In
the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
On
this day, in the midst of grief and sorrow, the words of the prophet
Isaiah ring forth,
The
Lord God is your strength and your song, because He indeed is your
salvation. Just as He has been the salvation for Bob, and for all
those blessed dead who have departed this life in faith in the Son of
God. God is the salvation of all those whose lives are secure in the
life of Christ Jesus our Savior. Therefore, you shall trust and not
be afraid, but be at peace.
This
is a difficult time to think about being joyful, as the prophet
enjoins. A dear father, grandfather, and brother in Christ has been
taken from us. His life has been cut to an end on this earth, and he
will never again walk among us in this place. For this reason, for
this loss, we grieve, and rightly so. Christians indeed mourn our
dead, because we have loved those who walk with us in faith, and we
miss their presence.
However,
we remember always that God is in fact our salvation. Christ Jesus is
the life of all the living. Those who have died to sin and are raised
to life in Christ no longer face death in fear, but lie down and
sleep in peace, because our life is secure in the One who is our
light and our life and our salvation. Even in the midst of grief, we
may rest in peace, knowing that all who have
fallen asleep in the Lord have attained to eternal life in Jesus
Christ our Lord.
Once,
in the course of a visit, Bob told me that he was not afraid of
death, but he was afraid of suffering. For this reason, and from this
occasion, I think, the Lord has called to mind the words of our Lord:
“I
have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In
the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I
have overcome the world.”
In
Christ, you may have peace. In Christ, you shall have peace. In
Christ, you do have peace. For Christ is your life, and He is your
salvation. He has saved Bob from all his sins, and has delivered him
from this valley of sorrow to Himself in heaven.
In
this world, there is tribulation. You and I, and all people, face
tribulation every day of our lives. That life comes to be is a divine
triumph over tribulation. For the forces of sin, death, and the devil
would have life snuffed out, hope extinguished, and joy apprehended
by sadness.
Suffering
is a part of this world. It is an inevitable consequence of our sin.
If you do not suffer in your own body, on your own account, you may
be sure that you will suffer the pain of watching those close to you
endure trials and tribulations, with nothing you can do to fix it or
change it. All is vanity, as Solomon said, and this life is but toil
and pain.
But
take heart! Christ has overcome the world! Our Lord has not left us
to languish in this valley of sorrow. He has not allowed the shadow
of death to overtake us. He has not let the devil have the final
word. He has the final word: “It is finished!”
Death
is finished. Hell is finished. Condemnation is finished. Fear and
trembling and doubt are finished. There is now no more condemnation
for those who are in Christ. Christ has overcome the world by His
death. He has suffered the pains of death, even death upon a cross,
so that you, together with Bob and with all the faithful, might
receive the joys of eternal life in heaven. Christ has died the death
to sin once for all, and has risen from the dead. He now lives and
reigns to all eternity, that you might live in Him and through Him
and with Him.
Take
heart! Christ has overcome the world! The Lord God is your strength
and your song, and He has become your salvation. Bob is now at rest,
being kept safe and secure until the day of the resurrection of all
flesh. And you are kept safe and secure with him, in the holy Ark of
the Christian Church. You are bound to him, and to all the saints,
through Jesus Christ, our God and our Lord.
And
as you are bound to Bob, so also do you worship with him. For in the
Divine Service, heaven comes to earth, and the great cloud of
witnesses descends among us. When we sing “with angels and
archangels and all the company of heaven”, we sing with Bob, and
with all the faithful departed who now make up that glorious heavenly
band. While they sing the praises of Him who died and is raised in
unending worship, we join our voices with theirs and receive with
them the marriage feast of the Lamb in His kingdom, a foretaste of
the feast to come.
“In
the world you will have tribulation; but take heart; I have overcome
the world.”
In this world, you will grieve and mourn. In this world, you will
suffer and die. But take heart; Christ has overcome the world! He is
your strength and your song. He is your joy and the rock of your
trust. He is the wellspring of your salvation and your life.
Therefore, you can pray “Deliver us from evil,” knowing that He
has, and He will.
His
oath, His covenant and blood
Support
me in the raging flood;
When
ev'ry earthly prop gives way,
He
then is all my hope and stay.
On
Christ, the solid rock I stand;
All
other ground is sinking sand.
All
other ground is sinking sand (LSB 576.3).
In
the Name of Jesus. Amen.
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