Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
The text this morning is from the Gospel of Matthew, the 16th chapter:
Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
Thus far the text.
Dear Jeff, Julie, Jim, and my dear friends in Christ,
I know this is not an easy day for you. Losing your father is never easy, but to have his funeral here is a blessing. Don was instrumental in this church. He got the building campaign running, he got the congregation well-oiled, and he certainly has been helping it in his prayers, in his support, and in his presence. But, Don has died. I pray this isn’t a shock to most of us. Don had not been in the best health over the last couple years, and certainly not in the last few months. But, Don, one of the chief architects of this building has gone. Yet the Church remains.
You see, Don was good. Don did much to help here and be a positive presence, yet, Don also knew, as do you, that he is not the builder of the big-C Church. That builder is Christ. And Christ, the one who builds His Church upon the confession of Peter, that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the Redeemer, the Son of the Living God, Christ has built this congregation, as He has built every congregation of the Church, out of the work and service of men, but, more importantly, upon the work of His cross.
Don knew this. Don was baptized for the remission of all of his sins. Don made the confession of faith. Don came to the altar of Jesus to receive Jesus’ true body and true blood for the forgiveness of sins and strengthening of faith. Don knew this Jesus who built His Church, and because of that, Don worked to build a congregation that would share this same good work of Christ with all who would hear God’s Word.
For this work is the work of the cross. Don has, as have we all, received the benefit of the cross as it comes to us through preaching, through Baptism, and through the Lord’s Supper. This is the cross coming to sinners through the echoes of history. This is the cross from 2,000 years ago coming to us today. This cross is for sinners.
And Don was a sinner. Don was a sinner who needed a Savior. We know that Don was a sinner because his body is before us today, and Paul tells us that the wages of sin is death. This is the consequence of sin. And we all have sin.
We all mourn today for the loss of Don from this life, from this sin-filled life. We shall miss him. And there shall be mourners for us, as well. But this is not the end of all things.
For even while Don lies in front of us today, we know also that Don is at rest with his Lord Jesus Christ. For while Paul indeed tells us in Romans that the wages of sin is death, Paul also tells us that the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. And this eternal life, Don sees even more clearly than he did here, yet still not as clearly as he will.
Don, while he is resting with his Lord, is not yet at eternal completion. He is not yet complete. Don is in heaven, yes. Heaven is good, but it’s not the end of the world. There is one more thing he is waiting for, and that is the resurrection from the dead. This body that was before us yesterday is today turned to ashes, but with the cry of a trumpet, Jesus shall return, and He shall bring with Him all the dead in Christ, and they shall return to their bodies where they shall be made incorruptible, perfect, whole, complete, without fault, sin, or blemish. Don shall rise up out of the grave and he shall receive the strength of Christ unto everlasting life. And here, upon the new earth, the recreated earth, we shall live forever in peace with one another and without sin.
That is what we do here in the Church. What we do is a foretaste of the feast to come in the resurrection won for us by our victorious Lord. Christ’s resurrection from dead, after bearing our sins, after bearing Don’s sins, is the promise that we shall be raised. And so we are baptized into the blood that flowed from His pierced side. And we hear the living Word of a resurrected Christ. And we eat the crucified and risen body and blood of our victorious Lord. And so did Don. This was all in preparation for the moment he went through last Friday night when he breathed his last in this world, and in preparation of the fulfillment of the promise that when he opened his eyes he would see Jesus, and in the hope of the sure and certain word of Christ that Don will come out of the grave and shall live forever.
No wonder Don worked to build and support this congregation! This is what we do here, this is always what we have done, and it is always what the Church shall do! We preach Christ and Him crucified for us and for the forgiveness of all of our sins. Our Christ is good and holy, and upon Him and the confession of Him, the Church is built.
We have hope then, friends, because our Lord builds the Church, puts His Word and His Sacraments into His Church, He builds the Church upon His resurrection from the grave, a sure and certain historical event.
We do not just have faith it happened; it did happen, and it happened just as Jesus promised it. And this resurrection, if it promises us eternal life, then that is a promise that will come to fulfillment, for Jesus has promised it, and His promises never fail.
Don was a sinner, yes. But Don is now perfect in His Lord, resting in Christ’s promises. And soon, Don’s body will rise from the dead and be perfect and enlivened once again. This is Christ’s promise. For Christ has forgiven Don’s sin here in Christ’s Church, and so Don is forgiven, and so, too, are we in Christ. We are forgiven as Don is, and in Christ, we shall be united with him once more in the resurrection from the dead, all because of Christ’s work for Don, and for us, and for the building of His Church. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Now may the peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord! Amen.
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