My grandmother, Margaret, lost a sweet cousin recently. The lady was a dear soul, and it was only right and fitting to honor her life and family by being present at the visitation, especially since Margaret couldn’t make the funeral. We decided to go together so I swung by her house and picked her up. We headed to Cleveland, GA where the family was meeting at a local funeral home. There were smiles and tears, stories and jokes, and a whole lot of food as people sat and ate, sharing memories that were an important support for those gathered around the table. Before we left, Margaret stopped at the funeral register to sign her name, making sure any family that she did not get to speak to knew that she had come by to pay her respects. She signed her name with her “signature” signature, having the best handwriting of anyone I’ve ever known. I KNOW that those who would read that name would smile and be grateful because they knew how deeply Margaret loved others. It was a moving experience, watching my grandmother and even participating in all the movements of care that surround funeral visitations.
Having some experience in the funeral business I can safely say that funeral work is a lost art. Caring for the grieving and supporting people in their hour of loss used to have incredible cultural support; and there was a shared, common understanding about expectations in the face of death. If someone passed, you paid your respects. There was attire and a certain attitude associated with it. You called the grieving, wrote cards of encouragement in their time of need, and showed up so that they “knew that they knew” that you saw them in the midst of their difficulty. My grandmother understands that culture, as it is deeply ingrained in her that you care for one another. There was almost nothing that would keep her away from doing the right thing because, well, it was the right thing to do. It wasn’t something she had to think about, wasn’t something that put her out.
Now, draw a line with me, from my grandmother showing up out of her love for her family to a text in Matthew’s gospel. Read the selection below:
Margaret’s signature on the funeral register
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’ “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” —Matthew 25:31-46 NIV
We live in a culture that has forgotten how to love. With the old ways and community rituals dying out, people seem to move right past each other. The things that made the biggest difference in our lives have just faded away for many. Some people do this because they don’t have those ways of behaving in their hearts—things that naturally engage in moments of hardship. People who do right wonder why it’s a big deal when someone points out what they’ve done. People who do wrong are at a loss when someone calls out something they should have done.
Notice in the text above that the saved and the condemned have the same response, “When did we see you…?” For the saved, the love of God fills the heart to overflowing and it spills out. For the condemned, the love of God doesn’t fill the heart, and therefore it doesn’t spill out. Same response, different faith.
This text isn’t about works or good deeds. The text is about those who are transformed. A transformed life is a life that is bent toward the will of God instead of the will of the self. God commands us to love Him with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength (Deuteronomy 6.5), and then out of that love we are to love our neighbor as ourselves (Leviticus 19.18; Luke 10.27). If we love ourselves it is because God has changed us into HIS likeness and character, and therefore we as changed people facilitate ministry that leads to repentance, faith, and eternal life (for that is how we have eternal life). It isn’t about being good or doing good; it is about honoring God.
Jesus came to lift others up so that they would see and know God. In the midst of genuine ministry people’s hearts are oriented in such a way that grace breaks through darkness. God shows up to the funeral called “life” and signs His name. Then, when we see the name of love and grace, our hearts are warmed amidst the chill of trial.
May you find the funeral registers in people’s lives, sign the name of Redemption, and may Jesus spill out to overflowing because of your faith.
—Pastor Whit