May 8, 20 18, Martin Luther College.
Sermon Scripture: Acts 9:36-42
In Joppa, there was a female disciple named Tabitha, who translated Greek, that is, Doga (note: "Doga" means "antelope"). She does good, Dobusch. At that time, she fell ill and died. Someone washed her and stopped her upstairs. Lu Dayuan is similar to Joppa; When the disciples heard that Peter was there, they sent two men to him and begged him to come to us quickly. "
Peter stood up and went with them. When he arrived, he was taken upstairs. All the widows stood beside Peter and wept, showing him the inner and outer coats Doga made when she was with them.
Peter told them all to go out, so he knelt down and prayed. He turned to the dead man and said, "Tabitha, get up!" " "She opened her eyes, saw Peter and sat up. Peter stretched out his hand and lifted her up, called all the saints and widows in and gave her alive. The story spread all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord.
Tonight, I want to share a sad story with you first.
Once upon a time, there was a king named Forgotten. He is a great king. He conquered the vast land and made many great achievements. People in his kingdom love him. But one day, he made a mistake. He killed the bull while hunting in the forest. This is a sacred animal to the gods, and they are very angry. They demanded blood debt as punishment, so they killed their long-lost friend Enkidu. When the forgetful man saw his friend die, he suddenly realized that he would die one day. This knowledge made him extremely miserable. The forgotten man gave up his kingdom, his wealth and glory, and spent his life looking for immortality. Although he searched every corner of the world and tried his best to escape death, the forgotten one eventually died.
This is a tragic story in Gilgamesh's epic. It is one of the oldest legends in human history, telling us the truth of life: one day we will all die, and death is inevitable!
Death is the result of the first tragedy in history. Adam and Eve were tempted to eat the fruit of the knowledge tree of good and evil, and fell from perfection. Since we all know evil, we must know death. "You are dust, and you will return to dust ..."
The poet Phillip James Bailey once wrote: "The only equality on earth is death." All of us, rich or poor, tall or short, noble or despicable, Christian or atheist, will die. We must all find our own ways to deal with death.
Some of us, like forgotten people, try to escape death. History is full of people looking for relics like the holy grail, which is considered immortal; Or look for the fountain of youth and let yourself return to youth. Doctors nowadays are looking for the immortality of medical treatment. Billions of dollars are invested in medical research every year to find ways to prolong our lives and eliminate cancer. It seems that all our problems will be cured as long as we live forever.
The second way we treat death is to ignore it. Once we realize that death is inevitable, we want to ignore it and think about tomorrow or some day in the future. Several of our students who are about to become priests have the opportunity to listen to Dr. Beock's lecture this year. He is a hospice doctor. Hundreds of people crowded into a hall to listen to his lecture: knowing that you will die, how to live, and how to make others die comfortably. He talked about forgiveness, love and a full life, but there was a gap in his message and something very important was ignored. Dr. Bioque talked for a whole hour, but never touched on "What will happen after I die?" Or "How can I die without fear?" Such a question.
Finally, we try to justify death. We try to convince ourselves that death is ok, it is a natural part of life. Some people, such as artists and writers, try to tell us that death is beautiful. They even set up an organization called "Good Death Procedure" to teach us why death is good and natural. But is it really good? Is death really natural?
A widow lost her husband and her only son, okay?
It's natural for a father to lose his only daughter?
You should be happy about the sudden death of your good friend?
Is it fair that a devout Christian sister fell ill and died?
Who can say it's good to die? How can I comfort myself when I know that I will die and everyone I love will die? How can we live like this when we know that we are all doomed to death and doomed to the same tragic ending?
This is where we are wrong. You see, the forgotten man is afraid of death because he thinks it is the end. People attending Dr. Biok's lecture are looking for ways to make life better and forget death. The organization "Good Death Plan" tries to find a way to end our lives, that is, death can be better. But they all ignore this point: death is not the end!
The death of the only son of Nancheng widow is not the end.
When the Lord saw the widow, he took pity on her and said to her, "Don't cry!" " "
"Young man, I told you to get up!"
