+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: John 14:1
Theme: The Reward of Faith
Dear family, friends, and loved ones of Edna, and especially you, Jenny, Graham, and Kevin, her children;
Edna Zacher no longer has any yearnings. She suffers no anxieties. If only we had just a hint, a whiff, a taste, a glimpse, a trace of what Edna now enjoys! She has crossed beyond the fallen-ness of mortal limitation. She is free. She is fearless. She is content. And she is so not because she is now the maker of her own destiny. She is in the unmediated presence of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and the entire host of heaven.
Today we give thanks that Edna has received what had first been promised her in baptism. The apostle says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”1 That inheritance is now hers. Her time has come, the resurrection on the Last Day notwithstanding.
Edna, of course, was ready to go home. She was comforted by the thought of it. Did Edna have the comfort of eternal life because she believed she was more worthy, more pious, or more religious than others? Did she believe she was less flawed, less intolerant, less immoral? Did she think she had achieved some level of spiritual reputation that the Almighty would be forced to recognise and reward? No, Edna was a sinner who trusted in the forgiveness of her Lord. She knew her faults and failings and she knew there was only one person who could resolve that dilemma. The Scripture says, “The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”2
Edna’s faith went hand-in-glove with her life. She was not a special-occasion or Sunday-only Christian. Edna was a regular in God’s house. She wasn’t there for show, but to have her faith nurtured from God’s word and her soul fed from the Lord’s Table. She drew her daily strength from His promises and presence. She modelled His love and did it joyfully as a wife, mother, and grandmother, as an employee and a teacher (of sewing), and as a friend and mentor to many.
The world changed a lot during Edna’s lifetime; western culture especially. All kinds of fanciful ideas about death and the afterlife are now becoming commonplace. Kids used to ask whether the family pet was going to heaven (and thankfully they still do). But, now they also ask whether vampires are real and if zombies can rise from the dead. Virtual reality tends to desensitise the mind to the sanctity of life and introduce confusion about the real nature of mortality. The age of relentless mass media intrusion contributes significantly to the worldview of everyone exposed to it. Sorting out truth from falsehood is challenging. The less familiar our society becomes with biblical teaching the more misunderstandings and misrepresentations become entrenched in the common psyche.
The concept of the circle of life, for example, is a myth with ancient origins and modern embellishments. The energy or lifeforce of the dead do not become the essence of the next generation’s existence. God is not so inept or under-resourced that He must recycle souls. Deceased relatives do not become fixed stars in the sky, or comets shooting across the galaxy. Communion with God is finally realised as heaven- the unhindered experience of His goodness. Separation from Him is ultimately experienced as hell- the horrific fact of His absence (of any goodness). There is nothing in between.
Dear friends, there are no second chances, no reincarnations, no turning into angels. No negotiations take place at the gate of heaven. Everything is done and dusted on a hill called Calvary. The Scripture says, “When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, "Truly this was the Son of God!"3 The earth-shattering event of the crucifixion was followed by the undeniable event of the resurrection. He is the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Him. Edna knew that. She believed it.
Jesus said, "Fear not, I am the first and the last and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.”4 He said, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep."5 And why did He lay down His life? Because He knew that sinners would remain hopelessly lost and doomed to destruction if not for His selfless act of love. Society is always changing but the needs of people never change. The history of humanity is a broken record of repeated arrogance, ignorance, and rebellion. A just God would have every right to consign all sinners to condemnation. Yet, again, and again the mercy of God comes to the fore. The crucified and risen Christ brings life, hope, and salvation to all who believe. God never turns away any who take refuge in Him.
Death is no respecter of persons, and so neither is grief. We must all face mortality. The rich are not spared from grieving, nor are the powerful, or the popular. White collar, blue collar, urban, rural, ethnic, indigenous, those whose lives are brimming over with success and those whose lives are submerged in failure; it makes no difference. Death causes separation. No human has the means or power to reverse it. But Jesus Christ has. Jesus Christ did.
