Funeral Service For Danniel Murray

Welcome and opening prayer: (Pastor Chris)

Song: Christ Alone

Scripture: (Klaven Embertson)

• 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

  • But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.

Reading of the Obituary: (Jenny Broyles)

Testimonial: Nate Riaglaem

Song: Jesus Wept

Homily: (Pastor Chris)

There are many good reasons for us to be here this evening on this occasion.

• First, we have gathered here to honor the life and to mourn the death of Dan Murray.

• Second, we are here to find comfort in our sorrow on this occasion with other people who knew and loved Dan.

• Third, and probably most importantly, we are given these words in Ecclesiastes 7:2, “It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for this is the end of all mankind, and the living will lay it to heart.”

We are told in Ecclesiastes 7:2 that when we come to the ‘house of mourning’ there is wisdom to be gained, needed perspective to guide us, and graces to be given to the heart. God gives His special grace to people as they approach the end of their life. How much more does God give abundant grace to those who mourn at their death.

One of the necessary truths that comes from a verse like Ecclesiastes 7:2 is that we can expect that the Holy Spirit will provide these graces through the Word of God. Therefore, the Scriptures must be full of texts that can comfort the sorrowful, encourage the broken-hearted, strengthen the weak, and bring grace to the grieving. Therefore, let us consider Hebrews 11:13-22 which says,

These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, buthaving seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.

By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, of whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back. By faith Isaac invoked future blessings on Jacob and Esau. By faith Jacob, when dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, bowing in worship over the head of his staff. By faith Joseph, at the end of his life, made mention of the exodus of the Israelites and gave directions concerning his bones.

This text begins with the words, “These all died in faith…”. Let me make two observations. First, who are ‘these’ individuals who died while having faith?

• ‘These’ refers to all those saints who have been mentioned in Hebrews 11:4-12. These saints all had faith in God and they believed His promises.

• ‘These’ also refers to all those saints that are spoken of throughout Hebrews 11. Many people are mentioned by name but the author of Hebrews confesses that there are many faithful saints that he cannot mention in verse 32.

• All of these saints make up the ‘great cloud of witnesses’ who are mentioned in Hebrews 12:1.This ‘great cloud of witnesses’ is always enlarging to include all believers from every generation until Christ returns at the end of this age. (Matthew 24)

• Therefore, it should be the goal of every person here to have this same saving faith. It should be our ambition to live and die while believing, trusting, having confidence, having assurance in the LORD and His Word.

Second, what does it mean that these people had ‘died in faith’? Would you agree with me that death is not normally a good thing? At death a person’s body is separated from their spirit. At death those who have not received God’s mercy and grace will be separated from God. Death separates us from our family, our friends, possessions, and our earthly treasures. Therefore, we would be wise to heed Jesus’ words in Matthew 6:19-20, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.”

Is it a good thing that these people who in life had faith, hope, confidence, and assurance but they have now died?

• Have they hoped in vain?

• Was their confidence proven to be folly?

• Was their faith misplaced?

Paul speaks of the importance of believing in the resurrection of the dead in 1 Corinthians 15. Some people were saying that there is no resurrection from the dead. Paul’s day was no different than our own when everyone seems to have a different view on these things. Paul speaks passionately and persuasively to the Corinthian believers about the importance of the doctrine of the resurrection. Paul says, “For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.” (15:17-19) He then goes on to say in 1 Corinthians 15:32-33, “If the dead are not raised, ‘Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.’ Therefore, do not be deceived…”. (We will eat in a few moments but we do not do this out of hopelessness and despair! No, before we eat Taylor Hillman will give thanks to God for His goodness and grace! He who provides food for the body also provides salvation for the sinner.)

In verse 13, ‘Those who died in faith’ were not deceived or disappointed when they died. Their faith compelled them to hope in God who raises the dead. Those who have this type of faith are like Abraham in Romans 4:17-25 who believed in God, “who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations...Abraham did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead...No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, fully convinced that God was able to do what He had promised. That is why his faith was accounted to him as righteousness. But the words, ‘it was counted to him’ were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in Him who raised from the dead Jesus our LORD, who was delivered up for our transgressions and raised for our justification.”

Hebrews 11:13-16 speaks of all of the things we have already stated, “These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.”

Consider the profound implications of our text. All of these patriarchs who lived so long ago understood that God’s promises pertain to a heavenly kingdom. Therefore they lived as exiles in this world and continually looked toward a heavenly kingdom which was to come. These saints believed in, hoped in, and were assured of a resurrection from the dead. According to Hebrews 11 the resurrection was believed by the earliest saints including Able, Adam and Eve’s son, who is mentioned in Hebrews 11:4. These things were believed by Enoch (5), by Noah (7), by Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph, and there has been an unbroken line of believers in these doctrines even up to this day.

