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A sermon is a manner of oral communication and therefore words and sentence structure/order would be added, altered, or deleted at the moment of delivery. + In Nomine Jesu + The Rev. Evan Gaertner All Saints’ Day (observed) "The Meeting Place" Today we observe the celebration of All Saints’ Day. From the very earliest days Christians have honored those who have witnessed to Christ in their death. Today we said the names of those faithful sons and daughters of our Lord who in the past away holding onto salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. Some of you heard names of people you were close to and other names may have been unfamiliar to you. All Saints’ Day is an opportunity to remember. But it might be difficult for some of you to purposefully remember someone you loved that has died. It can be a tremendous shock and you might remember that moment you were stunned following the time when your dear one died. It certainly is an adjustment in life to reorder your life after a loved one has died. Some might make this adjustment quickly but for most others it comes slowly and hard. Consider how deeply we must reach into our habits, emotions, and thoughts. Many an hour after the death of someone close is filled with loneliness and agony. To join a friend in her journey of grief is very challenging. We might feel anxious at the pace of adjustment or possibly we are concerned that our friend is moving on too quickly. What words do we say? What if we say the wrong thing? From the perspective of someone who has made the adjustment after my brother died, I am certain that though people around me may have at times irked me, I never regret the community that surrounded me. I would not want to have made the journey of grief alone. By ourselves we cannot make this journey alone. One of the most difficult feelings is one of absence. During my studies this week I came across a devotion written by a pastor, upon the death of his wife. He points to the journey of grief not becoming finished with finally being able to say goodbye. Instead Pastor Berthold Von Schenk wrote about finding the adjustment after the death of loved beginning to be reconciled when we come to a sense of the continuing presence of our loved ones. When I read this line I was struck with how difficult it has been to say goodbye to some dear friends in this church who have died. And saying goodbye really doesn’t help me in my grief but cements that feeling of loss. So where do we look for the continuing presence of loved ones? This is not about ghosts and spirits wandering around in this world like some sort of Halloween horror movie. It is a bitter feeling to miss his voice. It is frustrating to not be able to go hiking in the But on this All Saints’ Day I give to all you the encouragement to find the continuing presence of our loved ones. We find the continuing life of our loved ones as we seek and find our Risen Lord. The church is not just the faithful living on earth now but the church is all the faithful of the past, present and future. Those that have died continue in the church, through Christ. In our Divine Service we join together with the saints, the angels, indeed the whole company of heaven. While we worship our Risen Lord and his presence among us in the bread and wine at the altar. The faithful departed worship the Resurrected Jesus Christ face to face. At this altar we are linked with Heaven, the communion of saints, indeed our loved one. Where do you meet your savior Jesus Christ most closely is at Holy Communion. So it is the place where we find the whole body of Christ joined together. Some may find comfort in going to a cemetery and kneeling down, placing flowers. But if you knew nothing more than that moment of reunion at the cemetery it would be very difficult to make any reconciliation with grief. We find more offered in gospels than simply the assurance of future reunion in some future day, how does that help us right now? We do not offer only a future hope through Jesus Christ. Heaven comes down to us in Jesus Christ. The worship and glory of the Soli Deo Gloria -->> Home |