Graham, Kevin, Jenny, your mum has been received back to the One who gifted her to you in the first place. She is crowned with life. She endures no more frailty. She no longer ages. She experiences no more pain, suffering, or regret. An accomplished seamstress, Edna is now woven into the tapestry of God’s eternal kingdom. A skilled dressmaker, she is now clothed with the Saviour’s righteousness. A gifted cook, she is now served in the heavenly banquet. She enjoys glorious and vibrant life. She is at peace. “Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace at all times and in every way.”6Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Christian Burial of Edna Clara Zacher
4 September 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 1 Peter 1:3-5 2 Romans 6:23
3 Matthew 27:54 4 Revelation 1:17-18
5 John 10:11 6 2 Thessalonians 3:16
Tuesday, September 4, 2018
Sunday, September 2, 2018
Fifteenth Sunday After Pentecost (B) 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: James 1:17
Theme: Gifted From Above
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The Holy Spirit says, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth.”1 The first gift of God from above is His own Son. He is the incarnation of the saving promise of the Father. With Jesus comes the forgiveness of sins, hope and support for the present, and certainty about our eternal future. On this Father’s Day we are rightly reminded that the fatherhood of God is made possible to us only through the brotherhood of the Son.
We are birthed into the family of the heavenly Father through His life-giving action. For the one being born, birth is a passive activity. It’s not something you do, but something that is done to you. The one being born benefits from the actions of others. Just as God breathed life into the first man, Adam, so too He breathes spiritual life into our listless frames in baptism. Jesus says, “No one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.”2 The unilateral activity of God, then, gifts us with life and sustains that life until the end.
Dear friends, God does not owe us a single thing. He is not indebted to us. It’s only arrogance that causes us to think God has obligations to us that He must fulfill. Any expectations that He should meet our desires certainly aren’t based on what we truly deserve. God owes us nothing and yet He provides us with everything. The air we breathe, the food we eat, the people who patiently tolerate our eccentricities, our very lives are gifts. They are endowments from God’s infinite capacity and magnanimous generosity. “Every good and perfect gift is from above.”3
We have His word and that alters everything. The gospel is transformative. It is the power of God, therefore it initiates new life in the one receiving it. The demand of the law, i.e., to stop trusting in idols (including ourselves) and trust instead in the one true God, is then fulfilled when the Holy Spirit grants faith. The conversion of the heart, the renewal of the mind, the transformation of the will are the first fruits of the gospel’s activity. The law will continue to make its demands, “Do this!” “Don’t do that!”. But obeying those demands, while proper, godly, and necessary, never makes any headway with the sinner’s need to be justified in God’s sight. Obeying the law is a consequence of faith, a corollary even, but never achieves pardon from the heavenly Father. Rather, it is the pardon that drives the desire to follow God’s will.
St. James talks about these realities today saying, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”4 When people receive the word of God and believe it things change. But what things? The daily routine of a person who is converted from unbelief might not seem too different than before. They go to work, struggle with the dynamics of relationship, face temptations and endure challenges. But now, their perspective if different. Their conscience is attuned to God’s will. Their heart is comforted by His promises. The meaning and purpose of life take on an entirely new perspective in view of eternity. Living as a baptized child of God involves the lifelong endeavor of dying to self and living for others. The purpose of a Christian’s life is neither pursuit of self-indulgence (even when this can be done in a way that’s acceptable to society as is the case in our affluent culture), nor the task of saving the world. The Christian has the privilege of holy vocation. Our holy vocations involve being the hands and feet, the mouth and mind of Christ to our neighbours…beginning with our spouses, family, and members of the body of Christ and extending right out to our enemies.
