Celebration of Life Service

Introduction

Whenever you arrive at a church for the first time, you notice things that stand out. You notice architecture. You notice smells. You notice sounds. You also notice people. There are some people that you meet who have the spiritual gift of encouragement and Joe Cull was one of those people. Being a relatively new pastor at FBC Salem, you never know if people who compliment you are doing so because they genuinely benefitted from your message or because they are simply trying to be nice to you since you’re the new guy. I’ll always remember that Joe came into my office early on and shared multiple details from a recent sermon that resonated with him and he shared some heartfelt encouragement with me. Between praying for people faithfully, sending cards of appreciation, and flowers whenever there was a loss of a loved one, Joe was a dedicated follower of Jesus who desired to help those in need.

Today is a difficult day. It’s a day where love and lessons are remembered and a day where loss is realized. Today is a day where we are taught something and it isn’t by an enjoyable teacher. Many of us have fond memories growing up and learning new things whether it be at church or school or home with our parents and siblings. As humans we learn and we grow and the lessons we take with us impact our lives from the crib to the grave. But there is a teacher whose lessons we cannot stand listening to and this teacher is death. Death teaches us something about ourselves, our loved one, and our God. God’s Word says much about death and loss and today we need the comfort of what the Word of God says.

Death is a reality in this life. It is something that happens and some people are fearful of it while others don’t seem to care much about it and still others refused to even acknowledge it. Many wonder why death is a thing in the first place and the Bible gives us the answer for this question: The reason that death exists is because we have sinned as humans. God promised that if Adam and Eve disobeyed that they would surely die and this is what we see in our world today. God keeps His Word and this might sound like a bad thing - if death is the end of this life and the start of our eternal life and because of our sins we deserve to be separated from God, how can this be good?

Thomas Watson once said that for a Christian, “Death is the funeral of all of our sorrows.” See, if you know Christ as your Lord and Savior, if you have repented of your sins and if Jesus has changed you from the inside out, death is not the enemy. You can be ready for death because death in this life leads you to your creator and sustainer. That might sound too good to be true, but it’s what the Word of God plainly tells us and this is good news tonight because Joe Cull knew Jesus. He didn’t just know about Jesus, but Jesus had changed his life! Jesus allowed Joe to have grace in the middle of trying and confusing times with his health and with some of the relationships he had with others in his life. Jesus gave Joe peace!

You could say that Jesus helped Joe be prepared for this day. Are you prepared for this day? See, we must think honestly about the reality of death and we must vow to make our time count during this wonderful thing called life - we are not guaranteed tomorrow or the day after. We must make sure that we are living for the things that truly matter and we must use our words carefully with those whom we love. Never go to bed angry at those whom you love dearly. See, there is no better time for you to prepare yourself for this day than today. Joe knew Jesus and today he is worshiping Jesus face to face. He is gathering around the throne of the lamb singing songs of praise and he would want you to know that he is not only in a better place, he is in the best place. The reason isn’t because Joe smiled each Sunday at church. It isn’t because he helped those in need or was an encouragement to those who knew him well. It’s not even because he loved his church family. The reason is because of what David talks about in Psalm 23

Psalm 23 CSB

A psalm of David. 1 The Lord is my shepherd; I have what I need. 2 He lets me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside quiet waters. 3 He renews my life; he leads me along the right paths for his name’s sake. 4 Even when I go through the darkest valley, I fear no danger, for you are with me; your rod and your staff—they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Only goodness and faithful love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord as long as I live.

The reason that Joe is rejoicing in heaven today is because the Lord was his shepherd and he was a part of His flock of sheep!

Today is a hard day as we grieve and go through the loss of a family member, friend, and church member. But today is also a day where we reflect back on the love and lessons along the way. We are able to rejoice because even in the valley of the shadow of death, God promises to walk with us. He hasn’t abandoned us. He hasn’t suddenly become unfaithful. No, He is leading us and sustaining us and He will continue to do so in the days to come. How can we know that? One pastor was driving with his daughter to a funeral and they were stopped next to a semi-truck at a stop light. The nice warm sun was suddenly blocked by this truck’s shadow… the dad was trying to explain Psalm 23 to his daughter and it finally hit him. He asked his daughter, “Would you rather get hit by that semi-truck, or by its shadow?” The daughter, without hesitation, said, “It’s shadow!” Friends and family, Jesus Christ was hit by the semi-truck of sin and death so that you and I would only be impacted by its shadow. We suffer and we grieve in this life, especially with this loss, but we don’t grieve like those who have no hope! We have eternal hope because of what Jesus has already done.

This is a tough day because we look around at the situation and there are questions and concerns and genuine confusion… but what cannot be confusing is where Joe is today. Today and in the days to come, I believe that Joe would want us to do 2 things:

Remember all the good that God has done

Remember all the good that God promises to do in the days to come

Whenever we remember Joe in the days to come, remember all that God has done in our lives and in his life. Remember all the good! Remember the hope that we have in Jesus because of God’s infinitely wise plan of salvation and redemption. Remember our hope. But also look forward to God’s promise of making all things new. Remember that sin and death are temporary powers that have an expiration date. Remember that if you’re in Christ, there is no condemnation… only celebration! Turn your eyes to Jesus and his peace and hope and promises will carry us through in the days to come. Today, we celebrate a life well lived. A life of a person whose eyes were fixed on Jesus. One who I believe was told weeks ago well done, my good and faithful servant! May we all run the race before us with our eyes fixed on that price like Joe did.

1 Corinthians 15:57 CSB

57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!