Funeral Sermon for Larry Cranford:"Jesus: The Source & Power of Your Life & Resurrection" John 11:25–26

Clouds & Our Great Savior

The familiar hymn “When We All Get to Heaven” sings:

“While we walk the pilgrim pathway, Clouds will overspread the sky; But when traveling days are over, Not a shadow, not a sigh.”

The fear of death makes for cloudy days. Some of you here today feel the clouds hanging heavy. But hear me—Jesus Christ shines brighter than death’s darkest cloud.

I am reminded of Nap Clark from Starkville, Mississippi. He had the heartbreaking task of preaching his wife’s funeral after only six years of marriage. She died of cancer. He knew of her illness before they married, yet he chose to walk with her through suffering. After the service, someone said, “You must be a great man.” Nap replied, “No, I’m not. But I have a great Savior.”

That’s where I want your eyes today—not on Larry, not even on our grief, but on the Savior. Jesus is great because He is God in flesh, lived a perfect life, died a substitutionary death, and rose again in power. And all He requires of you is faith—faith in His life, His death, and His resurrection.

Nap found comfort in many things about Jesus, but when he buried his wife, one truth stood out: the resurrection. The same truth comforts us today.

The Context of John 11

In John 11, Jesus says: “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in Me, even if he dies, will live. Everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die—ever. Do you believe this?”

To feel the weight of this promise, remember the story:

Lazarus, Jesus’ friend, fell ill and died.

Jesus delayed coming—so that His disciples, Martha, Mary, and you and I could see His power over death.

Jesus told Martha: “Your brother will rise again.” She thought He meant the last day, but Jesus said, “I AM the resurrection and the life.”

Jesus wept with Mary, showing us that death is our enemy.

Then, at the tomb, He commanded: “Lazarus, come out!”—and death obeyed.

This was no half-restoration. Lazarus didn’t stumble out as a zombie. He was restored—body and soul—by the word of Christ.

Root Your Faith in Christ

Why did Jesus wait? Why let Lazarus die? Because faith mattered more than comfort. He told His disciples plainly: “I’m glad for you that I wasn’t there so that you may believe.” (John 11:15)

Faith is always Jesus’ concern. He asked Martha, “Do you believe this?” He asks you the same question today. What does he as you to believe? Do you believe Jesus is your resurrection hope and eternal life.

John Calvin once said,

The resurrection of Christ is the most important article of our faith.

John Calvin (French Reformer)

Jesus is not calling you to vague religion, not to trying harder, not to mere morality. He calls you to repent of sin and believe in Him. “The one who believes in the Son has eternal life.” (John 3:36)

If Larry could speak for just two minutes, I believe he would say: “Trust Christ. Root your life in Him. Don’t wait another day.”

Realize Your Life in Christ

Jesus says: “The one who believes in Me, even if he dies, will live.”

That means eternal life begins now. Death cannot kill the believer’s soul. For those who die in Christ, death is not the end but the doorway into everlasting joy.

Jesus said: “I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance.” (John 10:10)

In heaven with Christ you will experience life beyond your imagining—clearer thought, freer speech, deeper love, perfect joy. Psalm 23 promised it: “Even when I go through the darkest valley, I fear no danger, for You are with me… Only goodness and faithful love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

12  He only is safe for eternity who is sheltered behind the finished work of Christ. D. L. Moody “There Is No Difference” sermon (1880)

Dwight Lyman Moody (Evangelist)

Every person in Christ is safe in that promise today.

Rest in His Resurrection

Jesus not only claimed power over death; He proved it. On the third day, He rose from His own grave. And because He lives, we shall live also.

Paul says: “Death has been swallowed up in victory. Death, where is your victory? Death, where is your sting?” (1 Corinthians 15:54–55)

Death is not defeat. For those who are united to Christ, death has lost both its sting and its victory. Because Jesus was raised from the grave, every sinner who repents and puts his faith in Him will also share in His resurrection life. The empty tomb is God’s guarantee that the grave is not the end, but the doorway into eternal joy with Christ.

And this promise extends to you, if you will have it. For all who believe, Jesus has prepared not a shadowy spirit-existence, but a glorified body and a real, renewed creation. You were made to walk streets of gold, feast at Christ’s table, and live forever in His presence.

Paul writes in Philippians 3:20-21 that our citizenship is in heaven, from which we await a Savior who will transform our lowly bodies to be like His glorious body. This promise assures us that we are not meant for a life of mere shadows; we are destined for a physical and joyful existence in eternity. It is a profound truth that compels us to live with purpose, aiming at the hope of renewal in Christ.

How Should We Respond?

Jesus’ words to Martha echo now: “Do you believe this?”

Root your faith in Christ. Stop trusting yourself and trust the One who conquered death.

Realize your life in Christ. Eternal life begins the moment you believe.

Rest in His resurrection. Death cannot hold you if you are in Him.

Conclusion: Our Great Savior

Nap Clark buried his wife with sorrow, but with hope. Larry’s family can do the same today. Death is real, but Jesus is greater.

Nap said, “I’m not a great man. But I have a great Savior.” That is every Christian’s testimony too. It can be yours, if you will trust Him.

And one day, all who believe will gather at the Lord’s banquet, free from sin, sickness, and sorrow. Then—oh, then—we will sing,

“When we all get to heaven, What a day of rejoicing that will be! When we all see Jesus, We’ll sing and shout the victory!”

Amen.

Graveside Service for Larry Cranford

Opening Words of Comfort

Brothers and sisters, we gather here today in both grief and hope. We grieve because death is an enemy, and its sting is real. Yet we do not grieve as those without hope, for Larry Cranford put his trust in Jesus Christ, the One who has conquered death and promises eternal life.

The Psalmist declares in Psalm 46: “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea.”

Even when the ground feels like it shakes beneath us, God remains unshaken. In a moment like this, when death confronts us and sorrow weighs on us, the Lord Himself is our fortress.

Word of Encouragement

The Book of Ecclesiastes reminds us in chapter 3, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die… a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance.”

Larry’s time on this earth has come to a close, but hope in Christ means this is not the end. Jesus Christ has promised, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live” (John 11:25).

Ecclesiastes also teaches us that God “has put eternity into man’s heart” (Eccl. 3:11). Death awakens us to the brevity of life, but it also points us to eternity—where those who trust in Christ will know everlasting joy in the presence of their Savior.

So let us take courage today. We ado have to be lost forever. Though our bodies rests in the grave, our souls can be with the Lord. And one day, when Christ returns, the grave will give up its dead, and and everyone in Christ will be raised incorruptible, whole, and glorified.

Commital

We now commit the body of our brother, Larry Cranford, to the ground—earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust—in the sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ.

As the Scriptures declare: “Then the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it” (Ecclesiastes 12:7). And again: “For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first” (1 Thessalonians 4:16).

Therefore, let us take comfort in the promise of God’s Word: “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord… that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them” (Revelation 14:13).

Prayer of Comfort Let us pray.

Heavenly Father, We come to You today with heavy hearts, but also with grateful hope. We thank You for the life of Larry Cranford—for the years You gave him and for the family and friends who loved him.

Lord, You are our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Be that fortress for this family today. Surround them with Your peace that surpasses understanding. Remind them that though there is a time to weep, there will also be a time to rejoice, for You have promised resurrection life to all who trust in Your Son.

We commit Larry into Your loving care, resting in the assurance that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. Strengthen us to live each day mindful of eternity, and keep our eyes fixed on Jesus until the day we are reunited with all the saints in glory.

In the name of Christ Jesus, the Resurrection and the Life, we pray. Amen.