Today James emphasizes the verbal aspect of this privilege when he says, “Take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.”5 He goes on to speak very frankly about taming the tongue. We’ll hear this Scripture in two weeks’ time. For the moment we’ll just consider the lesson of four preachers who met for a friendly gathering. During the conversation one preacher said, "Our people come to us and pour out their hearts, confess certain sins and needs. Let's do the same. Confession is good for the soul." In due time all agreed. One confessed he liked to go to play the pokies and would sneak off when away from his church. The second confessed to liking to smoke expensive cigars and the third one confessed to spending too much money on frivolous shopping trips. When it came to the fourth one, he wouldn't confess. The others pressed him saying, "Come now, we confessed ours. What is your secret or vice?" Finally, he answered, "It’s gossiping, and I can hardly wait to get out of here."
Will Rogers once said that you should live in such a way that you wouldn’t be ashamed to sell the family parrot to the town gossip. It is colloquial advice that speaks frankly to one of the most common temptations we face. Are we any better than the fourth preacher just mentioned? It may seem easier to confess our sins to God than to admit guilt to the person we have offended. The anonymity cloaks our shame and embarrassment. But truly, we should be even more concerned about offending God than we are our neighbour. He is the final judge. But our Judge is also gracious beyond measure.
God owes us nothing, and yet He gives us everything. The Scripture says, “If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all- how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?”6 Here are two rhetorical questions that have emphatic answers. God spares no expense. This knowledge can sustain us in our darkest trials. To be sure, the Almighty does often give the appearance that He is withholding blessings, but this fact too must finally tend to our wellbeing and His glory. The man born blind in John chapter 9 surely endured his blindness as a complication of the sinful, fallen world in which we reside. But his blindness also gave occasion to reveal God’s glory through the healing power of Christ7. It’s no different with us.
Dear friends, Jesus Christ did not expose Himself to the insults of the world, capitulate to the false indictments of men, suffer at the hands of sinners, traverse the gauntlet of hell, and succumb to the horror of death only to establish the legacy of a martyr or inspire others fighting oppression by His determined example. The only begotten Son of God was slain on the crudest altar constructed by men so that the sum total of the debt of sin- all the liability accumulated in the history of the human race could be paid in full. He wiped the ledger clean. He settled the account. He shattered the darkness with light that cannot be extinguished. He is risen, and He reigns. The power of His life sustains your life. Thanks be to God!
+ In nomine Jesu +
Fifteenth Sunday After Pentecost
2 September 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 James 1:17-18
2 John 3:5-6
3 James 1:17
4 James 1:22
5 James 1:19-20
6 Romans 8:31-32
7 See John 9:3
Text: James 1:17
Theme: Gifted From Above
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The Holy Spirit says, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth.”1 The first gift of God from above is His own Son. He is the incarnation of the saving promise of the Father. With Jesus comes the forgiveness of sins, hope and support for the present, and certainty about our eternal future. On this Father’s Day we are rightly reminded that the fatherhood of God is made possible to us only through the brotherhood of the Son.
We are birthed into the family of the heavenly Father through His life-giving action. For the one being born, birth is a passive activity. It’s not something you do, but something that is done to you. The one being born benefits from the actions of others. Just as God breathed life into the first man, Adam, so too He breathes spiritual life into our listless frames in baptism. Jesus says, “No one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.”2 The unilateral activity of God, then, gifts us with life and sustains that life until the end.
Dear friends, God does not owe us a single thing. He is not indebted to us. It’s only arrogance that causes us to think God has obligations to us that He must fulfill. Any expectations that He should meet our desires certainly aren’t based on what we truly deserve. God owes us nothing and yet He provides us with everything. The air we breathe, the food we eat, the people who patiently tolerate our eccentricities, our very lives are gifts. They are endowments from God’s infinite capacity and magnanimous generosity. “Every good and perfect gift is from above.”3
We have His word and that alters everything. The gospel is transformative. It is the power of God, therefore it initiates new life in the one receiving it. The demand of the law, i.e., to stop trusting in idols (including ourselves) and trust instead in the one true God, is then fulfilled when the Holy Spirit grants faith. The conversion of the heart, the renewal of the mind, the transformation of the will are the first fruits of the gospel’s activity. The law will continue to make its demands, “Do this!” “Don’t do that!”. But obeying those demands, while proper, godly, and necessary, never makes any headway with the sinner’s need to be justified in God’s sight. Obeying the law is a consequence of faith, a corollary even, but never achieves pardon from the heavenly Father. Rather, it is the pardon that drives the desire to follow God’s will.
