Funeral For Dorothy Williams

Topic:  The Blessed Assurance 

Introduction:  

I was talking to my wife about Dorothy the other day.  She just couldn't place her until I mentioned that every time we set up for the afternoon church, Dorothy would be sitting on a chair waiting for her ride giving everyone a smile as they pass by.   I am so glad we heard from Will today the great adventures his mother had in this world.   

Today, I want to talk to you about the blessed assurance of our lives.   Just like Dorothy, there's a reason why we can bear a smile even when life is difficult.   Let me read to you this famous bible verse story, a conversation between Jesus and his disciples in regards to the present and to the future.   

John 14:1-6

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” 6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

The Blessed Assurance Here on Earth

1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me.

We are in a battle against hopelessness. When something bad happens and we have a major loss in our lives, we tend to think, “This is the end of the world!” But it’s not the end of the world. It’s the end of a moment. And in your life, you’re going to have many moments that end. You can’t treat each of those moments like the end of the world because it’s not. You know it isn’t the end of the world because when the real end of the world comes and Jesus shows up, then you won’t have any doubts about whether it’s really the end!

The Blessed Assurance There on Heaven

 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 

One day Jesus is going to come back to Earth and settle the score, even the odds, pay off the debts, and heal the hurts. The Bible tells us what it’s going to be like in heaven when it’s all over here on Earth. The last chapter in the last book of the Bible says that God “will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (Revelation 21:4 NIV). 

I’m looking forward to that day—but we’re not there yet. So what should you do in the brief here and now, where everything is broken, life doesn’t make sense, and it feels like a constant battle? What do you do during this in-between time? You live in peace, even when life doesn’t make sense. You can do that because you know that God is with you and he loves you. He’ll never forget you or stop loving you.  You live with joy, even when everything on this planet is broken, because you know that God is good and he has a good plan that is greater than the problem you’re going through. His purpose is greater than your problem. You live with hope, even when life is a battle and everything is hard and there’s a lot of conflict. You keep hoping in the perfect forever that God has promised to all those who believe in him and his Son, Jesus. It’s not the end of the world—yet. Keep living with peace, joy, and hope as you focus on God’s promises to you.

The Blessed Assurance Between Earth and Heaven

...5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” 6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Notice Jesus says, “I am the truth.” He doesn’t say truth is a religion, a ritual, or a set of rules and regulations. He says “I.” Truth is a person. This is what separates Jesus Christ from every other leader of every other faith. Other leaders have said, “I’m looking for the truth” or “I’m teaching the truth” or “I point to the truth” or “I’m a prophet of truth.” Jesus comes and says, “I am the truth.”

A lot of people say, “I think Jesus was just a great teacher.” But he couldn’t be just that: No great teacher would claim to be God if he wasn’t. Either Jesus is conning 2.3 billion people who believe a lie or he was nuts or Jesus is who he said he was. Everybody’s betting their life on something. I’m betting my life that Jesus is who he said he was.

What do you do with the truth once you’ve discovered it? Four things:

1. Believe the truth!
2. Do the truth. Truth is not just an intellectual exercise. It’s something you obey.
3. Stand for the truth. The Bible tells us our responsibility is to never oppose the truth but to stand for it at all times.
4. Spread the truth.

The Bible says, “Let everything you do reflect your love of the truth and the fact that you are in dead earnest about it” (Titus 2:7 TLB). There’s a lot in the Bible that I don’t understand, and that makes me uncomfortable. But the fact is, it is the truth. It is a map that always takes me where it promises.

The Dash Poem (By Linda Ellis)

I read of a man who stood to speak
At the funeral of a friend
He referred to the dates on the tombstone
From the beginning...to the end

He noted that first came the date of birth
And spoke the following date with tears,
But he said what mattered most of all
Was the dash between those years

For that dash represents all the time
That they spent alive on earth.
And now only those who loved them
Know what that little line is worth

For it matters not, how much we own,
The cars...the house...the cash.
What matters is how we live and love
And how we spend our dash.

So, think about this long and hard.
Are there things you'd like to change?
For you never know how much time is left
That can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough
To consider what's true and real
And always try to understand
The way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger
And show appreciation more
And love the people in our lives
Like we've never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect
And more often wear a smile,
Remembering this special dash
Might only last a little while

So, when your eulogy is being read
With your life's actions to rehash...
Would you be proud of the things they say
About how you spent YOUR dash?