God's Promises, Promises!
Sermon
Life Everlasting
The Essential Book of Funeral Resources
Object:
A funeral meditation
God's Promises, Promises!
John 14:2-3
A former student of mine tells this boyhood experience about his father's promises. When he was an eight-year-old lad, his father promised him a BB gun for which he longed with intense desire. His dad promised that when his next paycheck came, they would get the gun. In those days, work was scarce and his father only had a part-time state job. On the day when the check was due to arrive, it rained and the road was muddy. The check came on time, but with it was a letter ordering him to come to Atlanta, 200 miles away, that very day. The boy knew that his father could not drive in the rain to town twenty miles away, come back with a gun, and then drive to Atlanta. To keep his father from seeing his disappointment, he slipped up to his room and sobbed with a broken heart. He heard his mother and dad whispering to each other while his mother packed a bag for his father. Then he heard the front door slam and the leaving of the car. He wept himself almost to sleep, but sometime later, he was awakened by a familiar sound of a horn. It was his dad. He rushed to the front porch and saw his dad holding out a BB gun to him. He ran down and took it. Neither he nor his father had a word to say. There was no need of saying anything. His dad drove off to Atlanta. Years later, the student, now a prominent minister, said that when anyone said anything about the promises of the Heavenly Father, he had no difficulty believing them because he had this experience with his earthly father's promises. If an earthly father could keep his promises, how much more would the Heavenly Father keep his promises!
On this occasion, when our hearts are broken because of the loss of a loved one, we hear some promises of the Father through his Son, Jesus Christ. These promises, if accepted and trusted, will bring us comfort and peace in our sadness.
In our text, Jesus promises us that there is room in heaven for all of God's people. He said, "In my Father's house there are many mansions...." In other words, there is room for everyone who dies in Christ. It is not true that heaven has a limited enrollment. We cannot say that only 144,000 are allowed to be in heaven. Heaven is big enough for all those who put their trust in God.
Isn't this good news for us who sorrow over the passing of a loved one? We need not worry whether there was room for him. All of us know that when we take a trip to an important and popular place (heaven is as popular a place as one can find, for who doesn't want to go to heaven?) that there is always a question whether or not we will be able to get reservations. Usually, we seek reservations weeks in advance to be sure there will be a place or room for us. The marvelous thing about this promise is that we need not make reservations with God to get living space in heaven. There is room for all who die in Christ. No one will be left out. God will not treat any of his children like men once treated his Son when there was no room in the inn for Jesus to be born.
In our text, Jesus makes another promise to us. He tells us that he is going ahead of us to prepare a place for us in heaven. Hear his words: "I go to prepare a place for you."
In human relations, we know that when we expect visitors or guests in our homes, we make preparations for them. We stock up on food and drink so there will be plenty on hand when the guests arrive, and we give the house a good cleaning. Special meals are prepared. Before guests arrive, the house is in a hubbub of preparation. If this is the case with human guests in our homes, would it also not be true that God through Jesus makes preparations for his children to come to their eternal home? What kind of preparation does Jesus make for us to come to heaven? It is a spiritual preparation.
This preparation is necessary because the Bible tells us that when every one of us dies, we must appear before God, the righteous judge. God is infinite and holy. We are finite and sinful. We cannot stand before Almighty God in our own right, dressed in the filthy rags of our unworthiness and sins. Jesus has gone ahead to make things right with God. He made these preparations when he was on earth by dying on the cross for our sins and rising from the dead that we, too, might rise from death. On earth he fulfilled all the laws of God and completed all of God's demands of perfection. Now Jesus goes to God in heaven and says that on behalf of all men, he has died for their sins and completed for man all that God asked of man. He begs God to forgive men on the basis of his own work and merits. That is why we say Jesus is our mediator. He intercedes for us before God and he makes it possible for us to stand before God with the robe of righteousness given to us by Christ. When we die and appear before God, everything has been taken care of that we might be admitted to God's presence and accepted in love for Jesus' sake.
