Funeral Message for Johnny Reece
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On behalf of the family, I want to thank each of you who have come out to show your love and support for them. It means a lot to have others come alongside you during this time. I know it seems like that there is nothing you can say or do to make it better, but I will tell you that simply being here for them is enough. So thank you!
I did not have the privilege on knowing Mr. Johnny, but based upon the stories I have heard from the family, he was good man. He loved his family, he loved to enjoy life, and he especially loved his grandchildren.
This is a tough day. Any time we lay a loved one to rest is a tough day, but having the love and support of family and friends does help us to bear that sadness. Most importantly, having the peace of God that goes beyond understanding helps the most.
God has graciously given us what we call free will. This is to say that we as humans have the liberty to make choices for ourselves. But, that free will must operate within the parameters that God has set before us. That means that some things in life, you and I get to choose for ourselves, but other things in life we do not. There are some things that God alone gets to determine.
The book of Ecclesiastes in the OT of the Bible was written by a man named Solomon. He was the son of the great King David. Because of the choices he made early on in his life, God granted Solomon one request. Solomon could have chosen anything: money, fame, power, position, or anything else. Instead, Solomon asked God for wisdom.
12 behold, I have done according to your words; see, I have given you a wise and understanding heart, so that there has not been anyone like you before you, nor shall any like you arise after you.
God not only granted Solomon’s request for wisdom but gave him an overabundance of it. He was the wisest man to ever walk the face of the Earth, outside of God Himself of course.
In his wisdom, Solomon wrote the book of Proverbs, which is a compilation of truth statements designed to help us navigate through life. Later on in his years, Solomon also wrote the book of Ecclesiastes.
In His introduction to the Book, Solomon said this:
2 “Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher; “Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.”
3 What profit has a man from all his labor In which he toils under the sun?
4 One generation passes away, and another generation comes; But the earth abides forever.
5 The sun also rises, and the sun goes down, And hastens to the place where it arose.
6 The wind goes toward the south, And turns around to the north; The wind whirls about continually, And comes again on its circuit.
7 All the rivers run into the sea, Yet the sea is not full; To the place from which the rivers come, There they return again.
8 All things are full of labor; Man cannot express it. The eye is not satisfied with seeing, Nor the ear filled with hearing.
9 That which has been is what will be, That which is done is what will be done, And there is nothing new under the sun.
In these verses, Solomon is expressing that all things are vain, “Vanity of vanities says the preacher.” The word vain means empty or without purpose.
In other words Solomon is expressing how everything has an expiration date. The sun rises just to set again. We rise and work just to lie down again and sleep. One generation comes and goes, just to be replaced by another. The rivers run into the oceans just so that the ocean can fill the rivers again. Everything cycles. Everything comes and goes.
By the time we reach Chapter 3, Solomon puts it like this:
1 To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven:
2 A time to be born, And a time to die; A time to plant, And a time to pluck what is planted;
3 A time to kill, And a time to heal; A time to break down, And a time to build up;
4 A time to weep, And a time to laugh; A time to mourn, And a time to dance;
5 A time to cast away stones, And a time to gather stones; A time to embrace, And a time to refrain from embracing;
6 A time to gain, And a time to lose; A time to keep, And a time to throw away;
7 A time to tear, And a time to sew; A time to keep silence, And a time to speak;
8 A time to love, And a time to hate; A time of war, And a time of peace.
Solomon is explaining here that as we go through these cycles of life, things change. “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven:”
As we said a little earlier, there are certain things in this life that you and I are given the liberty to choose for ourselves, but then there are other things that God determines Himself.
We do not get to choose when we are born and we do not get to choose when we die. Those decisions are left up to Him. What we do in between those two dates is left up to us. How we live our lives is left up to us to decide.
So what are we to do with this time that we have been given? That is what we must decide right? That is the part that God has given us the liberty to decide for ourselves.
I think in order to fully embrace that question, there are certain truths that need to be understood.
God has placed eternity in the heart of every man.
11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.
We are limited in our understanding because we are obviously not God, but God has placed this innate desire to be a part of His eternal plan inside the heart of each and every person.
Whether one will admit or not, we all wonder about eternal things. We ask questions inside our hearts concerning things of God, and truth is, we all know deep down that there is a God.
20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse,
We can look at the vastness of creation, the intricacies involved in such a universe, the minute details of all that is in existence and the importance of the finest details that must be what they are in order for us to exist. All of these things scream that there is a God. This all didn’t happen by itself.
