Life and Death Issues

We are gathered in the chapel today to pay our last respects to our beloved sister and friend who was called to the Lord a few days ago.

As you look around, you no doubt notice that some friends you thought would be here are absent. I need to let you know that some people shy away from funeral homes with everything in them. Perhaps there are many reasons for this, but the big one is simply this: attending a service like this one forces people to think about the issues of life and death. And it will not come as news to you to learn that many people will do everything in their power to avoid such confrontations and examinations.

But you’re here and I’m here and there will never be a better time. So, let’s do it. Let’s think about life and death.

I’d like to give you four words about Life and four words about death, to take home with you and to reflect on in the days ahead.

FOUR WORDS ON LIFE….

1) Life is a mystery.

One of the great arguments in our society is when exactly life begins. A far greater mystery is the origin of life itself, as to when and how it began on this planet. And then, when the spirit departs and the body is no longer alive, what happened there? Where did the spirit go? There is an eternal mystery about life. Don’t be surprised if we never figure it all out this side of Heaven.

2) Life is a gift.


God is the giver of life, the creator and the sustainer of life. He is the Master of this realm. That’s why those who take Him seriously believe matters of life’s beginning (conception) and life’s ending (abortion, capital punishment) should be considered only in accordance with God’s instruction.

3) Life is a stewardship.

We are not the owners of life; it has been given to us for a time. The child born into our family is not ours, but God’s. We are stewards of the life and the years God gives us and stewards of the lives of others He has put in our charge. A steward is a manager, not the owner. We do the best we can with it, then one day turn it back in and give an accounting. “It is required with stewards to be faithful.” (I Corinthians 4:2)

4) Life is brief.

That’s one reason we hate coming to funeral services and shy away from thinking about our own mortality. We hate getting these reminders of the brevity of life. “What is your life? Just a vapor that appears for a short time and then vanishes away.” (James 4:14)

Teenagers think life is eternal and that we senior adults were always old. They would be surprised to know that we were teens yesterday. Last evening we hit middle age and this morning we looked in the mirror and saw our parents looking back at us. It’s all too quick, friend. So, whatever you’ve been putting off doing for a later and better time, you’d better get on with it.

FOUR WORDS ABOUT DEATH….

1) Death is inevitable.

The author William Saroyan said, “I always knew people live, they get old, and they die. But somehow I always thought an exception would be made in my case.” He died in 1981. No exceptions.

“It is appointed unto man once to die and after that the judgement.” (Hebrews 9:27) No exceptions, no recycling (as in reincarnation). As an old beer commercial put it, “You only go around once….”

2) Death is an enemy.

“The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.” (I Corinthians 15:26) It helps me to know the Lord Jesus hated death even more than we do; He broke up every funeral procession He came to by raising the dead.

3) Death is ended, in a sense.

“I am the resurrection and the life,” Jesus said. “He that believeth on me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whosoever liveth and believeth in me SHALL NEVER DIE.” (John 11:25-26) We take that literally. We still cease our earthly existence in these bodies — they were not made for Heaven — but we move immediately into the spiritual realm, into the very presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. “I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” (Psalm 23:6)

4) Death is an entrance.

“To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.” (II Corinthians 5:8) One of the funeral homes I frequently work with has several doors leading off from the Chapel. Two wear small signs announcing: “Not an exit.” All the others have signs above them saying “exit.” I like to think of these doors as a metaphor for the choices life hands us. There are many religions, each with grand pronouncements about the afterlife. In a sense, they are all exits, but not all lead to anyplace you would want to go.

There is One door and one alone, however, that leads to Heaven. Jesus said, “I am the Door. By me if you enter in, you find salvation.” (John 10:9) He said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except by me.” (John 14:6)

There! That wasn’t so difficult, was it? It worth coming for today, wasn’t it!

Our loved one whose earthly, physical body lies before us today now knows. She placed her faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and lived for Him. Now, He’s taking care of her. She needs faith no longer; she now knows.

My friend, Pastor Cornelius Tilton, was telling me this week about the death of his saintly grandmother. “I was there to hear her last words,” he said. “She whispered,

2 thoughts on “Life and Death Issues

  1. Today our family will be attending the funeral of an infant who was stillborn. My heart so grieves for this precious young couple today. Only by His grace can a parent bury their child. If the Lord leads pray for Katye and Rusty today-especially at noon, the time of the funeral. They are strong Christians who are walking in His grace.Thanks for your timely message.

  2. YESTERDAY AT 6PM, BROTHER BILL FUSHEA CLOSED HIS EYES FOR THE LAST TIME. HE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH PANCREATIC CANCER IN OCTOBER. HE WAS IN CHURCH THE SUNDAY BEFORE CHRISTMAS. CHRISTMAS MORNING HE WAS FEELING PAIN. THEY PUT A TUBE DOWN HIS NOSE AND TURNED ON THE MORPHINE DRIP.

    THE LAST THING HE SAID TO ME AND THE GROUP AROUND HIS BED WAS ALL OF MY FRIENDS ARE HERE. I SHALL FOREVER CHERISH THAT HE COUNTED ME AS HIS FRIEND.

    HIS SERVICES WILL BE WED AT 2 PM. AT GRACE BAPTIST, PONCE DE LEON, FL.

    BE MUCH IN PRAYER.

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