The Church Triumphant

"Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.  We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him."     I Thessalonians 4:13-14

Recently, I attended the funeral of an older saint who had gone home to be with the Lord. She had lived a full life as a wife, mother, and grandmother. She had run a successful business with her husband. She had been a respected member of her community. She had done her best to mentor her children and grandchildren in the ways of the Lord, by living a moral life, reading the Bible with them, correcting them in a godly fashion, and doing her best to teach them the ways of the Christian life. Her last years of life she suffered from memory issues and at the end needed to live in an assisted living facility. This was especially hard for her family. Having to watch a once strong, capable, intelligent woman having to depend on her children for even her most basic needs. When she died many people attended the viewing and the funeral, for she had touched the lives of all she had encountered. She was never shy about sharing the message of redemption through Jesus Christ with those who were not born again and had been even less shy about helping her brothers and sisters in Christ overcome temptation and sin with encouraging words and often chastisement for sinful behavior. Many remarked at the funeral proceedings, including the officiant, that the most important part of her life was her faith in Jesus Christ and the redeemed life her Lord had blessed her with.

During the funeral proceedings many tears were shed, and before I go any further let me say that I completely understood the tears. It is completely natural to be upset and saddened by the death of a loved one. There is no shame in these feelings and there is nothing wrong with them either.  At one point as the minister was speaking at the grave site, my eyes began to well up with tears. I could not help but think however, that while I understood the tears and the grief, if the saint who had died could have spoken to us she most likely would have chastised us for our tears and grief and reminded us that she was home in Heaven and that in her opinion there was no reason for any of us to be sad!

In the verse above, the Apostle Paul instructs us to "not grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope." Because "We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him."  So those born again through faith in Christ have a place waiting for them with God! So while it is natural to grieve the loss of a loved one, let us remember that our loved ones who are Christians have gone home. Not to "a better place" but rather to the place. The best place! They have gone home. They have finished the journey, finished the war, they are no longer prisoners here in this sinful world. They have attained the prize - That which all who believe in God through faith in Christ strive for.

Certainly we miss our loved ones, but if it was within our power would we bring them back? Would we snatch them from the home their Lord has prepared for them? Would we commit an act so selfish? I certainly hope no.

* a note to any of my family members reading this: if I die and go to Heaven and you somehow bring me back I assure you that whoever was responsible for my return will regret it:)

The promise of Heaven is what tempers grief for those who suffer the loss of a loved one who was a Christian. Knowing the loved one is home with their Heavenly Father is what gives us hope. Hope in the promises and love of God. So I would encourage all who suffer the loss of a loved one who was a child of God, saved by faith in Christ to take time to grieve, for this is proper, but remember your loved one is home. Home with the Lord who saved them from death and Hell. Rejoice in this most wonderful promise of God. 

"For this God is our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide even to the end." Psalm 48:14