A Homily of Hope

God, You are creator, redeemer, and greater than all of our sorrow and grief. Today we come to you limping, overcome with emotion as we reflect on Austin’s life. God, we thank you for the time we got to share with Austin. We thank you for the blessing he was to each of us. Father, as we bring our sorrows and sadness to you, we pray that you would comfort us. In Your Word you say that you comfort the brokenhearted. We plead for that comfort and support this morning. Lord, help us remember the the hope we have in Jesus. Help us reflect on the hope of Heaven. God, you promise us that no matter where we’re at in life, if we put our trust in You then we can have a hope that not even death can defeat. Help us cling to that hope this morning as we reflect on Austin’s life. We pray this in Jesus’ name, the name above all names, and the only name by which we can be saved. Amen

Homily

In times like these it is good and right to weep and work through our sorrow in lament.

The Bible tells us in John chapter 11 that Jesus wept and lamented when His dear friend Lazarus died. Scripture says Jesus was moved to a depth that is hard to communicate in words.

He understands what we are going through today. He understands the emotions and pain and grief we are wrestling through. He gets it because He experienced it.

We Were Not Meant for Death

Jesus wept and lamented because He understood in a piercing way that this is not the way the world is supposed to be.

God did not create us for death.

In the beginning there was no such thing as death. It is only through sin that death entered the world. We are not meant to experience death. Death is not meant to be our reality.

On occasions such as we are gathered here for this morning, we are beckoned to recognize what Jesus recognized. We are beckoned grapple with sorrow and see that death is not the end we were destined for. This is not how it is mean to be.

Incredible Truth Austin Now Knows

But I don’t bring up Jesus simply because he wept and lamented. All of us have done that.

I speak of Jesus because of a reality that I am confident that Austin understands.

I didn’t know Austin personally, but I am sure that if he were here again with us today, if he could speak to us one more time, he would tell you of the incredible truths I want to share with you.

Did you know that God made you for joy? Did you know that God made you for love? Did you know that God made you for relationship? God made us specially in His image to know and enjoy Him forever.

But the Bible tells us that we turn to other things for our joy, for our satisfaction, for our protection, and for our love. We dishonor God and break His commandments. We do what we know we shouldn’t do. The Bible tells us in Romans 3:23 that we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We are not good enough on our own.

And yet amidst our sin and rebellion, despite all of the times we have rejected Him, God keeps on pursuing us in love. God doesn’t give up on us. God loves us so much that despite our sin, He made a way for us to enjoy Him forever.

And he did it in Jesus.

I didn’t bring up Jesus earlier just to speak of His lament for Lazarus. I brought up Jesus because of what He did after that.

I believe that if Austin could speak with us this morning based on what He has experienced these last few days He would tell us this:

Jesus was more than just a good moral teacher. Jesus was more than just a wise sage. Jesus was more than just a powerful prophet. Jesus was the Son of living God.

The Bible tells us that God loves us so much that He sent His only Son Jesus to die for us so that we could have eternal life, and have it abundantly.

Jesus, the Son of God, came to earth as a man, to step into our pain, to experience it, and to do something about it.

Hebrews 12:2 tells us that for the joy set before Him Jesus endured the unimaginable pain of the cross, where He stood in our place and took on the pain and punishment we deserve for our sin. Three days later, He stepped out of the grave in victory over sin, death, and all of the powers of Hell.

No three words have ever scared Satan more than the words of Matthew 28:6, “He is risen.” No three words give us hope like, “He is risen.” ❖ It isn’t just that Jesus understands our pain and that He’s experienced it, it’s that Jesus has actually set into motion the death of death. Because of Jesus, death is dying. One day, because of Jesus, death will be dead. ❖ When Jesus says He is “the Way, the Truth, and the Life,” it means so much more than we often assume.

If you confess your sin, turn away from it, and place your trust in Jesus and the salvation He accomplished for you, you can share in the very life, and hope and joy that Jesus offers.

And oh is this hope and joy glorious.

In Jesus we see the dawning of indestructible joy. In Jesus, we see a foundation for fullness like the world has never seen. In Jesus, we see a lavish love like no one else could ever offer. In Jesus we have the hope of Heaven.

Revelation 21:1-4 tell us this about the hope of Heaven: ➢

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

God is Close to the Brokenhearted

Jesus knows and numbered each and every one of your tears and, if you put your faith in Him, He will wipe your tears away in love until the day that tears are no more.

The Bible tells us that God is close to the brokenhearted. God will walk alongside of us every step of the way.

Take heart that because Jesus stepped into our pain and experienced it with us, when we pray to God we are praying to one that actually understands the sorrow we are enduring.

We are praying to a God that grasps our grappling with grief. He knows what it means to be broken hearted.

But more than that, take heart that because of the glorious saving work of Jesus in his death and resurrection we are praying to a God that doesn’t just understand pain, but who did something about it. ❖ Because of Jesus, we can have the hope of Heaven.

The Hope of Heaven is More Than Eternal Life

And the hope of Heaven is not merely eternal life, but an eternity of infinite joy and love in relationship with God. It’s a hope and joy that not even death can defeat.

No matter what you have done or what has been done to you, when you place your faith in Jesus, He welcomes you with open arms. No matter what you have done or what has been done to you, by placing your faith in Jesus, He offers you hope.

Where Is Your Hope In This Morning?

So let me ask you this: what is your hope and joy in this morning? Is your hope unshakeable?

Can what you’ve put your joy in stand strong in your sorrow? Does your hope transcend the grappling of grief?

Is your joy resting on a firm foundation that not even death can destroy? There is only one hope and joy like that in the universe: it’s Jesus.

Honoring Austin 1

I’m not sure where you are at this morning. I’m not sure of the circumstances of your life right now.

I don’t know where your hope and joy lie but I know this: wherever you are in your journey, God wants to meet you here...whether for the thousandth time...or the the first time.

Today we have an incredible opportunity to embrace hope and joy amidst sorrow. Today we have an incredible opportunity to honor Austin and his legacy.

Austin as Father

As I talked with Austin’s family yesterday, I loved hearing about Austin as a father.

Trisha spoke of the incredible way Austin cared for and adored his children.

Austin loved to play with his boys and always looked out for them. His children were a fountain of overflowing joy in his life. Austin loved being their dad.

This is like a beautiful picture of God’s amazing love for His children.

God loves being a Father. He loves and adores His little ones. He loves caring for them and bringing them joy and comfort in sorrow. He loves His children.

Have you embraced God as your heavenly Father? Do you know that you can go to Him in grief? Do you know that God cares for you and gave up His very best so that you could have joy in Him?

What better way to honor Austin and his legacy as a father than by embracing God as your heavenly Father?

What better way to honor Austin than by placing your hope and joy in Jesus for the first time or renewing that commitment again? What better way to honor his legacy than by casting your sorrows on a Savior who will never fail you? What better way to honor Austin than by holding fast to the hope once and for all found in Jesus?

No matter what you might be experiencing or enduring, I pray that you see there is hope.

Joy is possible...and it can be found in Jesus.

May we honor Austin and cling to that hope of Jesus...the hope of Heaven.

Conclusion

To close our time together we are going to listen to one of Austin’s favorite songs.

It is all about the hope and joy of Heaven….the hope and joy of Jesus. May we hold to that and reflect on that in honor of Austin. Let’s listen.