves respect and esteem for only a select few. Those who fail to measure up to society’s standards---primarily in the areas of beauty and intelligence---must cope with feelings of inadequacy and inferiority." (Hide and Seek, Dr. James Dobson, 1979, inside cover statement.) We have two related problems to face---one is pride and the other is inferiority. Note these passages.

"For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith." (Romans 12:3.)

"What then? Are we better than they? No, in no wise; for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles that they are all under sin." (Rom. 3:9.) "Is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also (God) of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also." (3:29.)

"There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female; for ye are all one in Christ Jesus." (Gal. 3:28.)

"For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart and knows all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God." (1 John 3:20-21.)

4. Where can we be remembered? If there is any place in the world that we are irreplaceable, it is in the most intimate relationships of life, particularly, the family. It is ironic that we work ourselves to death to prove that we are indispensable in places where this cannot possibly be done while neglecting the one place where this might have been possible---the family. Even in the family, this is limited.

What is the point of all of this? Simply, we are all nobodies unless God cares! Recall Paul’s words, " . . . and the rest of my fellow workers whose names are in the book of life." (Phil. 4:3.) If those words are true and are genuinely believed, it will not bother Paul’s associates that their names were not included in his letter. God knows their names! That is the really important matter.

When I first started my work at Christian Chapel, Amory, MS, in January 1985, I learned a valuable lesson from an humble Christian woman in the church. I did not have time to learn everyone by name when someone responded that I did not know very well. In fact, two ladies of the church looked much alike and I confused them. Without asking her name, I proceeded to handle her response. I called her by the wrong name---the name of the other person who looked somewhat like her. After the services were over, several informed me of the mistake that I had made. When she came out, I apologized profusely. She was an humble woman, having lived the life of a poor wife and mother. But she was a Christian. When I tried to explain what happened, she gently replied, "That’s okay, the Lord knows who I am."

In a few years she was diagnosed with cancer. When she died, I was asked by the family to speak at her funeral service. As I thought about her life and her faith, I could not think of anything more appropriate to speak about than her comment to me, "That’s okay, brother Worthey, the Lord knows who I am." There is something powerful in those words. Her faith and confidence was properly placed. It did not matter whether man remembered her or not. It only mattered if the Lord did.

Remember the words of the thief on the right of Jesus. He asked, Lord, remember me when you come in your kingdom. (Luke 23:42.) If He remembers us, all us well. A little later in Philippians after Paul wrote about those whose names were in the book of life, he penned these words, "And the peace of God which passes all understanding will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (4:7.) This is a kind of peace our world finds difficult to understand: peace for the person who does his job as well as he knows how, accepting recognition and reputation if they come, but able to live without them if they do not. This person knows the fulfillment which can be found in the intimate relationships of life, but not elsewhere, and acts on this basis. He treasures friendship for what it is rather than for its fringe benefits. He knows both what money can do and what it cannot, and consequently refuses to let it be the force that shapes his life. He feels not panic at the peace and prospect of aging.

The world does not understand this peace because the world cannot give it. (John 14:27.) It is God’s gift to those who have learned, whether they stand out in the crowd or blend in anonymously, that the foundations of their self-respect is God’s respect for them. We can now sing with the Psalmist, "Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to thy name give glory." (Psalm 115:1.)