TEXT: Ecclesiastes 7:14a

SUBJECT: Gabe's Death

MOST SUNDAYS ARE "DAYS OF PROSPERITY".

For the believer in Christ, most Sundays are "days of prosperity". The Puritans called it "The Feast Day of the Soul". Were they right? I think they were.

What a privilege it is to attend church! We meet on the Lord's Day to hear the Word of God read and preached. Together, we offer up prayers to our Maker and combine to sing His praise. As for fellowship--we have it--with Jesus Christ Himself and with those for whom He died.

What a wonder the Church is! Small and unimpressive by human standards, we are the "Body of Christ"; we are the "Habitation of God through the Spirit".

The Psalmist is unhappy away from Church. His "Soul longs, yes even faints for the courts of the Lord; his heart and his flesh cry out for the living God".

When Church time comes, he exults: "I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the House of the Lord".

Do you feel this way? If so, take Solomon's advice and "In the day of prosperity, be joyful".

THIS SUNDAY IS A "DAY OF ADVERSITY".

We can do this most Sundays. But not this one.

Today is not a "day of prosperity". We will not "sing songs to a heavy heart".

A young man died this week. He was sixteen years old. Though he had long been sick, we weren't prepared for his death. He was here--and seemed fine--just last Sunday. His mom asked me how I was feeling. I joked, "By next week, I'll be wrestling with Gabe". But, of course, I won't be.

What do we do about it? We start with crying. We "weep with those who weep"(Romans 12:15). "We sorrow but not as those who have no hope"(I Thessalonians 4:13). If "Jesus wept" we should too.

But what do we do then? After the tears dry?

"In the day of adversity, consider..."

To "consider" means to "think about things". To think about them long and hard.

What things? Many things, of course. We should think about his family and how we can help them in their time of grief. We should think about how precious life is and how we ought to love others while they're still with us! These things should be "considered".

But I want to develop some other "things" today. Three, in particular, I think are worth saying.

Does the Bible teach anything more clearly than this? The Prophet compares our life to "the grass that withers and the flower that fades". To another, it is "a vapor that appears for a time and vanishes away".

At 130 years old, Jacob sighed, "Few have been the days of my years..." It is a strong man--sang Moses--who lives to be eighty--yet what are eighty years next to eternity? Even "a thousand years in His sight are like yesterday when it is past".

Life is short. The Bible teaches that. The death of our young friend bears powerful witness to its truth. Sixteen years old.

If life is short, we must:

The Rich Fool thought life long and predictable. "Many goods" he had--and "many years" to enjoy them. Little did he know "this night his soul would be required of him".

"The shortness of life". On this "day of adversity", that's something to "consider".

What happens when we die? The Atheist says "Nothing". To his way of thinking, we're just animals, who no longer exist after death. But if this is true, why is he afraid to die? If death leads to nothing, where does its fear come from?

If you go to Papua, New Guinea, you'll find the Tribesmen terrified of death. Think of all the offerings they bring their gods to get themselves and their loved ones off the hook!

But, of course, the Tribesmen are primitive and superstitious, and so on, aren't they? Yes they are. But death makes us as nervous as it does them. Let me prove it: Go to a party and start talking about death. Before you know it, you'll be alone. Nobody wants to talk about it. Politics, sports, movies, gossip, anything goes--but death.

Why is that? Because it scares us!

Why does it scare us? Because, deep down, we know: Something happens when we die.

What is it? The Bible knows: "It is appointed to man once to die, and after this, the judgment".

When you die, you stand before God. He evaluates your life and passes a final judgment on it.

On that day, you'll be found "guilty or not guilty". You'll be on "His Right Hand or on His left". You'll "Enter the joy of your Lord" or "Be cast into outer darkness".

His judgment is:

How will you stand before the Bar of Divine Justice? Stand there, you must--not because I say so--but because God says so! If you're honest with yourself, you know I'm right.

"What happens after death". On this "day of adversity", that's something to "consider".

On "the day of prosperity" trivial things seem so important. "Who has the remote control?" "Does Mary Jane like me?" "What am I going to do with that bathroom?"

What were you doing last Tuesday night about nine o'clock? Me? I was reading a novel. When the phone rang, I was so aggravated! But then the voice told: "Gabe is dead". My book, then, didn't seem so important.

Death has a way of putting things in perspective. It doesn't change anything; it shows us how things really are.

Here is how things really are: You have no hope in life or death without Jesus Christ.

What is the unbeliever's life? The Apostle calls it "Death in trespasses and sins". He calls it "Without God and without hope in the world". He calls it a "lifetime of bondage".

This is true of everyone without Christ--equally! The vicious criminal, the nice churchgoer--dead without Christ! Lost, hopeless, "alienated from the life of God".

What is new furniture without Christ? What is a college degree? What is money? What's a career? What is a pretty girlfriend or a successful husband? Without Christ, they're but rigor mortis--the ghastly motions of death.

In death one thing is important: Jesus Christ. You can't buy your way into heaven with money or earn it by good works. You can't have it through the sacraments or the prayers of good men. If you get into heaven at all, you'll get in through Christ.

"Faith alone in Christ alone".

It has become a cliche over the years, but it's still worth thinking about: When God asks you, "Why should I let you into heaven?" What will you say?

"I did good works?" "I gave to charity?" "I received the sacraments"? "I read theology?" "My parents were good people"?

Does He promise to let anyone into heaven on these terms? No He doesn't! Good works don't save; the sacraments don't save; ancestors don't save.

"Jesus saves".

He saves by His death on the cross. His saving benefits are obtained through faith in Him alone. Acts 16:31.

Five days ago, our young friend stood before his Judge.

"Why should you get in, Gabe?"

"Because Christ died for me".

That was good enough for him. It'll we be good enough for you.

Christ is supreme in death. He's no supreme in life. "For me to live is Christ" said the Apostle. Your family, friends, school and career are important. But not supremely so. In this life "one thing is needful--one thing only".

"Living for Christ".

To Christ, our bodies are "yielded as instruments of righteousness". The mouth that cursed can also bless; the hand that punched in rage can also open in charity.

To Christ, our spirits are "set on things above, not on things below". The greedy, selfish, and vengeful thoughts are put aside for Christ's sake. And replaced with "whatever things are true, noble, pure, lovely, of good report, virtuous, and worthy of praise".

The believer's life "is Christ and his death is gain".

This is a "day of adversity". Whatever you think of today, I implore you to "consider" the supreme importance of Jesus Christ.

God give you the wisdom and grace to do so. For Christ's sake. Amen.