Jump Start # 1435

Luke 16:22 “Now it came about that the poor man died and he was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom; and the rich man also died.”

  A friend died yesterday morning. He had a long battle with cancer. He was much too young to die, not yet fifty years old. I have known his family for a long time. His family and my family had many ties. His grandmother was one of my first Bible class teachers. His mother and step father are some of the dearest friends we have. I baptized his wife along time ago. More than that, I preformed his wedding ceremony. When his oldest daughter was born, my wife was the nurse in the room. At the urging of my wife, our youngest son met his daughter. They were married last October. He was able to walk her down the isle and even gave a wonderful speech at the reception. Today, word came from my son, that he had passed on. He was a believer. Quiet in nature, he was strong in both muscle and spirit. He had a kind smile, a warm heart and was loyal as a friend to the core. He wasn’t one that lit the room up when he walked in. You wouldn’t find him behind the pulpit pounding out lessons. He wasn’t one to lead singing. That wasn’t his way. But he was consistent. He could be counted upon. His kind are many in the kingdom. They march with the Lord. His sweet wife is a pillar of strength. Her devotion and care through this long journey caught the attention of everyone and I suspect even Heaven. His two wonderful daughters love the Lord and walk in His ways.

This passage came to my mind when I heard of his passing. I’ve thought about this verse often. I find myself thinking about it more and more. It’s not the angels carrying Lazarus, I believe that happens. It’s not that the righteous die, we know that. This verse takes me to the moment of death. That sweet and special moment when the righteous have breathed their last. The journey here comes to an end. We know that their life hasn’t really ended. Luke 16 shows that. There is no “The End” to our story. Our journey doesn’t end at the cemetery, it ends with God. What I wonder about are those first few moments. The eye closes, the last breath is exhaled, the heart stops. On this side of things, our tears flow. They are gone we say. But it’s the other side that brings wonderment to me. The eyes open in Paradise and what a wonderful world they must see. They must feel great. The pains of this life stay here. The problems of this life stay here. The sickness gone. The disease defeated. For the righteous, what a wonderful thought, to open our eyes on the other side and to see the beauty of God’s creation on that side of things. Movies are still being released about folks who claimed that they were killed, went to Heaven, saw and heard things and then came back to tell of their experiences. They write books and now make movies. All those things are bogus. There are too many Biblical problems with those fanciful ideas. I don’t need a modern story to convince me. I have the old, old story.

But just think, your eyes open, and there you are. Can you imagine who you might see? Now some folks will always ask, “Do you think we will know each other in Heaven?” Just think about that question for a moment. Do you think that God will place us with thousands of strangers for eternity. How comforting would that be? Are you kidding? No way. Absolutely we will know each other. Lazarus, Abraham, the rich man—they each had their identity. How come the rich man didn’t call Abraham, “Moses?” Why didn’t he call him, “Noah?” Somehow he knew. I don’t know how and the how doesn’t bother me. We will. So move on with that thought. Your eyes open and there is Abraham, Moses and Noah. There are the righteous that you knew from a long time ago. I look forward to opening my eyes and seeing my mom again. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen her. I want to see Robert Jackson. He was one of my heroes when I was a young preacher. I want to tell him, “Thank you.” I want to see some of those restoration preachers I have read about all of my life. Our eyes open to a wonderful place.

I wonder if there will be music in on the other side? I tend to think God likes music. He’s always included it in His worship. The little bird can sure sing in the mornings. The wind coming through the trees makes it’s own music. I don’t know if there’s music, but I’d like to think so.

I expect things will be colorful over there. God sure likes color. I tend to think that green is one of his favorite colors. There are so many shades of green and green is everywhere. Those that know me, know that I love color, from bright ties to wild socks, the more the better. We have so much color here, I just hope there is color over there. Just imagine how pretty everything will be. It will be perfect. There won’t be any liter, pollution, trash or graffiti on the other side. Pure. Spotless. Shiny. Bright. That’s how I expect it will be.

I wonder what it will smell like over there. Have you ever thought about that? We have all kinds of smells here. Some good, some not so good. Flowers, new mown lawns, spring rain, fresh bread—great smells. Will there be smells on the other side? I don’t know. I sure hope so.

Most of all, imagine opening your eyes are realizing that you made it. You are where you are supposed to be. You are where God wants you to be. The race over. The battle finished. The course completed. God’s child home. Safe. Never to fear again. Never to hurt again. Never to be tempted again. Never to shed a tear again. Never to worry again. Never to have to say “I’m sorry” again. Never to be rushed again. Never to have to go somewhere else. Never to doubt again. Never to feel disappointed again. Never lonely. Never to fight with Satan again. Home. Safe. Sure. The “well done” spoken by the Lord. This is where the journey takes us. This is what we are after. This is why we worship each week. This is why we choose what is right. This is why we cling to the Lord. This is why God’s way has become our way. This is why you can’t budge us away from the Cross. A crown. A victory. A home. Paul told the Philippians that death is a gain. We understand that in theory, but the day our eyes open up on the other side we will understand it completely.

I will be preaching the funeral for my friend in a few days. I looked and found the wedding ceremony I used for his wedding a long time ago. I may read some of that. It’s been several years but it is fitting.

A journey completed. Eyes opened on the other side. I wish I could have been there to see that look on his face. I look forward to seeing him again, on the other side, when my eyes open there.

Thank you, Jeff. Thank you, Lord. It is because of you all of this is possible.

Roger