What was so clear and accepted by these saints has become so unclear to so many in our day. The New Testament says that the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead is a foundational teaching. It is an elementary doctrine that all believers are to know and apply from the very beginning of their walk with Christ. (Hebrews 6:1-2)

The importance of understanding these things becomes clear from passages like Hebrews 9:27 where we read, “It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.” All people, every one of us, will one day stand before the LORD and give an account of our lives. (Revelation 20:11-15; John 5:28-29) Therefore we must read the next verse in Hebrews 9:28 which says, “So Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for Him.” Those who are ‘eagerly waiting for Christ’ (9:28) are the same people who are described in Hebrews 11:13 as those ‘who died in the faith’.

Those who have repented of their sins and believed in Jesus and His atoning work (His death, burial, and resurrection) have received the free gift of eternal life. From that time on they wait expectantly for His return and those who die while they are waiting will receive their full inheritance for which they have hoped in this life. (Hebrews 11:39-40; 1 Thessalonians 4)

In Hebrews 11:17-22 the author of Hebrews speaks of how the faith of God’s people influences how they live and how they die. We read these words, “By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, ‘It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.’ Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead, and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from death. By faith (when Isaac thought he was dying) Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future. By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons, and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff. By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt (4 centuries later) and gave instructions concerning the burial of his bones.”

In this text you see that the faith of 4 patriarchs are referred to: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. When you consider each of these men you realize that there arr many different examples of faith that the author of Hebrews could have testified too.

• Abraham left his homeland in Ur to go to a land that he had not known. Abraham believed that the LORD would give him a son even though he and Sarah were old and well past the age of having children.

• Isaac believed in the promises of God and remained in the land of inheritance even during a great drought. He trusted that the LORD would bless him and provide for his needs. (Gen. 26)

• Jacob, wrestled with God.

• Joseph had faith when he was in prison, when he interpreted dreams, resisted temptation.

The author of Hebrews could have illustrated the faith of these four men in any number of ways but he picks one common theme among them in these verses. The author of Hebrews chooses to speak about how all these men’s faith responded to death. This text highlights how they responded to death, either the death of someone else (Abraham and the offering up of Isaac to death) or their own death (Isaac, Jacob, & Joseph).

I can think of no other passage of scripture that so succinctly teaches about these things. These five verse give us four examples of how important it is to believe, to have faith in, to hope, and to have assurance in the doctrine of the resurrection from the dead. In these verses we discover...

• Abraham trusted in God who is able to raise the dead. He was convinced that even if Isaac died that the LORD would raise him back up.

• Isaac confirmed the words of God as he was lying on his death bed when he blessed Jacob and not his eldest son Esau.

• Jacob, when he was dying, worshiped God while leaning on his staff.

• Joseph demonstrated his faith by the way he made preparations for his body since he knew that God fulfills all His promises.

We began this evening by mentioning Ecclesiastes 7:2, “It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for this is the end of all mankind, and the living will lay it to heart.”

Having come to the ‘house of mourning’ we have been given through the scriptures real hope, genuine comfort, and great grace to encourage our hearts. We have seen that…

• Jesus came and lived a righteous life and died for the sins of men. He was buried and rose again on the third day so that all those who would believe upon him might have peace with God and eternal life. On this occasion He is asking all of us the same question that he asked Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (11:25-26)

• We have seen that the doctrine of the resurrection is not a new doctrine. It has been believed by every saint from the beginning up until now. Therefore, Jesus can say in John 5:28-29, “Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear His voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.”

• We have seen that the doctrine of the resurrection gives us hope that influences us in life and at the time of our death. Therefore, the apostle Paul says, “What is sown perishable; it is raised imperishable. What is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. What is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body, there is also a spiritual body...Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust (Adam), we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven (Jesus).” (1 Cor. 15:42-49)

We have come here tonight to be together on this occasion. What a comfort it is to share in this moment with you all. But I must ask you a question as I end,

• As you have considered these things can you say that you are a believer who has repented of your sins and believed upon Jesus Christ?

• Are you one of the few people in this world who has a faith that will endure even unto death?

• Are you not only part of this group, but part of that ever growing ‘cloud of witnesses’ who will come to death trusting in God, confirming the Word of God, worshiping God, and planning for the day of your death according to this faith that saves us and gives us eternal life?

Song: Lord’s Prayer

Closing: (Taylor Hillman)

• Closing Scripture: A scripture of encouragement to all whose faith is looking to Christ from John 14:1-3,

  • “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.”

Taylor Hillman: Thank you for being with the family and among Dan’s friends on this occasion...

• There will be a dinner following this service. If you are able please feel free to help with the set up of tables and chairs in the sanctuary and then the dinner will start.

• There will be a video that will be played after I sit down that will end our service. The end of the video will conclude this service and then meal preparations can begin.

• Prayer for meal

Video set to music and pictures