Friday, April 3, 2015

Death Comes as a Surprise



Death always comes as a surprise. Even when we expect it, the moment one dies always catches us unaware. “I didn’t expect it to come so soon.” … “I thought there would be more time.”
When I recall the death of my parents, I remember my shock when my father died unexpectedly. April 16, 2003. My mother called and told me to come home. She then put my Uncle Ted on the phone who told me the reason. My dad died of a heart attack as he prepared for bed. Because he had no prior history of heart trouble, death came as a surprise, a shock.
Three and a half years later, I leaned over my mother, reading Scripture and reciting prayers for the dying. Moments later, a woman from our church, who had volunteered to watch her on that day, said, “I think she’s gone.” Mom took several more breaths. “Not yet,” I replied, and then a moment later when she breathed her last, “Now she’s gone.” Multiple myeloma and amyloidosis, her death sentence, worked its last. November 1, 2006. All Saints Day. Although I waited for death for more than a week, its inevitable arrival still surprised me.
Scripture reminds us that the death of Jesus seemed to come as a surprise for those around him. Even to the end, those who loved and accompanied Jesus, must have been surprised, even shocked that he was dead, dead on a cross.
Scripture also tells us that his closest friends and family members gave Jesus a proper burial. Given the circumstances of the Passover, they anointed his body, wrapped it in a clean linen shroud, and laid him in a new tomb. His community of believers accompanied him to the end.
As a faith community, we accompany our deceased family members and friends to the end. They ask us for the Prayer of the Church and the Lord’s Supper in order to be strong and absolved of sin. We oblige. For their mourning friends and family, they ask for a proper, public viewing and a Christian burial. We oblige. We gather at funeral homes, churches, cemeteries and social halls. We accompany them to the end and remember them. On their birthdays and anniversaries, at the next Christmas and Easter, at family gatherings and on the Day of the Dead, we remember.
Externally, the death and burial of our parents, siblings and friends resembles Jesus’. Yet, his death was different. Jesus did not simply die of a heart attack or a lingering disease. Our Responsory reminds us, “He was delivered up to death; He was delivered for the sins of the people.” Because of his death, “We have an advocate with the Father; Jesus is the propitiation for our sins.”
He was the propitiation for our sins, and he was the propitiator. He was our paid debt, and he paid our debt. A debt we could never pay.
Because our Advocate was delivered for our sins, we should, as our hymn reminds us, ponder his passion. When we meditate on Jesus’ last moments, we know our God is compassionate. Verse Five closes with these words: “Help me see forgiveness won By your holy passion. If for me He slays His Son, God must have compassion!”[i]
Jesus’ death, which in John’s Gospel, is his moment of glory, reveals God’s infinite compassion for me, a poor, miserable sinner. Because God is compassionate to me, should I not be compassionate as Jesus taught? We read in Luke, chapter six:
“Be compassionate just as your Father is compassionate. Don’t judge, and you won’t be judged. Don’t condemn, and you won’t be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good portion—packed down, firmly shaken, and overflowing—will fall into your lap. The portion you give will determine the portion you receive in return.”[ii]
With that hymn and passage in mind, find time today to meditate on Jesus’ passion. Reflect upon the depth of His Father’s compassion. Reflect upon the compassion our Father has for you and yours, and how He is the Author of all life – eternal life and human life.
May God bless you in your prayer this Good Friday, and may the Holy Spirit make you a believer in the power of God’s love poured forth from the Cross into your heart. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.


[i] Jesus, I Will Now Ponder, #440 LSB.
[ii] Luke 6:36-38

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