You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Note: Ephesians 2:8-10: Works do not save us, but we are created in Christ to do them. I will now receive my crown of righteousness which my Lord will give to me. Flowers at the graveside might make you feel better, but your spouse could only have enjoyed them in life. There are actually going to be responsibilities in the new heaven, the new Earth. First of all, God's happy with what you did, just in the context that He gives the five talents and says, "I want you to know how happy I am with the talents, what you did. Those who are Christians in name only do not have this blessed hope. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, the death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done." Our good works are generally motivated by pride and self-focus, I feel good about myself, and I look good to others when I do good works, like the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. Will we too hear those words, well done my good and faithful servant? When you die, all that your spouse will have left of you are memories and pictures. "I know that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed, so I was afraid, and I went out and hid in the ground the talent you entrusted me. You can write to Dr. Hymers in any language, but write in English It is the message of the Parable of the Talents. Isn't that funny? The other day as I was thinking about what to preach for Elaine's funeral sermon, I was scanning my mental files for possible biblical texts to work with. This is the focus of the rest of our time. Even though it may come after a long season of illness, even though there may be a sense of its closeness, death always catches us off guard, always comes as a surprise. This morning we are celebrating Stewardship Sunday. When you pray, don't be like the hypocrites out in the streets, but go into your room and close your door and pray to your Father who's unseen, and your Father who sees what is done in secret, he's going to reward you. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. He's going to entrust things to you, but He's testing you now to see if you're faithful with somebody else's property, namely God's. Thus we are told that Christ will descend from Heaven into the atmosphere above the earth. Have your father put your arm around you after the game and say, "Win or lose, I was proud of what you did today. The Parable of the Talents 22 The servant who had received the two talents also came and said, 'Master, you entrusted me with two talents. Rewards will be given to good Christians for their faithfulness to Christ and the church, and especially for winning souls to Christ. A Brief Sermon For A Memorial Service. And after that, and then you may have your dinner.? Goodbye competition. Then finally, there is accountability. As soon as he won, he turned and looked right to his father, and he climbs up over and around and through people to get up there and embrace him. Jesus shed His blood on the cross that you might have eternal life, and as we're going to find out in this message so much more than that. A faithful servant courageously keeps on proclaiming the gospel in spite of persecution. If you know anything about God and His holy perfection and about yourself and the nature of your works, that should stagger you back on your heels, that He would reward anything you ever did. FUNERAL HOMILY DOROTHY THOMPSON It is a basic tenant of our faith / that human life is sacred, / that the human person is respected, / that we are made / in the image and likeness of God. When Jesus Comes to Reign (by Dr. John R. Rice, 1895-1980). B. Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy . If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven." It says in Ephesians that we should find out what pleases the Lord. I'm not going back through the parable, but you saw what happened. I. They will tag us as believers in Jesus Christ. From talking to you and in the short time that I have known her, I believe she invested those talents very faithfully in her service for the Lord. An unregenerate person cannot improve his or her status in God's sight one fraction of an inch by his good works. Come and share your master's happiness!'. It's like the honor and glory given to an Olympic athlete who wins the gold medal. I have no doubt that Brother Moore has already heard those words that await every faithful follower of Christ: "Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.". We're going to share it together, and I'm going to tell you how I felt when you prayed or gave that money, etcetera." Is it wrong to yearn for that? He speaks of wrestling, boxing, running, winning the race, winning the prize, and winning crowns. If you find these resources helpful, please prayerfully consider donating as the Lord leads you. W hen Jessica Mitford first published The American Way of Death in 1963, she unleashed a broadside against the entire funeral industry in this country. Amen. You can read Dr. Hymers' sermons each week on the Internet He says to the sheep, to the righteous, to the redeemed,"Come, you who are blessed by my Father, take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air (I Thessalonians 4:16-17). The siren is going off. Thirdly, enter into the joy of your Master, the joy of God. Story #5: Dwight Moody . However, all of Dr. Hymers video messages, and all other sermons on video Funeral Sermon: God's Breath Suffocates Death. Can I back it up? It says in Romans 14:23, "Everything that does not come from faith is sin." Write a script. He made it for Himself. His own Funeral Sermon "For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep." Acts xiii. He says, "I tell you the truth, if you do that, you will never into eternity, lose your reward." Some of you may be thinking, "Well, then what difference does it make if Im going to be just as happy with other people's achievements " Don't think like that. And every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. In our service in the church and in the community. Two Journeysexists to help Christians make progress in the two journeys of the Christian life, the internal journey of sanctification and the external journey of gospel advancement. We have two full weeks of Lent ahead of us, followed by Holy Week before we arrive at the full-fledged joy of the Easter Vigil and Easter Sunday. Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints. She died at 3:04 PM on December 13, 2017 at the age of 71. Have all of Andy's new content emailed to you every Thursday! Would you want to spend eternity with a grumpy God? 22 . XXV. God isnt going to dock you for your not gaining as much as those with more. . To know what kind of tree we are, there is a simple principle taught in the Sermon on the Mount. Good Christians like Eloise will hear Christ say. seminaries or Bible schools. by Ibrahim Smile. She invested her talents in her community. The second is greater responsibility from God, and the third is joy in God. First is praise from God. There's going to be things to do in Heaven, responsibilities. Praise from God is an immensely valuable reward. Is it wrong to yearn for praise from Jesus? 7) One of the best things you can do for yourself, pastor, is to drop in on funeral services being conducted by other ministers whom you know and respect. "Well done, good and faithful servant." Each receives the same invitation: "You have been faithful over a few things, I will set you over many things. I want the cup of cold-water reward. Actually, God makes three very strong statements about rewards, all of them found in the Book of Hebrews. What three rewards can you find in here. John 5,"Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out. There will be non-Christians in the crowd, and believers who need comfort and assurance from God. 4. All their work for the United Way and for UNICEF and Habitat for Humanity and Walk for Hunger and cerebral palsy and all of that, all our righteous acts are like filthy rags in the sight of God. If God would not leave his Son in the grave, he will not abandon those who trusted in his Son. For me, John Wilde was one of those people. . A sermon of encouragement LET US NOT BE WEARY IN WELL DOING 1 Corinthians 15:58 - Therefore, my brothers and sister, be steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. God praising me? The second aspect of joy is God's joy in general. I want to talk about the doctrine of Christian rewards. God is actually intending to reward you for good works. Intro: The passage opens with Jesus leaving the Gentile cities of Tyre and Sidon headed back to Galilee. He is blameless and upright, a man who fears God, he lives a righteous life. He's celebrating Job, a human being. is absolutely true. C. It should be positive and uplifting. The horse, what I made. I'm going to close now with Jonathan Edwards' resolution, by way of application. It's worthwhile, and He prepares good works in advance for us to walk in, and He prepares us to do those good works so that we are ready for them when they come. Thanks be to God, if He couldn't do that, this sermon would be a waste of everyone's time. Paul and Barnabas had been forced to flee from Antioch and Iconium. I sought to point out that our comfort (and hers) in the face of death was not based upon her age and physical condition, but rather in Christ. D. It should be as personal as possible. . And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also (John 14:1-3). His praise means He is pleased with you and with your service. He's celebrating his creative beings. There would be no rewards, but thanks be to God by his sovereign grace, He can make bad trees like you and me good and get some good fruit out of us. Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. How part? Now, isn't it incredible that God, Almighty God, the one whose eyes are like blazing fire, will actually look at you and praise you? Now, let's look at verse 21, and what I'm going to do with verse 21 is tell you what rewards you'll get. Well done, you good and faithful servant, you have been faithful over little. That is his praise for the deeds done, for the actual work done, so the character of the servant and the work are both focus of praise. Sermon Matthew 25:14-30 Trust, Not Fear. Here are some things to know: A funeral service is a short service. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. There's also going to be responsibilities in the new Heaven, the new Earth, there's going to be jobs up there. You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. I think it's going to be detailed praise from God for each good work done, every good work you do, every time you give to the needy, and don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Why do I say this? Come on in, you who are on the outside, you lived on the outside of my joy, I want you to come inside to my joy now. This is going to be full immersion joy, like diving into an endless sea of joy to have joy underneath you and all around you buoying you up. He's going on a journey, the master is going to be away for a key period of time, so the servants are going to be able to function without him visibly right there. There is pain, loss, brokenness and death in all of our lives. Let's go over it, let's sit down and watch a little video of what you did. Sometimes they are the words that they use at their funeral, or put on their headstone, or ask that their funeral sermon speak those words. 2021 14 Dec. His Lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. But when they came into the region of Lycaonia, they continued to preach the gospel (14:7). When Jesus comes to reign. How can you believe, Jesus said, If you accept praise from one another and yet you make no effort to obtain the praise that comes from the only God? Back at the beginning of the sermon, I said that Napoleon said people are motivated by a yearning for praise and honor, God made that. If you've not been trustworthy with someone else's property now, who would give you property of your own? We came to this strange mountain lake that was incredibly salty. Isn't it good?. She was a real Christian for many years. Garden of Eden restored that day! It's the story of the 5 o'clock worker who gets the same reward as the one who's labored . 