“Did he have any church affiliation?” I heard myself asking the bereaved widow who had called to ask if I would conduct her husband’s funeral. “No,” was her simple reply, “neither of us do!” I promised to do the funeral, even though I didn’t know the deceased or his family. In visiting “Jane” later that day, I discovered that her husband had suffered from lung cancer for more than a year, and so I asked her if “John” had made a profession of faith before his death, and she said she didn’t think so. Even though he knew he was going to die, and even with more than a year to think about it, still “John” never made preparation for the Hereafter.
At the funeral home “Jane” sat facing the open casket, staring blankly at her deceased husband while I conducted the service. When I sat down, the funeral director had those in attendance begin viewing the body for the last time. When all had left except the immediate family, “Jane” literally threw herself on the casket and wailed loudly and uncontrollably. As I watched I was reduced to tears, because although I didn’t personally know “Jane” or her husband, I saw a look of utter hopelessness and futility on her face. As the casket was closed for the final time, “Jane” was led away, supported by two of her sons.
As I’ve thought about “John’s” funeral, the words of the poet W. O. Cushing have rung true again and again in my mind:
Oh, to have no Christ, no Saviour,
How lonely life must be!
Like a sailor lost and driven,
On a wide and shoreless sea.Oh, to have no Christ, no Saviour,
No hand to clasp thine own!
Through the dark, dark vale of shadows,
Thou must press thy way alone!
Are you prepared to die? Since “an earthly body made of flesh and blood cannot get into God’s kingdom” (1 Corinthians 15:50/LB), why not turn to Christ today and receive the promise of eternal life? “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12/NIV). “If you openly admit by your own mouth that Jesus Christ is the Lord, and if you believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved (Romans 10:9/Phillips). Don’t come to the “dark, dark vale of shadows” alone when Hope IS available!