John 6:27-40; 2 Corinthians 5:1-10; Job 19:21-27
In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
“Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.” That was Melvin’s confirmation verse, proclaimed by Pastor Starke at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bremer, Iowa on September 1, 1953, the same day Beach was confirmed and received the Lord’s Supper. Today, nearly sixty-nine years later, as we commit our brother in Christ into the arms of Jesus, we can say with confidence, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” It may have taken Beach twenty-seven years to receive the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, but he believed in his Lord Jesus Christ long before that and he bore the fruits of his faith in his life, words, and deeds among you, his beloved family and friends, through which he gave witness to the peace of Jesus Christ which made him the joyful, content, and unafraid man that he was, full of love and kindness for all.
Beach was a quiet and humble man, a man of few words having an unassuming, somewhat dry sense of humor. Men like Beach are often overlooked because they don’t put themselves out there, they listen more than they speak, and they generally let others be the life of the party. However, what is true of such men, and what was true of Beach, is that there’s often more going on in their minds and hearts than is commonly recognized until you get to know them. Beach enjoyed the simple things in life – fishing, mushroom and asparagus hunting, antiquing with Lois, tinkering with his irons in the barn, spending time with his family, and simply sitting on his front porch – activities he could do on his own or with a few of his closest loved ones who truly knew him. Of such a man someone might say, “Don’t just sit there! Do something!” They just couldn’t see what Beach was doing because it didn’t meet their standard of “doing something,” which means being busy and harried, worried, anxious, and fretting.
Jesus’ disciples often felt this way about their Master: “Don’t just sit there! Do something!” To both they and we today Jesus teaches, “Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life. […] “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” What is the work that pleases God? That we believe and trust in Jesus whom God the Father has sent to do what we could not and to set right what we in sin have broken. The disciples at times tried to rush Jesus towards his messianic destiny. They wanted to make him king in place of Herod and Caesar. But Jesus went on from village to village teaching and healing and setting people free from their bondage to sin, death, and Satan. Sometimes they became impatient and frustrated with Jesus. Sometimes their faith became weak, and they demanded a sign in order to believe. But Jesus was precisely what they needed even if they didn’t know it and couldn’t see it. They needed the help of the Holy Spirit through the word of God to see their Messiah and Redeemer in the humble, unassuming man Jesus. They wanted bread for their bodies, but Jesus was the God-given Bread from heaven who gives life to the world. “Give us this bread always,” they cried. Jesus answered, “this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day." It is God’s will that we his children be raised from death. It is God’s will that Melvin be raised from death. That is why he sent his Son Jesus, to redeem us from sin and death and to take away death’s sting, for from now on those who die in the Lord will live and never die again.
You must understand that God’s promise in Jesus is not merely that those who die in the Lord will be with him. That is most certainly true and is immensely comforting! But there’s so much more! God has promised, has guaranteed, in Jesus’ resurrection the resurrection of all who trust in him. That means that this is not goodbye forever, but only for a whiile. You will see Beach again, and no one will take that joy from you! And you will not see him merely in a spiritual way, like a ghost or an angel, but you will see him as you knew him, in his flesh and blood body, glorified, perfected, and immortal. That is what Job confessed two thousand years before Jesus’ birth: “I know that my redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another.” You will see Beach again with your own flesh and blood eyes; you will hear Beach again with your own flesh and blood ears; you will hold Beach again with your own flesh and blood arms.
Beach was legally blind for about a decade, but he never let that get him down. In the resurrection Beach will see again. Beach retired thirty-five years ago from Carnation. He retired early and got to enjoy his retirement for more years than he worked! Beach used to say, “I’ve been retired longer than I ever worked!” He was grateful and joyful, both for the time that he worked and for the time he got to enjoy his retirement with his family. Beach had a similar view on the length of his life. After age eighty or so, Beach was heard to say, “The rest is all free!” Beach also served his country in two wars, both World War II and Korea. Very, very few veterans can claim that! Let me clarify: Beach was drafted while still in high school. Technically he served in World War II for two days, then he went to Korea. Appropriately, Beach will be honored today with military honors. Thank you for your service. We are grateful and appreciative.
It was only last December that Beach was diagnosed with prostate cancer. By the time they found it, it was already in his bones. Clearly, things progressed quickly to where we are today. Still, Beach faced cancer, and even a fairly grim prognosis, the same way he faced all challenges in life: joyful, content, and unafraid, full of love and kindness for all. Beach didn’t talk much about his faith; heck, he didn’t talk much at all. But there was no doubt about his faith because he lived it amongst you, and he witnessed to it in the peace and contentment that was his nature. Beach knew that his Lord was with him and would provide him the strength he needed to see it through, just as he had done for him ninety-five years. Even a month ago Beach was still laughing and smiling sitting in his chair, but in the past few weeks he was clearly drawn thin, so very, very thin. To see him like that reminds me of a line in Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” in which the very aged protagonist was described as spread thin, like “too little butter over too much bread.” When one has suffered immensely, death is often welcomed as a blessing. How much more so when one has been blessed with a long and good life and has faith in Christ who won life that cannot die for all who believe? Beach faced death knowing that he was not alone, but that his Redeemer lives and that he would shepherd him through the valley of the shadow of death into his Father’s home forevermore. Therefore, Beach wanted for nothing, and he was not afraid.
In the same vein, let me repeat the words of our Epistle: St. Paul writes, “For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling;” […] So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So, whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him.” My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, we are not like those who grieve without hope. Along with Job, we know and confess that our Redeemer lives! In His holy, innocent, and perfect life, death, resurrection, and ascension, Jesus has fulfilled the Law and its demands we could not keep, has atoned for our sin, has died in our place, and has been raised victorious over death and the grave so they can hold us no longer. As proof of God’s satisfaction with the sacrifice He has offered in His Son, Jesus ascended back to His Father in heaven, restoring humankind to a right relationship with God our Father once again. And Jesus has promised to return to raise us from death and reunite our glorified bodies with our immortal souls that we may live with Him forever in His kingdom in a life that can never die.“Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.” That is the hope we have that encourages us as we make our journey through death’s valley. That hope is what comforts us in our grief and dries our tears. That hope can even turn sorrow into joy and laughter. The Lord bless and keep Beach. The Lord bless and keep you who grieve in hope.
In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.
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