St. James talks about these realities today saying, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”4 When people receive the word of God and believe it things change. But what things? The daily routine of a person who is converted from unbelief might not seem too different than before. They go to work, struggle with the dynamics of relationship, face temptations and endure challenges. But now, their perspective if different. Their conscience is attuned to God’s will. Their heart is comforted by His promises. The meaning and purpose of life take on an entirely new perspective in view of eternity. Living as a baptized child of God involves the lifelong endeavor of dying to self and living for others. The purpose of a Christian’s life is neither pursuit of self-indulgence (even when this can be done in a way that’s acceptable to society as is the case in our affluent culture), nor the task of saving the world. The Christian has the privilege of holy vocation. Our holy vocations involve being the hands and feet, the mouth and mind of Christ to our neighbours…beginning with our spouses, family, and members of the body of Christ and extending right out to our enemies.
Today James emphasizes the verbal aspect of this privilege when he says, “Take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.”5 He goes on to speak very frankly about taming the tongue. We’ll hear this Scripture in two weeks’ time. For the moment we’ll just consider the lesson of four preachers who met for a friendly gathering. During the conversation one preacher said, "Our people come to us and pour out their hearts, confess certain sins and needs. Let's do the same. Confession is good for the soul." In due time all agreed. One confessed he liked to go to play the pokies and would sneak off when away from his church. The second confessed to liking to smoke expensive cigars and the third one confessed to spending too much money on frivolous shopping trips. When it came to the fourth one, he wouldn't confess. The others pressed him saying, "Come now, we confessed ours. What is your secret or vice?" Finally, he answered, "It’s gossiping, and I can hardly wait to get out of here."
Will Rogers once said that you should live in such a way that you wouldn’t be ashamed to sell the family parrot to the town gossip. It is colloquial advice that speaks frankly to one of the most common temptations we face. Are we any better than the fourth preacher just mentioned? It may seem easier to confess our sins to God than to admit guilt to the person we have offended. The anonymity cloaks our shame and embarrassment. But truly, we should be even more concerned about offending God than we are our neighbour. He is the final judge. But our Judge is also gracious beyond measure.
God owes us nothing, and yet He gives us everything. The Scripture says, “If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all- how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?”6 Here are two rhetorical questions that have emphatic answers. God spares no expense. This knowledge can sustain us in our darkest trials. To be sure, the Almighty does often give the appearance that He is withholding blessings, but this fact too must finally tend to our wellbeing and His glory. The man born blind in John chapter 9 surely endured his blindness as a complication of the sinful, fallen world in which we reside. But his blindness also gave occasion to reveal God’s glory through the healing power of Christ7. It’s no different with us.
Dear friends, Jesus Christ did not expose Himself to the insults of the world, capitulate to the false indictments of men, suffer at the hands of sinners, traverse the gauntlet of hell, and succumb to the horror of death only to establish the legacy of a martyr or inspire others fighting oppression by His determined example. The only begotten Son of God was slain on the crudest altar constructed by men so that the sum total of the debt of sin- all the liability accumulated in the history of the human race could be paid in full. He wiped the ledger clean. He settled the account. He shattered the darkness with light that cannot be extinguished. He is risen, and He reigns. The power of His life sustains your life. Thanks be to God!
+ In nomine Jesu +
Fifteenth Sunday After Pentecost
2 September 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 James 1:17-18
2 John 3:5-6
3 James 1:17
4 James 1:22
5 James 1:19-20
6 Romans 8:31-32
7 See John 9:3
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