Posted on 12/03/2021 3:44:20 PM PST by Charles Henrickson
“We Grieve, and We Have Hope” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)
In the Epistle reading we heard a few minutes ago, Paul says he writes to the Thessalonians “that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.” Did you catch that? “That you may not grieve”? Does that mean that Christians are not supposed to grieve? That if you grieve, it must mean that your faith is lacking, because of course we Christians should be above grieving? Does it mean that? No, by no means! It’s not saying that Christians cannot grieve. No, we’re human, we have emotions, we miss our dear ones who are no longer with us. We do grieve, but we do not grieve “as others do who have no hope.” See, everybody grieves. But not everybody has the hope we have as Christians. That’s the difference. For us, it’s a both/and: “We Grieve, and We Have Hope.”
And this is such a timely word for us here today. We are grieving. But we also have hope. Today we want to acknowledge both realities, both the grief we experience and the hope that will sustain us and give us the strength to carry on.
First, there is the grief. And there is plenty of it here in this room today. It’s no use trying to pretend it’s not here. It is. And understandably so. What a shock it was when we heard that Rhandi had collapsed and was taken to the hospital! The grim yet honest prospect that she wasn’t likely to recover. Terrible news! A young wife and mother, only 25 years old, with a seven-month-old baby! A beloved daughter and sister, a dear friend to so many. A faithful member of our congregation, of this church family. And Rhandi was part of our family. When I looked back at her pew this past Sunday, it was like there was a hole there. Something was missing. Rhandilynn was missing, and I know she isn’t coming back.
Heartbreaking. Devasting. Those were the two words that most came to mind during these days. We think of Justin and Iris and Mike and Carrie and Michael, what they must be going through. And what lies ahead for them, especially for little Iris, growing up without her mommy. But one thing I can guarantee you: Iris will know for sure how much her mommy loved her. There was no question about that. I remember when Rhandi was expecting, she would post updates about how little “Sprout” was growing inside her. And how happy Rhandi was to be her mother! What a delight! But now, while we have those beautiful memories, we don’t have Rhandi herself with us. And so the grief.
Grief. Something Carrie posted the other day caught my eye. It’s a quote about grief: “Grief, I’ve learned, is really just love. It’s all the love you want to give, but cannot. All that unspent love gathers up in the corners of your eyes, the lump in your throat, and in that hollow part of your chest. Grief is just love with no place to go.” We would like to share our love with Rhandi, share it directly, face to face, heart to heart. But Rhandi isn’t here to receive it. That causes us grief, and it can be heartbreaking.
But listen, dear friends, as the psalmist says: “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” Yes, God comforts us in the midst of our grief and sorrow. One way the Lord does this is through the care given by God’s people. What has been beautiful to behold for me as a pastor is all the love and support our church family has shown to Rhandi’s family. This church has wrapped them in their arms, both literally and figuratively. The outpouring of love has truly been a thing of beauty. And I know it will continue. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”
Our grief is real, and it can be painful. And it may be long-lasting. But our grief is also consoled with the comfort and love we receive from our God and from his people. But there’s even more. We also have hope. And real hope is something only we Christians have. Hope has to do with the future. What do we have to look forward to? How good will it be? And how sure can we be that it will happen? On those questions, the Christian hope checks all the boxes. We know what we have to look forward to: eternal life with Christ. We know it’s going to be great, better than anything we can imagine. And we know that our hope is sure and certain. For our hope is anchored in Christ. And that makes it a sure thing.
Our hope for the future, our hope that this was not the end for Rhandilynn--our hope that is greater than death and the grave--our hope is certain because of Christ Jesus, Rhandi’s Savior and your Savior too. Our hope is based on who Jesus is, what he has done for us, and what he will do when he returns. Thessalonians puts it like this: “For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.”
Jesus died and rose again. His death and resurrection are the basis for our hope. For Jesus died for our sins--for Rhandi’s sins, for your sins and mine--so that we would not bear them any longer. The Son of God’s holy blood, shed on the cross, is the perfect sacrifice that atones for all of our sins. Jesus paid it all. Your guilt is removed from your shoulders. Your debt has been paid. Your sins are forgiven.
And with that, death has no more hold on you. The gate to paradise is open. The grave could not hold Jesus, and it will not hold any of those who belong to him. Rhandilynn belongs to Jesus, and her eternal life is assured. Rhandi was baptized into Christ. She believed in him. The Holy Spirit kept her in the true faith, as she was here in God’s house, her faith regularly being strengthened and nourished by God’s Word and Sacrament. The good Lord kept Rhandi in the faith, even to her last hour, when she fell asleep in Jesus.
By the way, when the Bible talks about “those who have fallen asleep,” it’s a gentle way of referring to Christians who have died. We can say they have “fallen asleep,” because sleep is something you get from. And for Christians--for Rhandi, death is something she will get up from. There is a great gettin’-up morning on the way for us, for Rhandi, when our Lord Jesus comes again. On that day, Christ will call us from our graves. He will raise our bodies, whole and new and glorious.
This is the Christian hope: the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting. This is what we look forward to. And it will be a great big happy homecoming and joyful reunion for all of God’s people. You and I will see Rhandi once again. No more pain, no more sorrow, no more grief. Grief will be caught up in joy, and our joy will never end. Praise the Lord for this wonderful hope we have in Christ!
Today we grieve. We miss Rhandilynn terribly. But God comforts us in our loss. He does this also through the love and support we receive in this family of God called the church. We grieve, but we also have hope. It is a sure and living hope, anchored in Christ: who he is, what he has done, and what he will do. It is a hope so wonderful, it is even greater than our grief. We grieve, and we have hope--often at the same time. “Therefore encourage one another with these words.”
We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.
Ping.
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