Hello,
Over the 37 years of my ministry, I have done lots of funerals. Funerals are one of the things that every pastor finds themselves doing. I have done funerals for nearly every age of person. Some of the funerals have been laden with grief, and some have been blanketed in peace. Many times the people who gather bring with them a mixture of both. Saying “good bye” leaves a hole in people’s hearts, a hole that never really goes away, but by the grace of God in time it is filled with blessed memories and thankful hope.
One of the things, I believe, that has happened is that the Christian faith has become a lifetime of preparation for one’s funeral. Maybe you have heard someone say, “Are you prepared to meet your maker?” When this becomes the focus of the Christian faith, the impression that folks get is that the Christian faith is really all about how to get to heaven when you die.
Now, don’t get me wrong. When I do funerals, I proclaim with all the gusto I can muster the power of Jesus resurrection over death, power which has opened the gates of heaven. Thing is, though, I believe that the power of Jesus resurrection is a power that brings us hope not just on the day that we die, but also in every day that we live. As I have come to know Jesus and the depth of his love for me, I am convinced that the Christian faith is far more meant to be a daily journey with one who loves every step he takes with me (even the step into the darkness of death), than a destination at which I can hardly await to arrive.
Someone once said to me, “But Pastor, Heaven is about eternity, and doesn’t that make it more important?”
My response, “Well, when Jesus talked about eternal life, he wasn’t only talking about life after death, but he was talking about filling every moment of our lives with eternity.” Because Jesus’ death and resurrection shattered the shackles of time, every tick of the clock is like the a splashing stone making ripples when tossed into the water. It doesn’t just abruptly end and get relegated to the past, but instead it emanates into the future with hope and peace. Our days are not preparation for eternity, they are empowered by eternity.
And so it is with the power of eternity that we stride ahead in life. Failures, tragedy, sin and even death are no more than branches strewn in our path that are ground into mulch by a divine chipper, Jesus Christ. Nothing is more powerful than his love. Nothing can stand up to his forgiveness. With the power of Christ in our lives, the stark paths of our lives take on a heavenly sheen.
Christians have prayed the Lord’s Prayer since it rolled off of Jesus’ lips, and if you have ever noticed each of the petitions concerns the things that we face in our daily lives. When we have concluded the petitions, we conclude this prayer with a doxology, “For thine is the kingdom, and power and glory forever and ever.” There is one little word in that doxology that sort of flies under the radar of our thoughts, but is in actuality the foundation of why we pray…..and that word is “for”. It is “because”, or “for” the “forever and ever” nature of God’s kingdom, and power and glory that we place ourselves in God’s hands every step of our journey of life, even the step we take into the darkness of death.
So, where ever you are in your journey in this life, you aren’t simply travelling toward something (heaven), someone (Christ) is travelling with you!
Have a great week.
God’s grace and peace, (ggap)
Pastor Jerry Nuernberger
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