Title: “The Funeral Chapel Blessing”
Text: Ecclesiastes 7:1-4
By Dr Gary Hall
Pastor of New
A good name is better than precious ointment; and the
day of death than the day of one's birth. It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that
is the end of all men; and the living will lay
it to his heart. Sorrow is better than laughter: for by the sadness of
the countenance the heart is made better. The heart of the wise is in the
house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
(Ecclesiastes 7:1 – 4)
Psalm 23:4
Yea, though I
walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no
evil: for thou art with me; thy
rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Psalm 23:6
Surely goodness
and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life:
And I will dwell in the house of the
LORD for ever.
Isaiah 61:1 - 3
The Spirit of the Lord
GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto
the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to
the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; To proclaim
the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God ; to
comfort all that mourn; To
appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the
oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD,
that he might be glorified.
INTRO:
* It is My Great Desire Today that Each Person Here Might be Able to
Understand & Receive the Blessings that can Come to Us In the House of Mourning.
I. The Blessed Realization
Ecclesiastes
7:2 “... That Is the End of All Men”
A. Men Spend
Their Whole Lives Many Times Unwilling to Come to Grips
with This Important Realization.
B. The Fear of Death Haunts Men, so they
Refuse to Think About It, &
Because
of This, Many Men are Not Prepared to Meet Death when It Comes.
C. The Funeral Chapel Is a Place of Blessing,
because It Helps Us to Face the Realization of Our Own Mortality.
II. The Blessed Consideration
Ecclesiastes
7:2 “... The Living Will Lay It to
His Heart.”
A. Until Man Takes Time Out of
His Busy Life to Actually Consider
His Own
Mortality, He Typically
will Not Seriously Consider
His Options and Do
What He Needs
to Do to
Be Prepared For His Own Appointment with Death.
Hebrews
9:27
B. The Funeral Chapel Is a Place of Blessing,
because It Encourages Men
to Consider His Own Mortality and the Options He has to Deal
with that
Fact
and the Fear that It Tends to Create In Us.
III. The
Blessed Expectation
Psalm
23:4 & 6 - IF God Is Our Shepherd
A. We Can Face Death Without
Fear.
B. God's Presence & Protection Will Be
With Us.
C. We Can Have an ASSURANCE that We Will God
to Heaven & Be With God Forever.
Isaiah
55:3 (Read the Whole Chapter.) c/f I John
a. God Promises the SURE MERCIES of David.
b. God's Word Says We May KNOW that We HAVE
Eternal Life.
Now, Let Me Ask You a
Very Important Question:
IF YOU WERE TO DIE
TODAY, ARE YOU 100% SURE
YOU’D GO TO
HEAVEN???
Did You Realize
that the Bible Says You CAN BE SURE in 1 John 5:11-13?
Note:
The
Following was not part of the Message given at Mom’s funeral,
But was in the original draft, and is worth
including here for your edification.
I. Jesus Came Into the World to Comfort All
Those that Mourn. Isaiah 61:2
A. The Lord Is No Respecter of Persons and
Desires to Bless All of Us that Need His Comfort.
B. He Then would Like to Use us who Have Been
Comforted to Comfort Others As Well. II
Corinthians 1:3-4
II. The Problem was that Not All Men Received Him & His
Message, and Those Who Rejected
Him Did Not Receive the Benefits He Came to Give Them. Matthew
23:37-38
There Are Basically
Four Groups of People in the World Today!
1. Those Who Basically Despise the Word of
God & Have Almost No Tolerance toward
It and Anyone who represents it to them.
2. Those Who Certainly Have No Love for the Bible,
but they have a Greater Ability to
at least Tolerate It being Presented in their Presence.
3. Those that Think they Love the Word
of God, but In Truth they Only Love the Portions of the Bible that Tell them Things they Want to
Hear --
NOT NECESSARILY WHATEVER GOD WANTS TO SAY TO
THEM!!!
4. Those Who
LOVE the Word of God
IN TRUTH and Genuinely
WANT to Hear
Whatever God Wants to Say to them
-- Even If It Makes them Uncomfortable
and Places Demands and Expectations Upon them.
WHICH GROUP ARE
YOU IN???
Most People Who Are
IN Group Number Three
THINK They Are In
Group Number Four.
III. Jesus
Wants to Comfort You Also that Mourn Today – IF You Will Receive It.
Isaiah 61:2 c/f 2
Corinthians 1:3-4
ACKNOWLEDGE
1. That
You are a Sinner who has Come Short of the
Standards that Jesus Preached
& Lived by. Romans 3:23.
2. That
You have Been Like a Sheep Going Astray, and You have Set Up Your Own Standards & have Done Things Your Own Way in Life Isaiah 53:6 .
3. That
You have Been Wrong to Do This & that You
Should have Been Following Jesus
& the Father's Way in Your Life
Isaiah
4. That
there is a Terrible Penalty Placed Upon You By a
Holy God Because of
Sin Romans
5. That
You Need the Forgiveness & Salvation Jesus Offers, because You
Can't Save Yourself Isaiah
59:1-2; Galatians 2:16; Romans 5:8; & I John 1:7 .
REPENT
* Turn Away From Your Life of Self Will
& Turn Toward a Life of Surrender
To & Faith In the Lord Jesus Christ Mark 1:15 ; Acts 20:21 ; Isaiah 55:6-9 ; &
II Peter 3:9 .
RECEIVE THE GIFT OF GOD
* Salvation is a Gift (Purchased by the Blood of Jesus) that God
Freely Gives to All who Come to Him by a Heart of Repentance & Faith In the
Sacrifice of Jesus Romans 6:23 ; Romans 10:9-13 ; Hebrews 7:25-27 ; Hebrews 9:22-26 ; John 1:11-12 .
PRAY THIS PRAYER WITH A SINCERE HEART:
* Dear God, I Know that I'm a Sinner
& that I've Lived My Life My Own Way.
I Admit that I've Been Wrong, & I'm Sorry God. I Believe
that Jesus Died for My Sins, so I could be Forgiven, & I Ask for Your
Gift of Salvation through Him. I Repent of Going My Way Lord,
& I Choose Today to Live for Jesus for the Rest of My Life, because He Died
for
IF We Can Be Of
Any Help, Please Contact:
New
2676 N FM 2980
Phone: (361) 564-3845
Web site: www.geocities.com/drghall2001
Please take a Few
minutes to visit these Pages also:
Flower Garden Memorial Card / Safely Home Memorial Card / Remembering Mom
Funeral Chapel Blessing / Brown’s Home Page / Photo Page / Guestbook
And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life: and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.
These things have I written unto you
That believe on the name of the Son of God;
That ye may know that ye have eternal life, and
That ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.
1 John 5:11-13