In Memoriam, Ed Leonard

by

Charlie Folkart, USAFA 1960

I am grateful to George Luck and Nels Delisanti for their kindness and friendship to ourrecently demised classmate, Ed Leonard. How fitting that such a warrior passed on tohis eternal reward on Veteran’s Day. The last time I saw Ed was on the flight line atUdorn Rachathani Royal Thai Air Force Base. Ed was flying Spads, and I was flying Phantom II’s. I can still remember that huge infectious smile that always seemed to grace Ed’s face. He was indeed a happy warrior.

To know Ed was to like him. And to know Ed’s war record is to know that he was agreat military man, a man of courage, proven and tested not just in combat but also beyond measure in the fires of the devil’s Hanoi Hilton Hell. Most would agree that Edwas a good man by human standards. He risked his life so that other warriors might live.

George Luck reported that at his last visit Ed had said to him, “See you on the otherside.” George’s parting response to Ed, “May the Good Lord take a liking to you,” probably engendered in many of us the instinctive approving reaction, “What’s not to like about Ed Leonard? He was a great guy.”

We have all been acculturated with the lie that we are not to talk about religion and politics. Hogwash. Only those who are out to deceive others would deny them the Godgiven Freedom of Speech and the Freedom of Religion to talk about the most critical issues of life, Freedoms enshrined in the Constitution that Ed Leonard repeatedly laid his life on the line to defend.

Ed truly upheld his oath of office to defend the Constitution of the United States of America and the Freedoms enshrined therein against all enemies, foreign and domestic. I classify those who say we cannot talk about religion as enemies of the Constitution, denying others the right to exercise their Freedom of Speech and their Freedom of Religion. And so I would like to honor Ed by speaking Truth about George Luck’s parting conversation with Ed.

Ed’s comment, “See you on the other side” is a clear indication he believed that our existence does not terminate when our spirit and soul depart from these mortal, death-doomed physical bodies. Each of us is a spirit. We have a soul, a natural self-life of the mind, the will, and the emotions, and we live in a physical body, an earth-suit that enables us to live on planet earth, just as a space suit enables astronauts to live in the otherwise uninhabitable environment of space.

It is our spirit and soul that God created to continue in existence throughout all eternity after departing our physical bodies. The question is, will that eternal existence be in Union with God in the Kingdom of Heaven, or will it be in eternal torment in the hell created by God for the devil and the fallen angels.

George’s comment, “May the Good Lord take a liking to you” is a reference to the Lordship and Goodness of Jesus Christ, Who humbled Himself, emptying Himself of His prerogatives as God, became a man, lived a perfectly sinless life in obedience to Father God, and laid down His natural self-life as a man on the Cross as the atoning sacrifice for the sin nature and the sins of all mankind (Philippians 2). His deaths, burial, resurrection from the dead, ascension into Heaven, sprinkling of His Blood on the HeavenlyMercy Seat where it was accepted by Holy and Righteous Father God as full propitiation for the rebellion of all mankind against Him, is the only way any man can be restored into right relationship with Father God. That is why the Lord Jesus Christ said:

A kingdom is the realm where the king’s commands are carried out. The Kingdom of Heaven is where God’s Commands are carried out. God takes His Word, His Commandments, His Law, very seriously. So seriously, in fact, that God Himself abides within the boundaries of the Absolute Sovereign Truth of His Own Word, as shown by the Holy Spirit inspired words of King David:

God’s Word is Truth, Absolute Reality, the Absolute Sovereignty by which God governsnot only all of His Creation but also governs Himself! God’s Word is the boundary within which God Himself abides! God’s Word delineates the Boundaries of Heaven, and thus distinguishes between who spends eternity with God in Heaven and who spends eternity in torment with the original rebel, the devil, in the Lake of Fire where their worm dies not and the fire is not quenched (Isaiah 66:24; Mark 9:4248).

God created His intelligent creatures, both men and angels, with an extreme desire for Supernatural Good, an extreme lack of Supernatural Good in our natural self-lives, and a free will to choose how to resolve that extreme hellish contradiction of an extreme desire for and an extreme lack of Supernatural Good: either in God or apart from Him.

There is natural good, and there is Supernatural Good. The chair you sit on while reading this has the natural good of supporting your body comfortably. But natural good can never accomplish Supernatural Purposes. Natural good can never raise the spiritually dead to life, restoring them to the intimate union with Father God for which we were created and from which we all fell in the rebellious sin of Adam (Genesis 2,3). That takes Supernatural Good (1 Corinthians 15:2122,45).

A rich young ruler came to Jesus and asked Him, “Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Before answering him, Jesus corrected him, saying, “Why do you call me good? No man is good. Only God is good (see Matthew 19:1617; Mark 10:1718; Luke 18:1819; Romans 7:18; James 1:1617).”

Only God is Supernatural Good, and without receiving His Divine Supernatural Good we cannot be partakers of His Divine Super Life and Super Nature (2 Peter 1:4). God is Love (1 John 4:16). God’s Love is His eternal, immutable Will to bring forth all His Supernatural Good to become the blessing (empowerment) and happiness of every intelligent being who wants to receive it according to his capacity to receive it. Both our capacity and our desire to receive God’s Supernatural Good depends upon our freewill response to God.

God is undivided Unity. God is not a house divided against Himself. We cannot pick and choose what parts of God we want to receive and what parts of Him we want to reject. We cannot choose to receive His Divine Supernatural Goodness and at the same time choose to reject His Absolute Sovereign Majesty. It is only as we receive His Lordship, His Absolute Sovereignty over us, that we are empowered by the Life of Christ Jesus in us to keep His Commandments and thus dwell in His Presence both now, while still inhabiting our earth suits, and for all eternity. Scripture says:

Do you believe that God is Love, that He does not want you to perish for all eternity in the flames of hell, that He sent Jesus Christ to become a man, a pure and holy sacrifice who alone could atone for all of your sins so that you could be restored to the right relationship of intimate Union with Father God in Christ Jesus? If you receive God’s precious gift of the Love of the Truth you do (2 Thessalonians 2:712; John 7:1617).

Then pray this prayer:

Father God, I am a sinner. I have lived apart from you, deceived into thinking I could be good in my own natural self-life apart from You. But, as Jesus said, only You are Good. I confess the sin of exalting my natural self-life above You, to live apart from You, independently of You, in rebellion against Your Absolute Sovereign Majesty. I have noGoodness apart from You, no Right Relationship with You apart from obeying You. I repent of my vain rebellion against You. I believe that the Lord Jesus Christ became a man and died to receive the penalty of my sins so that I would not have to bear it. I receive You now, Lord Jesus Christ, both as my Lord and my Savior, redeeming me from all rebellion against You, dearest Father God, redeeming me from my sin nature, and redeeming me from all my sins. Thank You, dearest Lord Jesus Christ, and thank You, dearest Father God, for coming into my heart now in accordance with Your Holy Word. Thank you for empowering me to grow in intimacy with You by seeking and receiving and obeying the Absolute Sovereignty of Your Word of Truth as I read it in the Bible, so that You may be pleased to dwell in me both now and forever. In Jesus’ lovely Name, Amen.

Thank You, dearest Lord, for our classmate, Ed Leonard. He is Your Workmanship, and we are grateful for the privilege of having known Ed. And thank you, dear USAFA 1960 classmates, for the opportunity to communicate with you and honor Ed Leonard in this forum. I’ll gladly respond to comments and questions you may send to me at charliefolkart@gmail.com.