Is this truly not a comfort to each of us sinners? Now we need not worry about our loved ones or ourselves whom we confess to be sinners. For who is perfect? Jesus promised that he would go ahead and prepare a place for us in God's kingdom. To trust this promise will bring us comfort and encouragement.
In the words of Jesus, our text tells us of a third promise of the Father through Jesus. It is the promise that Jesus will be with us. That we will not be alone in heaven. Listen to the promise, "Where I am, there ye may be also."
We do not know who is going to be in heaven, except one. This one is Jesus, himself. Indeed, there will be others, but no one can be certain that our friends and members of the family will be there. That is in God's hands. We can be sure that Jesus is there and that really is enough.
Have you ever wondered what heaven is like? Is it a place of pearly gates and streets of gold? Does anyone know about the "furniture" of heaven? No one can say what heaven is like. All we can do is paint pictures involving symbolism. But one thing we can be sure of: Christ promises that he will be there to greet and meet us when we arrive and ever stay with us. That is what makes heaven. It is not necessarily a physical place with all kinds of jewels. It is a spiritual condition made possible by the presence of Jesus. Where he is, there is life and love and peace. Then to be in heaven means to be in life, to be in love, to be at peace in Christ. Since this is so, why then should we lament the passing of a loved one who died in Christ? This dear one is far better off than we are on earth. He is experiencing the time of his life. He is saying, "This is real living!" Heaven is a glorious place where love, life, and joy abound.
You know, a promise is only as good as the one who makes it. Who made these promises about our going to heaven? It is none other than God speaking through Jesus to his disciples. Is there anyone greater or more trustworthy than God? Even if a great and reliable person makes a promise, we believe a promise until the time the person making the promise does not keep it. After that, we doubt whether any future promise will be kept. Can anyone ever claim that God at any one time or place ever broke a promise to man? Indeed, the truth is that God has always kept his word. He will keep it now, and will always keep his word. God is not capricious. God is steadfast, constant, and forever dependable. You can trust these promises of Christ. If you stand on these promises, you will have comfort and strength not only now in this hour of bereavement, but in all the days ahead.
(Reprinted from "Through The Valley Of The Shadows," CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio 45804, © 1976.)
God's Promises, Promises!
John 14:2-3
A former student of mine tells this boyhood experience about his father's promises. When he was an eight-year-old lad, his father promised him a BB gun for which he longed with intense desire. His dad promised that when his next paycheck came, they would get the gun. In those days, work was scarce and his father only had a part-time state job. On the day when the check was due to arrive, it rained and the road was muddy. The check came on time, but with it was a letter ordering him to come to Atlanta, 200 miles away, that very day. The boy knew that his father could not drive in the rain to town twenty miles away, come back with a gun, and then drive to Atlanta. To keep his father from seeing his disappointment, he slipped up to his room and sobbed with a broken heart. He heard his mother and dad whispering to each other while his mother packed a bag for his father. Then he heard the front door slam and the leaving of the car. He wept himself almost to sleep, but sometime later, he was awakened by a familiar sound of a horn. It was his dad. He rushed to the front porch and saw his dad holding out a BB gun to him. He ran down and took it. Neither he nor his father had a word to say. There was no need of saying anything. His dad drove off to Atlanta. Years later, the student, now a prominent minister, said that when anyone said anything about the promises of the Heavenly Father, he had no difficulty believing them because he had this experience with his earthly father's promises. If an earthly father could keep his promises, how much more would the Heavenly Father keep his promises!
On this occasion, when our hearts are broken because of the loss of a loved one, we hear some promises of the Father through his Son, Jesus Christ. These promises, if accepted and trusted, will bring us comfort and peace in our sadness.
In our text, Jesus promises us that there is room in heaven for all of God's people. He said, "In my Father's house there are many mansions...." In other words, there is room for everyone who dies in Christ. It is not true that heaven has a limited enrollment. We cannot say that only 144,000 are allowed to be in heaven. Heaven is big enough for all those who put their trust in God.
