+ Dorothy Mae Polson +

February 14, 1935 — September 7, 2025

Funeral Sermon for Dorothy Polson

Texts: John 14:1–6; 2 Corinthians 4:13–18; Isaiah 25:6–9

Theme: “The God Who Swallows Up Death”

Introduction

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

We gather here today with heavy hearts, because someone we love—Dorothy Polson—has fallen asleep in Jesus. Death always leaves a hole. It leaves an empty chair, a missing voice, a silence where once there was laughter and conversation. Dorothy’s absence will be felt deeply in this family and in this church.

But as real as our grief is, the promises of God are even more real. Our readings today speak directly into moments like this. Isaiah looked forward to the day when God would “swallow up death forever” and “wipe away tears from all faces.”Jesus promised His disciples that He was preparing a place for them in His Father’s house. And Paul assures us that while the troubles of this life weigh heavily upon us, they are preparing us for an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.

This is not wishful thinking. This is not vague comfort. This is the sure and certain hope anchored in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It was Dorothy’s hope in life. And it is our comfort in death.

As we gather in our grief, longing for solace and certainty, we turn to the very words of Jesus—a friend and Savior who intimately understands our sorrows. It is in His promises that we find the true comfort and assurance that Dorothy held dear. Let us first consider His promise of presence, as we reflect on the words of John 14:1–6.

I. The Promise of Christ’s Presence (John 14:1–6)

The night before His own death, Jesus gathered His disciples together. He knew their hearts would be filled with fear. He knew they would struggle to understand what was happening. And so He spoke these words: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many rooms… I go to prepare a place for you.”

Notice how personal this is. Jesus doesn’t simply say there is life after death. He says: I go to prepare a place for you. Not some nameless, faceless crowd, but you—His disciples, His children, His sheep.

That promise belonged to Dorothy as well. In Baptism, Jesus claimed her as His own. Throughout her life, she was held in the hands of the Good Shepherd. And when her time of earthly pilgrimage came to an end, Jesus was faithful to His promise. He took her to Himself, to the room prepared for her in the Father’s house.

That is why Jesus also says: “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Dorothy’s hope, like ours, was never in her goodness, never in her accomplishments, never in her strength. Her hope was in Christ alone—the Way through death, the Truth that endures, and the Life that cannot be destroyed.

Having understood the profound promise of Christ’s presence with us, which comforts us in this life, we now look at the hope that propels us forward—beyond the grave and into eternity. Through Paul's words, we find reassurance in a future resurrection glory that far surpasses our present sufferings, grounding our faith in everlasting life. Let us reflect on this hope from our reading in 2 Corinthians.

II. The Hope That Sees Beyond the Grave (2 Corinthians 4:13–18)

Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians are honest about the reality of this life. He writes: “Outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.” Every one of us knows what that means. Bodies grow weaker. Strength fades. We live under the shadow of mortality.

Dorothy experienced this, just as we all will. And yet Paul lifts our eyes beyond what is seen to what is unseen: “We know that He who raised the Lord Jesus will also raise us with Jesus and bring us with you into His presence.”

Here Paul uses resurrection language—what God did for Jesus, He will also do for us. The same power that raised Jesus from the grave will raise Dorothy. The same voice that called Lazarus from the tomb will call her forth. And that same promise belongs to us as well.

Paul even dares to call our sufferings “light and momentary.” Now, no one standing at a graveside would ever call death “light.” No one sitting by a hospital bed would call the struggles of this life “momentary.” Paul is not minimizing our pain—he is magnifying the glory that is coming. Compared to the eternal joy of the resurrection, even the weight of grief cannot tip the scales. The glory to come is that great.

This is why Paul urges us not to lose heart. What we see is temporary, but what is unseen—Christ’s presence, the resurrection, eternal life—is eternal.

With hearts reassured by the hope of resurrection, promised through Christ’s victory over death, we now focus on the ultimate fulfillment of this hope: the feast of victory that awaits us. Our Isaiah reading shares a divine glimpse of this glorious future, where God prepares a banquet of joy and life, a celebration that defies sorrow and ends mourning forever. It's a promise sealed by God's triumph over death, drawing us together for an eternal reunion at His table.

III. The Feast of Victory (Isaiah 25:6–9)

The prophet Isaiah paints one of the most beautiful pictures in all of Scripture. He speaks of the day when the Lord will spread a feast on His holy mountain—a rich banquet filled with joy. And at that feast, God Himself will remove the shroud of death that hangs over all peoples. He will wipe away every tear. He will put an end to grief and mourning. And His people will say: “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for Him, that He might save us.”

What a picture! A feast where families are reunited. A banquet where sorrow is gone. A table where Dorothy and all God’s children gather, not for a day or two, but for eternity.

And notice what makes that feast possible: God swallows up death. The very enemy that seems to swallow us—God swallows it. The death of Jesus on the cross and His resurrection from the grave mean that death has been defeated. The grave has lost its sting. Death does not get the final word—Christ does. And His word is life.

Conclusion: Christ Our Comfort

So what do we do today, in our grief? We cling to the promises of God. We remember that Dorothy belongs to Christ, both in life and in death. We look forward to the day when we too will join her at the feast of victory, when what is unseen becomes sight, when all tears are dried, when death is no more.

Jesus says: “Because I live, you also will live.” That is Dorothy’s hope fulfilled, and it is our hope as well.

Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.