The dead man sat up and spoke. Jesus handed him over to his mother. (Chapter 7 of Luke)
The death of Laeiros's only daughter is not the end.
Jesus took the child by the hand and said to her, "Daughter, I told you to get up!" " "The girl immediately got up and left. (Chapter 5 of the Gospel of Kyle)
The unexpected death of a close friend is not the end.
He shouted, "Lazarus, come out!" " "The dead came out, hands and feet wrapped in cloth, face wrapped in a towel. (John chapter 1 1)
Me and you, we worship the god in charge of death. He not only raised others, but also raised himself from the dead. Now, let's look at Debbie. She is you and me.
Her death is not the end.
Your death will not be the end.
Peter told them all to go out, so he knelt down and prayed. He turned to the dead man and said, "Tabitha, get up!" " "She opened her eyes, saw Peter and sat up.
You, Tabitha and I are all disciples of Jesus, and we stick to the same gospel: Jesus, the son of God, died on the cross for us, and we will live in heaven forever by believing in him. We live now, and one day we will die like Bigby, but then we will not simply be resurrected in the world, but live forever in the kingdom of heaven.
In the face of death, we get comfort from the Savior's words: I am the resurrection and I am the life. Those who believe in me, though dead, will rise again. Whoever lives and believes in me will never die. (The Gospel of John 165438)
The world believes that death is the end. But for you and me, death is the starting point. Remember the lecture I just gave you on hospice care? The topic of the lecture is "Live to Death". But as Christians, you and I both know that we can only live well after death. Death is our gateway to paradise. Our life on earth can't be compared with waiting in heaven. The world mourns because death is their end. We will be happy, because death is our starting point. When death and tragedy separate us from those we love, we can find comfort in God's promises.
He has swallowed up death forever.
The Lord God will wipe the tears from everyone's face,
He took away the shame of people all over the world,
? ? ? Because god has spoken.
On that day people will say:
"Look, this is our God.
We have been waiting for him, and he will save us.
This is the Lord we have been waiting for.
? We should rejoice in his salvation. "? (Isaiah 25:8-9)
Death is not a good thing, nor is it natural. It will come to you and me. But eternal life will come. One day, sooner or later, your eyes will close, just like Bigger than Bigger in death. But you know it won't be the end, and you will hear a voice. The voice said, "Get up! My child, welcome home. "
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There was a disciple in Joppa named Tabitha, whose Greek name was Dorcas. She always does good deeds and helps the poor. At that time, she was ill and died. Someone washed her body and put her in the upstairs room. Luda is not far from Joppa. When the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him, urging him to come quickly.
And Peter went with them. When he arrived, he was taken to the upstairs room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothes Doga made when she was with them.
Peter told everyone to go out. Then he knelt down and prayed. He turned to the dead woman and said, "Tabitha, get up." She opened her eyes and saw Peter. She sat up. He took her hand and helped her to her feet. Then ask the believers, especially the widows, to give her to them alive. This story spread throughout Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord.
Tonight, I want to share a story with you.
Once upon a time, there was a king named forgotten one. He is a great king. He conquered the vast land and did great things, and the people of his kingdom loved him. But one day, he made a mistake. When he was hunting in the forest, he killed the bull in the sky, which was a sacred animal of the gods. They were very angry. They demanded blood as punishment, and they killed forgotten one's best friend Enkidu. When forgotten one saw his friend die, he suddenly realized that he would die one day, and this thought tortured him. Forgotten one abandoned his kingdom, wealth and glory, and spent the rest of his life looking for immortality. However, after searching all over the world and trying his best to escape death, forgotten one died.
This is the tragic story called Gilgamesh epic. ? This is one of the oldest legends in human history. It tells us a truth about life. We will all die one day. Death is inevitable.
Death is the result of the first tragic story in history. Adam and Eve were tempted to fall from perfection in order to taste the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Now we all know evil. Now we all have to know about death. "You are dust, and you will return to dust ..."
The poet Phillip James Bailey once wrote: "The only equality on earth is death." All of us, rich or poor, tall or short, kind or mean, Christian or atheist, will die. We must all find a way to deal with death.
