+ Daniel L. Campbell +

A Burden to Bear, a Hope to Share, a Lord to Care

In Christ, our risen and present Lord, dear Mary, John, Ryan, Jason, Mike, and Scott:

Every life has two doors. One is birth, and the other is death. King Solomon affirms in the book of Ecclesiastes, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die” (Eccl 3:1–2).

Death has come knocking at your door. Death—the most brutal, hated enemy of life, an unwelcome intruder in your family. Dan will not be part of our lives until God’s kingdom comes in glory. But, in the language of hope, he is forever with the Lord.

In times of sorrow our feelings run amuck. They need tempering, and Christ alone can provide the right prescription. There is a verse of consolation in Scripture: “Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints” (Ps 116:15). Together with our primary reading from First Thessalonians, I offer you three words of consolation—three divine truths if you will—for the comfort your spirits are yearning. I pray that these words will give fuel to the fire of your faith in God.

These truths are simple but also profound. For they are God’s words of wisdom and not man’s feeble philosophy. The Apostle Paul wrote them to a group of struggling new Christians. These babes-in-the-faith had concerns about death; questions about the second coming of Christ. What happens to believers still living when Christ returns, and where are the beloved dead now? From these words of Paul consider the following truths.

There Is a Burden to Bear

The first is this: There really is a burden to bear. Many people ignore or deny death. As God’s people in Christ, you ponder death as one embraced by the Savior. Dan is no longer here among us. Such is your burden because his life has impacted your lives in important ways. Now you face life lacking the earthly fellowship of this sports fan, who enjoyed life watching a game or being outdoors with family and friends.

It is not unusual that this kind of loss yields many tears. This is not a weakness of faith, as some believe it to be. Being stoic is not a godly virtue. But your grief at this time takes on a different style than the grief of those who have no hope. St. Paul admonishes us, “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” (1 Thess 4:13). Paul does not assert that grief is wrong, but rather admonishes us that grief without hope is not the way of God’s people.

You and Your Second Family

There is a burden to bear. In Christian love within the family you freely give each other your strength. You bear your burdens as a family knit together by Christ. Together you converse, cry, remember, and laugh. You share experiences in your lives you enjoyed with Dan. But there is still more help available. By God’s grace you also have a second family to which you may turn. It is the church, the living body of Christ. And it is no small blessing. Dan, too, was a member of Christ’s body when he was baptized, April 5, 1970. At that time God inscribed Dan’s name on the palm of His hand, as Isaiah the prophet reminds us.

So, “carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ” (Gal 6:2). God’s people do this as part of their Christian calling. Yes, at this time and on this occasion, there is a burden to bear, but we do not bear it alone. We do it within the Campbell family and also with your second family, the Church.

There Is a Hope to Share

Now since we grieve not as others without hope, I offer this second profession of faith. While there is a burden to bear, there is a hope to share. That hope takes into account the future of our departed brother as well as the faith by which we, who remain on this earth a while longer, walk the pathway of this life. In the Bible the word hope is not defined as a wistful desire, as something that may or may not come to pass. Biblical hope is absolutely true.

I did not know Dan well, but since his cancer diagnosis a certain hope of the reality of life pressed upon him. And this reality also addresses you and me with implications for our eternal future.

First, we know with assurance where Dan is spending eternity. St. Paul said it best: “When we are absent from the body we are present with the Lord” (2 Cor. 5:8). He is in heaven’s home! If Dan has left a will there can be nothing within it as precious as this legacy. Can there be a greater legacy than knowing he is cradled in Christ? Never! Regardless of how good of a man Dan was, our assurance of salvation is not based on his goodness. It is based on what God has done for him. Dan knew he was a sinner who needed God’s grace.

The seed of salvation was first planted in the soil of Dan’s heart when God’s Word and Spirit claimed on his soul, in the waters of Baptism on that 5th day of April. On that day in Sacred Heart Hospital he became God’s property. Though he didn’t show his faith very brightly, Dan, nevertheless, believed. And, once in awhile, he was in this very room listening to the Words of his Lord, Jesus, where Christ caused this seed of faith to sprout and grow.

As for You

Dan is with the Lord. Are you? Are you walking by faith in Christ Jesus? Are you resolved to remain clutched in the caring hands of the Good Shepherd? For if that is true, there will be a family reunion more glorious than any you could possibly experience here on earth. Jesus Christ will host that reunion. One of urgent desires within Holy Scripture is that we continue to admonish one another to hold fast to the faith. Remember Paul’s reminder: “And so we will be with the Lord forever” (1 Thess 4:17). That, in any event, has always been the final goal of your family.

There is a hope to share. Dan is with Christ, and all who believe and are baptized will be there too. What a saga of salvation, which calls for your faithfulness as you finish out life. That, too, like sharing the burden of the hour, is a mutual task of God’s people. The last sentence in Paul’s words about death and resurrection says the following: “Therefore encourage each other with these words” (1 Thess 4:18). Such is our blessed task.

There Is a Lord to Care

This brings me to the final profession or divine truth I am privileged to proclaim. Throughout these ensuing days, weeks, and months of grief and sorrow, there will always be at your side a Lord to care. Such is his promise and nature. You will find him, of course, in the words of Scripture, as you read the Bible, and in the hymns you sing based on that Bible. You will also find him feeding you his body and blood in the bread and wine of the blessed Sacrament, as the ups and downs of life tend to rob our strength of faith. Do not refuse or ignore the power that comes from God. It has a purpose especially now. Endurance!

So You Have the Power to Endure

Know that the Lord’s care for you gives you power by God’s grace to wait for that great reunion of the saints when Christ comes in glory. He promises, “Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall” (Ps 55:22). “I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown” (Rev 3:11). There are so many other words of Scripture that bear testimony to the love of God.

Given what God has told us, there is a burden to bear, a hope to share, and a Lord to care, we can leave this place celebrating a triumph only God could author. The hero is Jesus Christ who saved Dan, and has prepared a place for him in our heavenly Father’s kingdom. Trust in Christ Jesus, grateful for Dan and all the blessed memories you have of him, being grateful for the living Lord who gave Dan to us as a precious gift. How safe he is in the arms of the Savior. How blest we are to grieve in the reality that one day all who trust in Christ as Savior will one day be reunited in God’s heavenly kingdom.

May Jesus’ peace, power, joy, and love be with you all—in your minds and in your hearts and in your understanding.

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.