Isn't this good news for us who sorrow over the passing of a loved one? We need not worry whether there was room for him. All of us know that when we take a trip to an important and popular place (heaven is as popular a place as one can find, for who doesn't want to go to heaven?) that there is always a question whether or not we will be able to get reservations. Usually, we seek reservations weeks in advance to be sure there will be a place or room for us. The marvelous thing about this promise is that we need not make reservations with God to get living space in heaven. There is room for all who die in Christ. No one will be left out. God will not treat any of his children like men once treated his Son when there was no room in the inn for Jesus to be born.
In our text, Jesus makes another promise to us. He tells us that he is going ahead of us to prepare a place for us in heaven. Hear his words: "I go to prepare a place for you."
In human relations, we know that when we expect visitors or guests in our homes, we make preparations for them. We stock up on food and drink so there will be plenty on hand when the guests arrive, and we give the house a good cleaning. Special meals are prepared. Before guests arrive, the house is in a hubbub of preparation. If this is the case with human guests in our homes, would it also not be true that God through Jesus makes preparations for his children to come to their eternal home? What kind of preparation does Jesus make for us to come to heaven? It is a spiritual preparation.
This preparation is necessary because the Bible tells us that when every one of us dies, we must appear before God, the righteous judge. God is infinite and holy. We are finite and sinful. We cannot stand before Almighty God in our own right, dressed in the filthy rags of our unworthiness and sins. Jesus has gone ahead to make things right with God. He made these preparations when he was on earth by dying on the cross for our sins and rising from the dead that we, too, might rise from death. On earth he fulfilled all the laws of God and completed all of God's demands of perfection. Now Jesus goes to God in heaven and says that on behalf of all men, he has died for their sins and completed for man all that God asked of man. He begs God to forgive men on the basis of his own work and merits. That is why we say Jesus is our mediator. He intercedes for us before God and he makes it possible for us to stand before God with the robe of righteousness given to us by Christ. When we die and appear before God, everything has been taken care of that we might be admitted to God's presence and accepted in love for Jesus' sake.
Is this truly not a comfort to each of us sinners? Now we need not worry about our loved ones or ourselves whom we confess to be sinners. For who is perfect? Jesus promised that he would go ahead and prepare a place for us in God's kingdom. To trust this promise will bring us comfort and encouragement.
In the words of Jesus, our text tells us of a third promise of the Father through Jesus. It is the promise that Jesus will be with us. That we will not be alone in heaven. Listen to the promise, "Where I am, there ye may be also."
We do not know who is going to be in heaven, except one. This one is Jesus, himself. Indeed, there will be others, but no one can be certain that our friends and members of the family will be there. That is in God's hands. We can be sure that Jesus is there and that really is enough.
Have you ever wondered what heaven is like? Is it a place of pearly gates and streets of gold? Does anyone know about the "furniture" of heaven? No one can say what heaven is like. All we can do is paint pictures involving symbolism. But one thing we can be sure of: Christ promises that he will be there to greet and meet us when we arrive and ever stay with us. That is what makes heaven. It is not necessarily a physical place with all kinds of jewels. It is a spiritual condition made possible by the presence of Jesus. Where he is, there is life and love and peace. Then to be in heaven means to be in life, to be in love, to be at peace in Christ. Since this is so, why then should we lament the passing of a loved one who died in Christ? This dear one is far better off than we are on earth. He is experiencing the time of his life. He is saying, "This is real living!" Heaven is a glorious place where love, life, and joy abound.
You know, a promise is only as good as the one who makes it. Who made these promises about our going to heaven? It is none other than God speaking through Jesus to his disciples. Is there anyone greater or more trustworthy than God? Even if a great and reliable person makes a promise, we believe a promise until the time the person making the promise does not keep it. After that, we doubt whether any future promise will be kept. Can anyone ever claim that God at any one time or place ever broke a promise to man? Indeed, the truth is that God has always kept his word. He will keep it now, and will always keep his word. God is not capricious. God is steadfast, constant, and forever dependable. You can trust these promises of Christ. If you stand on these promises, you will have comfort and strength not only now in this hour of bereavement, but in all the days ahead.
(Reprinted from "Through The Valley Of The Shadows," CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio 45804, © 1976.)
