“To Live is Christ & to Die is Gain,” Philippians 1.21-23, Robert Brazil Funeral Sermon 9.6.17

Pastor John M. Taggatz Christ Lutheran West Bloomfield, WI

1.                   Grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Heavenly Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Dear family and friends of Bob, on behalf of the congregation here at Christ Lutheran I want to express to you my deepest sympathies as you mourn over his death.  But, I want to tell you today that, even though we grieve over his death, we don’t grieve as those who have no hope, as St. Paul reminds us in 1 Thessalonians 4.  We can take hope and comfort that Bob was baptized into the Christian faith through water and the power of God’s Word and was brought from death to life on December 25^th, 1955 here at Christ Lutheran Church.  Bob knew that his baptism gave to him the promise of eternal life, the forgiveness of his sins, and salvation, because he confirmed that faith that he received at his baptism on the same day that he was baptized on December 25^th, 1955.  What a wonderful thing it is to know that our dear Savior Jesus has offered to us eternal life with him in heaven through His sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper and through the hearing of His Word.

2.                   As all of you know, Bob was deeply loved by his family and friends.  He tirelessly worked to support his wife Marian and his family.  He was a very gentle, loving, and soft-spoken man.  I always looked forward to seeing Bob and his wife Marian these past three years I’ve been their Pastor in worship every Sunday, joyously receiving Christ’s Word and Sacrament for the assurance of the forgiveness of their sins and eternal life.  Bob & Marian were one of the first people to visit my family and I when we came here to Christ Lutheran in 2014 and I still remember the house warming gift they gave to us when we entered the parsonage.  It was great this past year in the month of May to celebrate with Bob & Marian and their whole family their 60^th wedding anniversary.  What a testament to us all on the blessing of marriage, that God our Heavenly Father has given to us in the union of husband and wife for lifelong love, support, and companionship!  Bob also loved his country, serving in the US Army during the Korean Conflict, and he carried that patriotism here locally serving at the Wolf River American Legion for many years.  Marian reminded me at the hospital that it wasn’t like her husband to sit still or lay in one place.  He was a very active man, who even in his retirement enjoyed wood crafting, fishing, and hunting.  He couldn’t sit still for too long.  But, above all I’m sure that his family remembers Bob for the love that he had for them as a husband, brother, son, father, grandfather, and friend. 

3.                   We’re here today because sin has caused our loved one to die.  The Apostle Paul tells us in Romans 6:23 that the wages of sin is death.  Sin came into the world when Adam and Eve disobeyed God by eating from the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden.  Sin is what has caused all the suffering, pain, and toil that we go through in this fallen world.  It’s because of our fall into sin that we rebel against God and harm our neighbor in our words and deeds.  All this Bob learned in his adult membership class here at Christ Lutheran back in 1955.  If death is the result of sin, how is it that the Apostle Paul can say in Philippians chapter 1 that to die is gain?  Let’s look at our text a little bit closer.

4.                   The Apostle Paul writes in Philippians 1:21-23, “²¹For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. ²²If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. ²³ I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.”  Here Paul says that he can meet death willingly.  So too, before he died, Bob felt that he was ready.  Just last week, while laying in his hospital bed, Bob confessed his sins before God his Heavenly Father and received the forgiveness of those sins.  He then received our Lord Jesus’ body and blood in the Lord’s Supper. The reason for Bob, as it was for Paul, is because of all that his Savior Jesus did for him through his life, death, and resurrection from the dead.  Because of Jesus, our own death isn’t something to be feared.  We know that in Christ death has lost its victory and its sting.  He has paid for our sins with his own death on the cross.  Death need not be feared, for on the other side of death’s door lies the gift of eternal life in heaven for every child of God, including our dear brother in the Christian faith, Bob.

5.                   The Apostle Paul didn’t fall to pieces at the prospect of death.  He wasn’t so attached to this life that he regarded death as an unwelcome intruder.  For the apostle, death was a gain and personal advantage, because he knew it would mean passing from a troublesome life marred by sin to a perfect existence with our Savior Jesus.  Paul was ready to go and be with the Savior at any time.  We along with Paul can have the same confidence, because we have been baptized into Christ and heard the good news of His Gospel, receiving from Him the wonderful promise of eternal life.

6.                   What a glorious place heaven will be!  Scripture tells us that in heaven we will personally be with our Savior.  We will be his people.  God Himself will be with us.  He will wipe every ever tear from our eyes.  There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain.  The old order of things will have passed away.  No wonder St. Paul refers to death as a “gain” for himself.  Forever with the Lord—that is the glorious hope for all those who are baptized into Christ’s holy name.

7.                   But, St. Paul could also proclaim, “For to me, to live is Christ.”  Paul is simply stating that all his living activity is centered in Christ and that Christ controls his life on this earth.  Bob showed this to me as his Pastor this past three years, where he was actively involved in worship, even when he didn’t feel so well.  The will of the Lord directed Paul’s thoughts, words and deeds in this life.  St. Paul was totally dedicated to his Savior Jesus.  By the power of the Holy Spirit, the Apostle Paul was with the Lord, and the Lord was with Paul whether in life or in death.

8.                   St. Paul’s joy filled words in this section of Philippians express the attitude that every Christian ought to take toward both living and dying.  For a Christian, life is Christ.    Real living is impossible apart from Christ.  If Christ is truly our life, our joy in him will be evident in everything we do.  Our thinking and planning will all be centered in him and our words and actions will constantly testify to our belief in Him as our Lord and Savior who has made us new spiritual creatures through faith in him.

9.                   Will we also want to be with the Savior in life and in death?  Absolutely!  Think of his love for us.  We have broken God’s holy law, but Jesus kept it perfectly in our stead.  He credits our account with his perfect holiness.  The punishment we deserved for breaking God’s law—Jesus has suffered that too in our place.  He died on the cross to pay for our sins.  We haven’t deserved it.  Bob also knew that he didn’t deserve it because he was a sinner.  But, Bob knew and we know through the promises of God in His Word, that out of the love of God for us in Jesus he has given to us and our dear brother in the faith, Bob, eternal life in heaven.  What love we will want to give our Savior Jesus in return for all that He’s done for us!  By the power of the Holy Spirit we with St. Paul proclaim, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”  Amen.