Some of us, like forgotten one, try to escape death. History is full of people looking for relics such as the holy grail or the fountain of youth. It is said that the holy grail can make people live forever, and the fountain of youth can make people rejuvenate. Nowadays, doctors seek medical immortality. Billions of dollars are invested in medical research every year to find ways to prolong our lives and end cancer, as if immortality can cure all our problems.
The second way we treat death is to ignore it. This year, some students in the Ministry were lucky enough to attend a lecture by a hospice doctor named Ira Byock. ? Hundreds of people crowded into a ballroom and listened to him talk about how we should live, know that we are going to die, and how we can make others feel comfortable when they die. He talked about forgiveness and love, and living a full life, but there was a void in his message. Something is missing. Dr. Baker talked for a whole hour, but he never touched on "What will happen after I die?" Or "How can I die without fear?"
Finally, we try to justify death. ? We try to convince ourselves that death is okay, it is a natural part of life. Some people, artists and writers try to tell us that death is beautiful and beautiful. They even set up an association called "Hospice Club" to teach us why death is good and natural. But is it really good? Is death really natural?
What's good about a widow after losing her husband and her only son?
What is natural for a father to lose his only daughter?
Why should you be happy when your good friend suddenly died?
Is it fair for a good Christian woman to get sick and die?
How can anyone say it's good to die? How can I be comforted when I know that I will die with the person I love? How can we know that we are all doomed to die and meet the same tragic ending?
This is where we are wrong. You see, forgotten one is afraid of death because he thinks it's the end. People who go to see Dr. Byock's lecture are looking for ways to make life better and forget about death. A good death will try to find a way to make the end of our lives-death-more acceptable. But they all missed the point.
Death is not the end.
The death of the widow's only son in Nain is not the end.
When God saw her, his heart beat for her and he said, "Don't cry."
"Young man, I say to you, get up!" The dead man sat up and spoke. Jesus handed him over to his mother. (Luke 7)
The death of Laeiros's only daughter is not the end.
Jesus took her by the hand and said to her, "Little girl, I say to you, get up!" " The girl stood up at once and began to walk around. (Mark 5)
The accidental death of a close friend is not the end.
He shouted, "Lazarus, come out!" " When the dead man came out, his hands and feet were wrapped in grave clothes. (John 1 1)
You and I, we worship a god who has the ability to overcome death. He didn't just bring others back to life, but brought himself back from death. Now, this is a picture of Tabitha, you and me.
Her death is not the end.
Your death will not be the end.
Peter sent them all out of the room; Then he knelt down and prayed. He turned to the dead woman and said, "Tabitha, get up." She opened her eyes and saw Peter. She sat up.
You, Tabitha and I, we are all disciples of Jesus, and we insist on the same gospel promise: Jesus, the son of God, will die for us and take our place on the cross. By believing in him, we will live in heaven forever. We are alive now, and one day we will die like Tabitha, but what follows is not only the resurrection of the body on the earth, but eternal life in heaven.
In the face of death, we can take comfort from the Savior's words: I am the resurrection and I am the life. People who believe in me will live, even if they will die; Whoever lives by believing in me will never die. (The Gospel of John 165438)
For this world, death is the end. But for you and me, death is just the beginning. Remember what I told you about Dr. Byock's hospice speech? Its title is, "Live well until we die." But as Christians, you and I both know that you can't live well without dying. Death is our gateway to heaven. We live on the earth, and nothing can compare with what awaits us in heaven. The world mourns, because death is the end. We can rejoice, because death is the beginning. When disasters and tragedies separate us from those we love, we can cheer up in God's promise.
He will devour death forever.
The Lord GOD will wipe away tears.
? From all faces;
He will remove the shame from his people.
? From the whole earth.
God spoke.
In that day, they will say,
"This is, of course, our god;
? We trusted him and he saved us.
This is the Lord, and we trust in him;
? Let us rejoice in his salvation. "
Death is not good. Death is not natural. It's for you and me. But so is eternal life. One day, sooner or later, your eyes will be closed like Tabitha's. But you know this won't be the end. You will hear a voice. One said, "get up! Welcome home, my child. "