Access To God
Preaching
Life Everlasting
The Essential Book of Funeral Resources
Object:
At the sixth hour darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" -- which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
When some of those standing near heard this, they said, "Listen, he's calling Elijah."
One man ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink. "Now leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to take him down," he said.
With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.
The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard his cry and saw how he died, he said, "Surely this man was the Son of God!"
The significance of the tearing of the curtain is rarely talked about in our churches but this might be a useful metaphor for what happens when a Christian dies. To a certain degree the limitations of this life have prevented us from pulling back the curtain on the kingdom of God, but now, in our deaths, we finally get our chance to throw open the curtain and fully experience the kingdom.
When some of those standing near heard this, they said, "Listen, he's calling Elijah."
One man ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink. "Now leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to take him down," he said.
With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.
The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard his cry and saw how he died, he said, "Surely this man was the Son of God!"
The significance of the tearing of the curtain is rarely talked about in our churches but this might be a useful metaphor for what happens when a Christian dies. To a certain degree the limitations of this life have prevented us from pulling back the curtain on the kingdom of God, but now, in our deaths, we finally get our chance to throw open the curtain and fully experience the kingdom.
