Today we buried a man named Jim-an 88 year-old veteran of the marine corps, who was wounded at least twice. He was a recognized marksman and a dedicated hunter... who spent considerable time with his two boys and grandchildren. In recent years he had gotten out of the habit of attending church, but he never lost his faith... or his belief that he would one day be with his God and family in heaven. I doubt that Jim could have recited the Nicene Creed... but he looked forward to the day when he would be filled with heavenly joy. In fact, he counted on it! Yesterday, I took our car to a mechanic named Joe, who lost his wife, Susan, to cancer two weeks ago. He was obviously grieving ... but he did not grieve without hope, claiming that "Susan's out of pain now because (Mother) Mary called her home." A land without tears, or even disappointment- a place without conflict or injustice of any kind- a kingdom in which we will enjoy God and bask in His love... day after day after day? Can such a thing be possible? Well, the answer is yes... and people of faith look forward to it. They expect it and count on it! It's a great promise and for us, a certainty. Amen.
In the 31st chapter of Jeremiah, the prophet of sorrow finds reason to laugh. There will be a time, he notes, when people will act as if they know God. The day will come when they will throw parties and dance, plant vineyards and eat until they can't eat one bite more. The days is coming, the Lord said, when I will bring all of my people together and they will come streaming from every corner of the earth. The strong, of course, will be marching boldly, but the elderly and the disabled and the little ones... will be coming too. They will all come... with tears of joy... running freely, and there sorrows will be gone forever! People of faith, our God is an awesome God... and our day of victory is at hand. Look, the apostle Paul noted in the 1st chapter of Ephesians, from the beginning of time, God chose us... to be his own. He decided this out of grace alone and sent his Son to Calvary's cross... to free us from our sins. Rejoice, Paul went on, because you've been adopted by God. Through his Son, you've been adopted, empowered, and destined to sing a new song...with Jim and Susan forever and ever! As a believer, your ship has already come in. Scripture is plain: in Christ, God has already carried the day and victory is already ours. In the fullness of time Christ emptied himself of divinity and came to earth... to begin a ministry of teaching, healing, forgiving, liberating, restoring, and saving. Most of those whom he lived among refused to receive him, and this is true to this day. Most people (and I suspect many who think of themselves as Christians) do not receive him... but according to John, those who do... will one day dine with Him in heaven... forever.
Susan and Jim died, but they are not dead... and their faith reminds me of an old story... about a woman who was also dying of cancer. She was an avid church goer, so she talked with her pastor about her funeral service- and went over every detail- the verses to be read, the songs to be sung, other comments and prayers, and even what she would be wearing on her special day. She began to leave the pastor's office, but stopped suddenly, "There's one more thing," she said, "I want to be buried with a fork in my right hand. It's odd, I know, but in all of my years of attending church functions, my favorite part was the moment when I was told to keep my fork. Invariably, when our tables were being cleared, the person in charge would lean over and say, 'You can keep your fork,' and that would give me great delight because I knew that something better was coming. Something great- not pudding or Jello- but a bountiful cake or one of my favorite pies. You can keep your fork has always meant something special to me," she concluded, "And I want to spread the word. Pastor, when people file by my casket and say, "What's the deal with the fork," I want you to tell them... that something much, much better IS coming and that they should keep their forks too! Pastor, she said, tell them that the best is yet to come... and so I will.
Friends, there are many blessings in being a Christian because Christ does bring the joy, peace, and love we talk about during Advent. In addition, faith will give us the courage to live bolder lives, the grace to live more forgiving lives, the comfort of knowing that we're never alone, the joy of sharing our lives in community, and the priceless feeling of knowing that we are part of God's work here on earth. All of these, and many more, are blessings for every Christian... and I wouldn't go back before Christ (BC) in my life- even if I knew that I wouldn't live one day longer that I would've lived anyway. However, we cannot keep quiet about the great hope that we embrace as a reality. There will be a day in which I will see my Lord face-to-face, a day when I will sing on key for the first time- stand arm-in-arm with the saints of the ages (and not feel out of place)- rejoice with my brothers, Larry and Randy... and have a good long talk with my dad. My focus is on serving Christ each day. I take one day at a time... but I cannot grieve as if I have no hope... because I have a fork in my hand!
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