The War is Won!

Today, September 11, we remember the tragic events that took place on that date in 2001 that ushered in the war on terror.

Two hundred one years ago, on September 13, 1814, the United States was embroiled in another war--with the British.

Francis Scott Key

We all know the story: a young United States attorney, Francis Scott Key, obtained permission to board a British warship in an attempt to arrange the release of an American prisoner detained on board.

He was forced to stay overnight on the ship. From that vantage point he witnessed the British bombardment of the fort which guarded the entrance to Baltimore harbor.

In the dwindling light of day, he could see the American flag, with its fifteen stars and fifteen stripes, flying over Fort McHenry. As darkness settled over the harbor, he watched intently to see if the proud, star-spangled banner was still there.

All through the night, the red glow of exploding ammunition kept bringing Old Glory into view.
When the gray dawn finally broke, Key strained to see if the flag was still there. Finally, the morning sunlight washed away the smoke from Fort McHenry. Yes! The white stars and red stripes wore a new look of hope and courage.

The young lawyer was so moved that he pulled an old letter from his pocket and wrote on the back of it these stirring words:

Oh, say, can you see, by the dawn's early light,

What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?

Whose broad strips and bright stars, through the perilous fight,

O'er the rampart we watched, were so gallantly streaming?

And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air

Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.

Oh, say, does that Star-Spangled Banner yet wave

O'er the land of the free, and the home of the brave?

We all sing that first verse, but few know the words of the fourth verse:

Oh, thus be it ever when free men shall stand

Between their loved homes and the war's desolation;

Blest with victory and peace, may the Heav'n rescued land

Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation!

Then conquer we must, when the cause it is just;

And this be our motto: In God is our trust!"

And the Star-spangled Banner in triumph shall wave

O'er the land of the free, and the home of the brave.

Can there really be any doubt that America was made and preserved by God, as our National Anthem states?

Our National Anthem celebrates the victory of our nation in war. But the songs of the Church down through the ages celebrate the victory over sin and death that is ours through the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. On the cross He paid the price for our sin; and when He arose from the grave, He conquered death once and for all. The battle is won! His victory is ours!

After Japan surrendered to American forces in World War II, many of their soldiers on isolated islands of the Pacific did not hear for many months that the war was over. To them, the battle still raged.

Have you realized the victory that Christ died to win for you, or is the battle still raging in your heart? Are you still a prisoner of war to Satan? I encourage you to surrender your life and your will to Jesus Christ and be set free today to live a life of victory over sin and its dreadful consequences.

The original star-spangled banner is so fragile it is kept in near darkness
at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C.