SCRIPTURE READINGS
John 6:35-40
Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty. 36 But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. 37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. 38 For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. 40 For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."
John 11:17-27
On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. 18 Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem, 19 and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. 20 When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home. 21 "Lord," Martha said to Jesus, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask." 23 Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." 24 Martha answered, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day." 25 Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; 26 and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" 27 "Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world."
Romans 8:37-39
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
HABBAKKUK 3
I know that Chuck Roast… I mean uh ****…had a passion for music. Music was his hobby and a love of his life. He played drums, piano, keyboard, and bass. I am sure there are other instruments I am missing. He loved to sing and write music. In thinking about ****’s love, an odd passage of Scripture popped in my head that I would like to share with you all tonight in celebration of his life.
Habakkuk is a small book in the Old Testament. It has just three chapters. The last chapter of the Book of Habakkuk begins with, “A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet. On shigionoth” (3:1). What does that small verse tell us? It tells us first that the chapter is a prayer. It tells us secondly that the prayer is written by a prophet of God so we should listen up. It thirdly tells us that it is “On shigionoth.” What does that word mean? “Shigionoth” is a musical term which means “a wild passionate song with rapid changes of rhythm.” The end of Habakkuk 3 has the words “On my stringed instruments.” In my mind that means Habakkuk 3 is an upbeat rock n’ roll song! So Habakkuk chapter 3 is a prayerful rock song written by a faithful prophet of God. It seemed appropriate to share some words from this particular chapter of the Scriptures because of ****’s love of music and his absolute trust and love in our God. **** was a believer in Jesus Christ and when he breathed his last, his faith was realized fully.
There are three parts of Habakkuk 3 that I would like to share with you tonight as we celebrate the life of ****: the man of faith, the entrepreneur, the dream chaser, the church builder, the inventor, and the musician.
Habakkuk 3:4 says, “His splendor was like the sunrise; rays flashed from his hand, where his power was hidden.” The God that **** believed in is a glorious God whose glory fills the Universe. **** did not believe in a small God, but rather in a God whose splendor was like the sunrise and whose power is unmatched. This same God who has awesome limitless power also is benevolent, holy, gracious, loving, merciful, and keeps His promises. **** wholeheartedly believed in God and His power.
Habakkuk 3:13 says, “You came out to deliver your people, to save your anointed one.” The God that **** believed in is a God who saves. **** believed in God the Father who sent Jesus Christ His Son to seek and to save the lost. **** believed that God delivered him from the guilt of his sin and fear of death through Jesus Christ his savior. That belief in Jesus Christ gave **** comfort in his final days. It is my prayer that belief in Jesus Christ would give you comfort as well.
Habakkuk 3:17-19 says, “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, 18 yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior. 19 The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights.” Habakkuk ends his rock prayer song with words that are of great comfort to us. Habakkuk expresses something that is true about God and something that **** believed. God is our strength. God enables us to go higher than we thought possible. The moment that **** breathed his last here in this life, God my savior enabled **** to be free from pain or trouble or any sort of hardship.
I pray today that as you celebrate the life of this man who was loving, compassionate, and funny, that you would remember the Christian faith that made him that way.
I pray you remember the awesome powerful God who watches over you still.
I pray you remember the delivering God who will help you in your time of need.
I pray you will celebrate where **** is now!
PRAYER