16. The clear statements make it obvious. Jesus said. You have a sense, though it doesn't ascribe that statement to God, that God is saying it. Don't wait till your spouse dies to express your love. This was the funeral of a very lovely 94-year-old woman in our church, who was a believer. Justice Scalia on Funeral Sermons. Enter into the joy of your Master". This is the essence of, Well done, good and faithful servant., Death & Dying, Bible Prophecy, The Birth of Christ, Providence and Sovereignty of God, Temptation, Baptism and the Lord's Supper, Joy, War Against the Flesh, Works of the Flesh, Repentance, Humility, Holiness, Anabaptists, Beatitudes, Forgiveness, The Law of God, The Power of Sin, Sexual Purity, Marriage and Parenting, War Against the Flesh, Works of the Flesh, Prophecy, False Teaching & False Teachers, Abiding in Christ, Persecution, Boldness & Courage, Temptation. Try, Slow Down, Big Fellawhat A Motorcyclist Taught Me About Preaching, Spit-Shine Tomorrow's Sermon Before You Go To Bed Tonight. If you're here today and you're lost, if you don't know Jesus, and the rest of the sermon is going to be about rewards, just know this, if you stand before God on Judgment Day without Christ as your Savior, you will have no rewards, there will be none, nothing but wrath and anger for sin. Do you see where they live way up high, where the Eries are, way up high up in the rocky crag and how it sees its food from afar. What is God doing? We're going to celebrate. They must be used for the glory of God. Perhaps you remember in 1980, after the men's hockey Olympic hockey team had defeated the Russians and went on to win the gold medal. As we remember *********, let us remember: worker. By the way, whoever does not have what? Joy is a powerful word in the happiness family, it is the most powerful happiness word, I think. He identifies them based on their works. Feb 17, 2013. There's going to be no depression, no discouragement, just happiness. I think the idea for this book was born that day. In Luke 17:7-10, Suppose one of you had a servant plowing looking after the sheep. A FUNERAL SERMON. To hear those words, "Well done, good and faithful servant," from Jesus, first make sure you are saved. Clearly, since immortality is not something we seek for God, these are self-referential things. What does he do? Flee away that glory day! But genuine saving faith always results in good works. XXV. I preached the funeral that I could preach for a Rahab, or a Ruth, or the thief on the cross. We have said many good things about our friend today, and to the best of my knowledge they are all true. Most of us think of Stewardship Sunday as a time when the church hits us up for . Check out these helpful resources Biblical Commentary Sermons Children's Sermons Hymn Lists. On July 15th, 1815, the defeated former Emperor of France, Napoleon Bonaparte, boarded the British warship, the HMS Bellerophon, and was being sent to his final earthly destination. YouTube feeds people to our website. II. But when Christ returns, she will come down to this earth with Him in her resurrected body, walking and leaping and praising God in Christs 1,000-year earthly kingdom! Dr. John O. Pete. To start saving items to a SermonFolder, please create an account. Eloise was the church pianist and later she was the church organist. Ever. Copyright 2003-2023 | Outreach, Inc., All rights reserved. Isn't it beautiful? As a matter of fact, Jesus criticizes His Jewish enemies, his adversaries, for not seeking praise from God, but rather praise from one another. Come and share your master's happiness" We serve God faithfully week in, week out. Funerals that Minister to Those Left Behind Howard Vanderwell has conducted more than 160 funeralsmarking deaths that were expected, and very unexpected; for newborns, children, youth, and aged; some involving high trauma. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. A key lesson of these parables is that God expects us to gain a measurable increase in our lives. Two others, who were criminals, were led away to be put to death with him. Third, Eloise, and all true Christians, will appear before Christ to receive rewards, II Corinthians 5:10; Matthew 25:21; I Corinthians 15:58; Luke 19:12-26, Revelation 2:26; 5:10. You have been faithful with a few things. The master replies, "You wicked, lazy servant. Whenever you write to Dr. Hymers always tell him what country you live in, or he cannot answer you. Usually, it's 30 minutes long. 5. So, we have to be told over and over again, we are never going to be justified or vindicated or forgiven for our sins by any good thing we can do. the funeral sermon? His name was Lazarus. Then that one with the one talent comes in and insults the master, not a good way to begin your Judgment Day encounter. The tornado watch has just been upgraded to a warning. Kingdoms shall fall, and old Satans rule Therefore, the famous assessment in Isaiah of good works done by an unbeliever. The purpose of this website is to provide free sermon manuscripts and sermon videos to pastors and missionaries throughout the world, especially the Third World, where there are few if any theological seminaries or Bible schools. The one with the two talents, he gains the two more. He is very zealous that you learn to not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing so that your giving may be in secret and your Father sees what is done in secret and will reward you. Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? Read full chapter. At the end of Job 39, He talks about the horse, and He says, Did you give the horse its strength? The property is entrusted to the servant, is given over to the servant to be managed in the absence of the master. It provides us with a chance to reflect on our own personal relationship with the Lord. What are you doing with your money? Yes. That is idolatry, to give worship to a created being. Shall curse the earth no more! What's amazing is that praise from God is going to last forever. To another he gave 2 sacks of treasure. 3. "Here I am God to talk to you about me. What it does, can you do all that? It's like God got carried away, like He's on a horse riding it, says Isn't this awesome? Can you do that? I want to learn from God how to do general happiness for the rest of my life, I want to have eternal pleasures at His right hand. I fast twice a week and I give a tenth of all I get." He that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations (Revelation 2:26). According to Paul in Romans 2, "This and this alone is the only way to live your whole life. A funeral sermon should not exceed 20 minutes and should highlight these three categories, preferably expounded from a text or texts of Scripture: 1) Acknowledge the need to grieve. This sermon is useful when speaking at a memorial service for an unexpected passing. First, the true Christians spirit goes immediately into the presence of Christ when they die, Luke 23:43; Romans 8:34, II Corinthians 12:2, 4. She criticized the way funerals were done in America, including cosmetic excrescences and high expenses stemming from the greed . No one's in a hurry, no schedule to keep. Sorrow and sighing shall flee away, Lame men shall leap as an hart, for then These sermon manuscripts are not copyrighted. Right from the beginning, God said in Genesis 1:31, God saw all that He had made and behold it was very good. Paul says if you do that, you're not really a Jew. Praise from God. Including words or songs from others in your funeral sermon can be "meaning-making.". A monthly gift of $5 helps us reach 400 additional people a year! Scripture says, You've made known to me the path of life, you'll fill me with joy in your presence with eternal pleasures at your right hand. How about spending eternity sitting at the feet of the Joy Master? The master comes back and settles accounts with these servants. How did you like that one? Then when I came back, I would have received it back with interest. The third aspect of joy is he's going to teach you to rejoice in everything he rejoices in, in detail. Do you want to know what true ownership is? Introduction. Every time you go into your room and close the door and pray for a missionary, a brother and sister in Christ, somebody sick, somebody struggling, a marriage is struggling. Good and faithful Christians like Eloise will descend with Christ to rule and reign over the earth for 1,000 years. As many money giving opportunities and prayers up in secret and actions done and gospel shared, and fear overcome and everything you need to do to store up your Father's praise for you. The only comfort some funeral sermons bring is when they are over! What's it going to be like in the new heaven, the new Earth? Sorrow and sighing shall flee away! See, here is what belongs to you." Flee away that glory day! In Hebrews 11:26, Moses regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as a greater value than all the treasures of Egypt because he was looking ahead to his reward. Her body will go into the grave in a few days, awaiting the rapture, I Thessalonians 4:16-17. We also want glory and honor. His property, everything in the parable is his, it all belongs to him. There are six characters we play out in life. Goodbye arrogance. John, chapter fourteen, verse one. This principle captures our task regardless the kind of funeral we do. John's funeral provides us with an opportunity to see what difference faith can make in one person's life. Mrs. ********* was given a certain amount of talents. The way it loves to run into battle, the way it snorts, the way it's strong? Galatians 6:9 - And let us not be weary in WELL DOING: for in due season we shall reap, .read more I want to go where there's happiness. My dad, a Reformed pastor, has been asked to do Christian funerals for non-believers many times. 21 His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. However, God is not an idolater, is he? I think it's because inside each one of us is a yearning for glory and recognition, for honor and praise. Napoleon said these motivate men more than just about anything he knew. You're going to learn more joy after 1000 years than you knew in the first 1000 years. Be in charge of 10 cities because of what you did. If these sermons bless you send an e-mail to Dr. Hymers and tell him, but always include what country you are writing from. That's the topic of our sermon here. Tonight, one of my churches holds an 'All Souls Service', where we invite all the families for whom we have conducted funerals over the past year. How good is Jesus, how good is Jesus Christ for giving us these things? It's all gone, He's going to teach you to delight in the widow who gave her two little coins and out-gave you. No, he didn't reach millions but he was faithful right where he was. Words like, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant." (Matthew 25:21) Or Revelation 2:10, "Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life." So, I urge you to flee to Christ. Two Journeys Ministry houses all of PastorAndy Davis' content. Matthew 25:14-30 . I dont know if I can say "I did everything God wanted me to do today". We see this principle also in the parable of The Sheep and the Goats. Praise can be given to a created being without it being worship. Isn't it beautiful? Can you do this like I did? She invested her talents in her love for her, children - all of them. yet look below! Hope in death and dyingin Christ: evangelisticfuneral sermon for preachers. Such a man's praise does not come from men, but from God. Do you know how long you'll have that?