Two Funerals

For me, each of the last two weeks has begun with a funeral. Both were for people at the younger end of middle age. Often, the younger the deceased, the larger the funeral. Yet these funerals had quite different turnouts. One was sparsely attended, the other, standing room only. 

Both funerals show the truth of scripture, “Not one of us lives for himself, and not one dies for himself” (Rom. 14:7). Everyone’s life and death touches others. One funeral commemorated a life of service and continual and tireless work for others. The other marked the end of a life much more solitary, diminished by alcohol and a spotty work ethic.

Surely you already know which of these funerals had a packed house with numerous eulogies and tributes. We would all do well to live doing the things of faith, family, and service. These are the things that make for fond remembrance when we’re gone. 

For Christians though, life if not just about our connections with others—it’s that, but it’s so very much more. The apostle Paul’s instruction in Romans continued, “for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s” (Rom. 14:8). We must always make “for the Lord” the foremost connection.

So let us live for the Lord, die for the Lord, and die in the Lord. This life of faith will produce in us a life of service for others. The funeral, the eulogies, the memorials, and the hope will take care of themselves.