Ida, family and friends of Del:
Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Amen!
[Intro]
“Let not your hearts be troubled” (John 14:1a). Del’s death came as a shock. One day, we are expecting his return home from the hospital. The next day, to our surprise Del did return home, but not to the home we expected. He was called to his heavenly home.
Even with Del receiving his inheritance – “an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading” (1 Peter 1:4) – our own sinful nature still asks questions, like: “What could I have done differently?” Or: “Why couldn’t I have had more time?”
When we lose a loved one, it is natural to ask questions to God through prayer. And don’t hold back. God can handle all we ask Him.
Although Del’s death comes as a shock, due to Del’s faith in Christ, we grieve not as the unbelieving world grieves. As Christians, we grieve in the sure and certain hope that we will be with our loved ones again who have died in the faith. “For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with Him all those who have fallen asleep. … Therefore encourage one another with these words” (1 Thessalonians 4:14, 18).
So, don’t be ashamed to grieve. Grieving is perfectly natural. Afterall, Jesus grieved. And everyone grieves in different ways. But always remember, Christians have the sure and certain hope that because Christ lives, everyone in Christ also lives.
[Receiving Christ’s Means of Grace]
Throughout Del and Ida’s marriage, they had many lively conversations together. Although they never argued, the two discussed many topics. At the beginning of their marriage, one conversation went this way: Ida said to Del, “I am going to church every Sunday.” To which Del replied, “I go to church four times a year.” “Well, I am going to church every Sunday.” To which Del said, “I don’t want you to go alone.”
For practically every Sunday, you could find Del and Ida right here at First Lutheran Church as they received Christ’s Means of Grace through His Word and Sacrament. At each Sunday Divine Service, the Triune God – the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – continually forgave Del’s sins and strengthened his faith in Christ as his Savior.
Even on Tuesday mornings, Del and Ida would be found here at First Lutheran together as they came for fellowship and to study God’s Word at each Tuesday morning Bible Study. While at home relaxing on their back porch, Del and Ida continuously studied and discussed God’s Word as God strengthened their faith.
Del was a kind and caring gentleman who would do anything – including giving up his life – for his wife Ida. This, he took to heart from His Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (Ephesians 5:25-31). Today, Del has joined the Church Triumphant with all the faithful. He is wearing the robe of Christ’s righteousness that he received at his baptism that covers all of his sins. Today, Del is in the presence of His Lord Jesus Christ who has “swallowed up death forever” and has wiped away all his tears (Isaiah 25:8). All his pain is gone. He is completely satisfied as He is in the presence of the Good Shepherd.
[The Way to God the Father]
For us here this morning, “Let not your hearts be troubled” (John 14:1a). Today, we see the wages of sin, which is death. Due to sin, no human being can overcome death. But, although we die due to sin, by grace through faith in Jesus, “the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23b).
For Christ’s disciples, they certainly did not want to see Jesus leave them. They are stirred up and shaken at the thought that Jesus was going away from them.
To this, Jesus says to them and us, “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in Me” (John 14:1). Now, this departure of Jesus is a cause for distress. Nobody wants to be left alone. Nobody likes to be separated from our loved ones and friends. This grief is only natural. But Jesus does not leave them and us alone, even after He departs.
Jesus says we have no reason to be troubled. He says, “Believe in God; believe also in Me” (John 14:1b). Now, this is not a reference to just general faith, but this is a reference to trust. Jesus is saying, “Trust in God the Father; Trust also in Me.”
God the Father sent Jesus on a mission and when His mission is complete, Jesus is to return. His mission was to suffer and die for all the sins of mankind, so that all who trust in Jesus would receive forgiveness of sins, eternal life, and salvation – and all by grace through faith in Him alone!
As Jesus says “believe, believe,” He is giving us the assurance that trust in God the Father would be enough, but trust in God the Father and God the Son is more than enough.
We and the disciples are to keep on trusting in the view of Christ’s departure of what Jesus again assures us: “In my Father’s house are many rooms” (John 14:2a). These rooms are all permanent abiding places. This is the promise the Good Shepherd makes to us in Psalm 23: “I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever” (Psalm 23:6b).
This departure of Jesus ushers in the glorious and eternal reunion. With this great promise, Jesus plants the comfort of the sure and certain hope in His disciples and in us!
But how do we get to the Father’s house? This is what Thomas asked Jesus: “How can we know the way?” (John 14:5b)
Jesus said to Thomas, “I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).
Here, Jesus does not say, “I show you the way,” like a second Moses; but, “I am the Way.” Nor, “I have the truth,” like another Elijah; but, “I am the Truth.” Not only, “I lead to life,” as one of his apostles could preach; but, “I am the Life.”
Jesus – the Word made flesh – is the Son of God and is of the identical essence of the Father, born of the virgin Mary, who was sent on His mission as the one Mediator between God and man, in all that He is and all that He does. Jesus as the Way bridges a chasm. Now, if the bridge lacks as little as an inch of reaching across, this bridge is not a bridge, but plunges down and is only rubble. Jesus is the only Bridge that lasts forever. He is the only Bridge to God the Father.
“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned – every one – to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6). As we have all gone astray, the Good Shepherd took upon Himself all of our sins, so that we – by faith in Him – would know the only Way to God the Father.
Jesus continues saying, “I am the Truth” and thus “I am the Way.” This means far more than Jesus is truthful. Nor is He merely of the truth. If this were all, Jesus could not be “the Way.” But Jesus is the actual embodiment of the Truth. He is the very reality of God the Father’s plans of grace and their execution.
“I am the Life.” Jesus is the one and only source of blessed existence and life for us. In our sin is death, the separation from God the Father. Left to ourselves, we would remain in this separation forever, dead beyond hope. But in the Person of Jesus, God the Father sent us “the Life.” Through Himself, Jesus abolishes the separation and once more unites us with God the Father. This union kindles life in us! This union gives us “eternal life.”
So, how is this union accomplished? How does Jesus become ours, and we His? It is all by faith when He comes to us and kindles confidence and trust in us. This He does through His Means of Grace: Word and Sacrament. Through hearing and believing His Word, Christ is in us, and we are in Him. God fills us with His grace so that we will be with Him forever. This is what Del received throughout His life and by his faith in Christ, he is still receiving this grace as He is in the presence of the Good Shepherd, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
Today, Del and all the faithful in heaven are at the table that Christ has prepared for all who trust in Him. Del and the entire Church Triumphant are at the Great Banquet in heaven receiving the “feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined” (Isaiah 25:6). He is in the presence of the Good Shepherd. Though we have yet to see Christ in the flesh, Del is seeing Him as he rejoices in His sight.
For us this day, we have the sure and certain hope that because Christ lives, we shall also live, as we – along with Del and his fellow saints in the Church Triumphant – await Christ’s coming on the Last Day!
May we receive the same victory over death – the inheritance – that Del has received by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, who alone is the only Way to God the Father. Amen!
The peace of God which surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.
T SOLI DEO GLORIA T
Del Rutske's Obituary: https://hantge.com/obituaries/delbert-rutske/
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