Funeral

I delivered a funeral sermon in class today. It was for a child who had died. It wasn't real, I mean, it wasn't like I was really preaching a real sermon. It was a sermon in a controlled context about a semi-fiction character in the book "Open Secrets" that I read.

It was odd and uncomfortable to deliver a funeral sermon. I will have many more ahead of me, but I can't remember the last time I was at a funeral. The sermon was tough because it was about a child who died. It was tragic too, he drowned in a lake. His name was Darwin which was kind of odd too. My Dad's middle name is Darwin. So I guess it's not too odd. My Dad is really into creation science. I think he is rebelling against his name.

I think I did alright with the sermon writing and delivery. I guess I'll find out when I get my grade. A lot of funeral sermons are just a celebration of the person who died. That pretty much goes against the christological focus that has been gladly driven into my head. Funeral = talk about the hope of the resurrection and the comfort of Christ. At least that's what I did.

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“Standing Together in Times of Need”
Because God has comforted us through His Son, we comfort others in need with the same comfort.

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
First of all, I’d like to extend my sympathies, on behalf of the whole church to Regina and Rhoda. We pray that God will draw near to you in your time of sorrow and comfort you with the hope of the cross and the resurrection. We want you to know that we, your church family will stand with you. You can rely on us for comfort.

I imagine that for many of you, after hearing the news Darwin’s death, a wave of grief swept over you. When you hear news like this, the grief and shock are so much that it can make you feel faint. It is difficult to even stand up. This was truly one of those times where it is best to sit down before you hear the news.

It wasn’t long ago that Darwin himself was first learning how to stand and how to walk. A child cannot just stand on his own. His legs are undeveloped and weak. He needs someone to hold his hands and help him. Parents will often times stand above their children, holding the child’s hands, and helping them to stand and walk. In a similar way, Christ helps us to stand.

A few weeks ago Regina and Rhoda stood before us here at New Cana as Darwin was baptized. That was a time of joy. We received Darwin as our brother in Christ. You all said together with one voice “Amen. We welcome you in the name of the Lord.”
And then you all stood as one congregation. We stood together to thank and praise God for bringing Darwin Logan into his kingdom through baptism.

After this sermon is over, we will all stand together again as a congregation to pray the prayer of the church. But this is no mere ritual. Let this not be the only time we stand together as a church. Yes, we stand before God to seek His help. But we also must stand with Regina and Rhoda in their time of need. Just as we stood and saw that the water and the word were the means to bring Darwin into God’s kingdom, let us stand with Regina and Rhoda to be God’s means of comfort for them as they live through the horror of such a sudden and tragic death and as they endure the sorrow that accompanies it.

To “stand with each other,” means to comfort and suffer along side one another. It doesn’t refer to good feelings that we get because we did something nice and helped someone out. It is our calling as the people of God. God uses his church to comfort those in need. Sometimes we want to think that we are strong enough to endure alone, but we cannot stand on our own. We need help.

God gives us his Word and his sacraments and also uses his church to provide the comfort of Christ for weary souls. The comfort that we provide one another is the very comfort of Christ. We proclaim the true comfort of Christ who conquered death. He stood outside the tomb on the first Easter Sunday arrayed in white. He stands now in heaven with our dear brother Darwin. But he also stands with us right now here on earth, comforting us through His church with His Word and power of His cross. Go out and be the church, be the comfort of Christ. Stand with those who suffer and are in need. For Christ himself is our comfort and our salvation both now and unto life everlasting. Amen.