Rev. Reed Lee Pedersen's
The priest at my grandmother’s funeral stuck on to this verse from Bible: But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. 1 Thessalonians 4:13 The amazing thing about what Jesus Christ did for us is that he gave us hope. The promise of eternal life and being part of the eternal Body of Christ (Community of Saints, Kingdom for Heaven or whichever way you like to think of it) reminds us that there is a future for us after we die here on earth. Paul writes further in his letter to the Thessalonians: For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have died. For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will by no means precede those who have died. For the Lord himself, with a cry of command, with the archangel’s call and with the sound of God’s trumpet, will descend from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air; and so we will be with the Lord forever. 1 Thessalonians 4:14-17 There is not only hope of our own futures after death, but there is hope of seeing loved ones again. This does not diminish the grief we feel at funerals. Paul does not say, “Stop crying and feeling pain!” Instead, Paul asks them to not grieve as if there is no hope for our deceased family and ourselves. Feeling grief in the present is part of life, but we can also lean on that future promise life eternal. This is why Paul finishes this paragraph with these words, “Therefore encourage one another with these words.” (v. 18)
These words are meant to be encouraging rather than discouraging. Do not get mad at someone who grieves over a loved one, but instead stick by them and be their comfort and encouragement when they have none. As I mentioned in my sermon this past Sunday, we do not deny death but we defy it. As Christians we do not deny that death exists. Jesus certainly did not deny it existed for he too succumbed to it on the cross. Instead, as Jesus did three days later, we defy death’s final say over our lives. Jesus’ power over death is ours too. That’s pretty encouraging to think in the midst of grief and pain. Points to Ponder:
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AuthorPastor Reed is a first call pastor at Augustana Lutheran Church in Andover, Illinois. Archives
July 2019
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