This is why we all have this desire to be a part of something that is bigger than we are. We all keep up with, or watch famous people to some degree. It could be an actor, singer, sports figure, hunter/fisherman, interior designer, or something else. But we all have this innate desire to be a part of something that is bigger than us and beyond us. That is because that longing is rooted in Christ, who is both above and beyond us. Some will spend their entire lives trying to fill that void in their lives with everything else but the right thing. But having a relationship with God is the only thing that can truly fill that whole.
God has placed eternity in the heart of every man.
Everyone dies
7 Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, And the spirit will return to God who gave it.
2 A time to be born, And a time to die; A time to plant, And a time to pluck what is planted;
Solomon makes it very clear that the flesh of all men will one day perish. At some point in the future, all of our bodies will be right there, in a casket. It is something we all have to face. You and I, like everything else in this world, have an expiration date. We all run out of time at some point.
Solomon goes on to say about death:
12 For man also does not know his time: Like fish taken in a cruel net, Like birds caught in a snare, So the sons of men are snared in an evil time, When it falls suddenly upon them.
No one knows how long they have. For some, death comes suddenly, for others it is a long painful process.
We just buried my dad this last April. He found out in October that he had stage IV lung cancer and six months later, he was gone.
Death is coming for us all, and none of us know when it will be. Some will get to live out the fullness of their lives and live well into their 70’s, 80’s, or even 90’s. Others may not make it to 40. We simply do not know. Remember, that is one of those things that you and I do not get to choose for ourselves. God decides that one for us.
Solomon also says concerning death:
15 As he came from his mother’s womb, naked shall he return, To go as he came; And he shall take nothing from his labor Which he may carry away in his hand.
Solomon teaches us that when we die, we get to take nothing physical with us. No money, no items, no clothes, no house, no car, no person...nothing. We go physically empty.
This truth helps us to understand what really matters in this life. It helps add perspective. See we know the truth and we apply it to almost area of our lives except for the one area it matters most.
When we work at our jobs, we allow them take out a small percentage of money each paycheck so that it can be put into some type of retirement fund. It grows more and more with each check and with each year, so that one day, we can retire and enjoy life. It is a short-term sacrifice for a long-term goal.
IF there is something in life that we want really bad, we will set aside a little money each month so that one day, we can afford to purchase that thing. Once again, it is a short-term sacrifice for a long-term goal.
Having eternity set in our hearts is the same thing. We pray, read our Bibles, go to church, and live a life worthy of our creator, because one day we want to enjoy an eternity where there is no more tears, no more sorrow, and no more death. It is a short-term sacrifice for a long-term goal.
What is 60 years compared to an eternity, it is nothing but a drop in the bucket, or a grain of sand on the seashore. It is a short-term sacrifice for a long-term goal.
Solomon teaches us that death comes to all men.
Man turned from God
29 Truly, this only I have found: That God made man upright, But they have sought out many schemes.”
Solomon is teaching us here that God never intended for us to have to deal with sin. He created man perfect, placed them in a perfect place, and then gave them everything they needed in order to stay in that perfect place. God loves mankind. Always has and always will.
Man turned from God, not the other way around.
20 For there is not a just man on earth who does good And does not sin.
All men sin against God. It is in our nature to do so. You do not have to teach a little child to be selfish, you have to teach them to share. You do not have to teach a little child to lie, you have to teach them to tell the truth. You do not have to teach a little child to break the rules, you have to teach them to follow the rules. It is in our hearts to be sinful, and it is through that sin that we have been separated from God.
1 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, That it cannot save; Nor His ear heavy, That it cannot hear.
2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.
God is still there. God still loves us. God is still the Almighty Creator of the universe, as He has always been. God has not changed, we did.
God wants nothing more than to see us mankind restored into perfect fellowship with Him. That is why He sent Jesus, His only Son, to pay the price for our sin.
5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.
God’s love for us is beyond anything we can imagine. He did what He did so that we might one day dwell with Him in eternity, but also that we might experience Him now.
As we tap into the presence of God in this life, we get to experience His Godly attributes here on earth. We are awarded with those things that truly brings joy, satisfaction, and fulfillment to the heart of man.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
So now that we have seen these three amazing truths that Solomon has given us, let us go back to the original question: What are we to do with this life that God has given us?
Solomon, in the closing or his letter, actually answers this for us.
13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
Solomon tells us that at the end of the day, above all else, we should strive to know God and be obedient to what He has asked of us. That is the whole duty of man.
Can ask each of you to bow your heads and close you eyes as we come to a close?
Is there anyone here who has been convicted of God’s Word? You are lost and undone and you need to be saved? is there anyone brave enough to raise your hand and say, “That is me. I am lost and I need Jesus.”
