Funeral Sermon - Edna Brummer

TEXT: Revelation 3:20
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.

Dear Robert (son) and Dorothy, Kerry (granddaughter) and Brian, Tyler and Erica (great-grandchildren), and Mabel (sister), members of St. John United Church of Christ and Zion Ev. Lutheran congregations, as well as other friends of Edna….

Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Today we gather as those who mourn the death of a mother, grandmother, great grandmother, fellow church member and sister in Christ. And it is okay for us to mourn. Even our Lord Jesus Christ wept at the funeral of Lazarus. Jesus wept, even when He knew that Lazarus would be raised again. We are no different. We may weep, but our tears are not without hope. Rather we weep as those who are confident in the bodily resurrection at the End of Time.

We also gather to care for the earthly remains of Edna. And we do that with the resurrection in mind too. The Lord has taken care of Edna’s body these 97 years and we must trust that He will also do with it as He sees fit until He comes again.

The Scripture chosen for the message this morning is taken from Rev. 3:20. This verse was Edna’s confirmation verse. Jesus said, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”

When Jesus spoke these words, He had already spoken to several churches who had some problems. The Lord was calling them to repentance for various sins they had committed. AT the end of Rev 3, The Church of Laodocia had committed the sin of being “lukewarm.” They were apathetic Christians. They stood for nothing therefore they could fall for anything. The people of the church of Laodocia were a very wealthy people… and their money had gotten the best of them. They prided themselves in their financial wealth and they no longer valued the Gospel as the highest good and only treasure worth attaining.

So, the Lord Jesus called them to repentance. He rebuked them and disciplined by saying, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock.” But this knocking should not be simply understood as a passive, gentle knock on the door. This knocking was the kind of knocking that was meant to get their attention. It was as if the Lord we saying, “Wake up! Don’t you see what you are doing by placing your love of wealth above and beyond your Savior. You are destined for ruin. Listen to my knocking … pay attention to my Word of Law and Gospel. It is good for you. The god of wealth only wishes you no good!” And to the Christian who repented, the Lord promised fellowship when He said, “If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him.” In other words, the Lord Jesus means to say, “Dear Christian, I have called by name you are mine. Turn away from your evil and return to me. I have died on the cross for you. I have redeemed with my holy precious blood and my innocent sufferings and death. I have made you my own dear child in Baptism. I have chosen you. You did not choose me. Come back to me.”

I cannot say that Edna ever wandered so very far from her Savior. Although, if she was typical of most Christian people, then she most certainly did. But I do know this: Edna regularly and faithfully confessed her sins to me as her pastor, and according to the office of the Holy Ministry given by Jesus in John 20, I forgave her sins in the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ. She enjoyed hearing me speak the absolution. When I finished, she would say, “Thank you!”

Edna enjoyed the simple things in life. She was not given to great wealth like the people of Laodocia. She worked the land with her husband, Oscar. She was content to have a garden, and ducks. She loved the smell of fresh baked bread and cinnamon rolls.

Eventually, it became necessary for Edna to move to Pleasantview Home in Albert City… and her life on the farm would become a memory. And even though she could not get out in the garden or spend time in the kitchen, she found new ways to pass her time. I enjoyed my visits with Edna. She was usually upbeat and cheerful. She was happy to have lived well into her 90’s and was glad to have a good appetite. When a couple – three weeks ago she began to lose her appetite, she knew something was wrong.

Eventually, Edna was placed into hospice care. That first evening I heard about her turn toward death, I went to visit. It was late and Edna was in bed. So I quietly read a Psalm, prayed a short prayer, and sang a stanza of a hymn. She loved to hear the hymns. When I finished, I headed out the door. But Edna called after me, “Pastor, aren’t you going to commune me?” I should’ve known. Every visit that I had had with Edna for almost two years included the Lord’s Supper. And during her final weeks in hospice care, it was the only food she ate. She hungered and thirsted for the Body and Blood of Jesus. She trusted Jesus’ own words when He said, “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” It is just as Jesus said in Rev 3:20 for the one who repents, “I will come in to her and eat with her, and she with me.”

Edna suffered from swollen ankles and arthritis in this world. Her eye sight and hearing was not as good as she wanted it to be. But none of that matters today. Today, Edna stands before the throne of God face to face with her Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifier. She stands with Oscar and Ronald and other family and friends. She has fought the good fight. She has finished the race. Yesterday, Edna spent her first Mother’s Day in Heaven. What a joy it must have been for her to see her own mother.

Make no mistake. You will see Edna again… at the Rersurrection on the last day. This body will be raised imperishable, with no arthritis and no need for glasses. Edna’s hand of faith has opened Heaven’s Door and today she enjoys the heavenly banquet that will have no end.

In Jesus’ Name. Amen.