All Saints' Day 2022-- The Power of God

Text: Revelation 7:13-15 “13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” 14 I said to him, “Sir, you know.” And he said to me, “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15 Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.””

Jesus was far more ‘direct’, shall we say, than most imagine. He is popularly viewed as a gentle man, kind to the point of never speaking a harsh word to anyone. But, as you well know, that picture of Him does not hold up for very long when one starts reading the Scriptures. The most stinging rebuke He gave is, arguably, His words to the Sadducees recorded in Matthew 22. “29 But Jesus answered them, “You are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God” (Matthew 22:29). With the Pharisees, so often He would challenge a particular point in their understanding of scripture that wasn’t correct; He would point out the serious error in a particular practice; He would point them to others who actually understood it correctly. Not so with the Sadducees. “You are wrong,” He bluntly told them; “You do not know the scriptures,” He said; “You do not know the power of God.” On the list of things that you don’t want to hear from Jesus, that has to be at— or at least very near— the top.

To borrow Jesus’ sentiments from Matthew 22:29, today is a day to learn to better know the scriptures and the power therein.

There is so much to give thanks for in the lives of Rick, Don, Bonnie, Dennis, Dave, Bob, Glenn, Cindy.

How can you ever give back a worthy gift to my parents, whom God gave you? They are, next to Him, the authors of your life. You were commanded to honor them that it may go well with you and you might live long. And, if that command of God is not enough, you have the example of Christ, Himself, the very Son of God, who in the agony of death commended His mother to the care of His disciple (John 19:26–27), teaches you to be concerned for your parents until their last breath. And you have done your best.

The relationship with brothers and sisters can certainly be complicated, shall we say. But, for whatever reason, God has joined you to them with special bonds in this life. You and they have strived to honor those bonds, as best you could, through this life. How much do you owe them, as well?

And how do you even begin to put into words what he meant to you as a husband? What she meant to you as a wife? You celebrating so many milestones together. You faced so many hardships together. You shouldered such great burdens together.

We could go down the whole list— sons and daughters, friends, etc.— God’s Word points to all the ways that each one has blessed you. And not just you. Those we remember today helped to build businesses, were the cornerstone of families, they leave behind things of great value to many.

There is no doubt that we live in a time of great tribulation. You have endured and suffered through it together with them. There is so much to give thanks for. But if that’s where you stop, then you do not know the scriptures or the power therein.

The scriptures are not simply a set of principles for a better life— how to be a good husband/wife, father/mother, son/daughter, brother/sister. They are the message of the One who has the power of eternal life.

It is not an easy word. It confronted them with their sins— all the ways they failed to be the father/mother, the brother/sister, the son/daughter, the friend/neighbor they should have been— all the ways they sinned against you. It does not allow us to escape the hard reality that what you and I build in this life will not endure forever.

It is not an easy word, but it has power— the power of the One who came to take Rick’s sin— everything that he had done and that he had failed to do which earned him death— and who suffered and died in Bob’s place.

He was the faithful Son of His heavenly Father who did not hesitate to step forth to carry out their shared plan of salvation. So no, even from the cross, He was not capable of being any less faithful to care for His mother than He was faithful in doing His Father’s will.

The power of the scriptures lies int he promise that Bonnie had been born again through the waters of baptism— born again into eternal life.

The power of the scriptures declares, in the face of your grief, that the One who died for Dennis on the cross has now stood by him in his death and given him the everlasting life that He promised him.

He was unjustly condemned so that He could justly declare David innocent now and at the last judgment.

He allowed Himself to die and be laid into the grave so that, on the Last Day, Bob’s grave would be as empty as Christ’s was on Easter morning.

Through the power of the scriptures— through Jesus Christ— Glenn served not just you, but Christ, Himself and has now received the unfading crown of eternal glory that those works have earned.

You have commended to God, the kindest Father, your fathers and mothers; your brothers and sisters; your husbands and wives; and so many others. By His grace and the power of His word, they are and will be to all eternity, your brothers and sisters in Christ.

He, the source of all good and the rewarder of all kindness, has repaid their kindness to you with temporal and eternal rewards. He has received into the eternal dwellings of the city above those through whom He has shown you such manifold and abundant kindness (Luke 16:9). He has promised in His Word that, in His grace, He desires to repay even the drink of cold water (Matthew 10:42) given to care for others. How much more will those have generously presented kindness to you experience His generosity and kindness (Proverbs 19:17; Matthew 25:40)? He will not stop the flow of His favor to those from whom so much kindness flowed to others. The font of His goodness continually floods over those from whom flooded such abundant streams of generosity. The most merciful God will cause those who have so abundantly sown carnal things to receive spiritual things with a great return on their investment (1 Corinthians 9:11). He has filled with joy the souls of those who filled the stomachs of the hungry with food. The fruit of their kindness has not passed from them, even though it come from passing goods.

They are heirs of the kingdom of heaven. Those whom God has joined with me in this life have been joined with me in the kingdom of grace. Those whom the ferocity of death has already separated from me will be returned to you with eternal joy at the time of His final coming. You will find yourselves there, all citizens of the heavenly Jerusalem, even as God has, in this life, made you members of His church.

In that day, you, who have come out of the great tribulation, who have washed your robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb, will stand before God’s throne and serve Him in His temple. And the One who sits on the throne will shelter you with His presence. The Lamb in the midst of the throne will be your shepherd and He will wipe away every tear from your eyes with His nail-scarred hands.

“Who are these, clothed in white robes?” John was not bold enough, in that moment, to answer. But today we get to name one small group of that multitude. And be reminded of the scriptures and the power therein.