This is the Funeral sermon for Kimberly Lynn Haesemeier who passed away on Wednesday, February 15 after battling cancer for three years. Kim leaves behind her husband David and daughter Emmie. You can listen to this sermon here.
Romans 5:1-8 (ESV)
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
In
the Name of Jesus, the Resurrection and the Life, dear friends and family of
Kim,
How
can someone have so much peace with so much trouble? How can you smile when you
go through so much pain? How can you endure trial after trial like that? Here’s
the secret. Really it’s no secret at all. Kim knew she had peace with God. Since
she had peace with God then no other battle mattered.[1]
Since she had peace with God that meant she had hope. Since she had peace with
God she could actually rejoice in her suffering.
That’s what you saw in Kim over the
last three years. That’s also what our text describes for us here today. When
we look at the way Kim endured, we see a good example of the way God wants us
to remain faithful through any kind of suffering that comes upon us. You can
also have peace and even joy.
Let’s
get this straight right off the bat. Kim did not get cancer and die as a
punishment for any particular sin. She was not denied healing because of a lack
of faith on her part or on yours. It is not as though God was just wanting for
five more prayers or something like that to heal her. No. God doesn’t grant
healing based on a mathematical formula or anything like that. The exact
reasons for this are hidden from us and we will not know them this side of
heaven. Even if we did, I doubt we would be satisfied.
Rather than speculate about God’s
hidden plan, we can turn with certainty to the things he has revealed in his
Word. We can cling to these things with all our heart and we will not be put to
shame. Instead of wondering why this happened, what does our text say, “Therefore,
since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord
Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1)
Here’s what that means: If we want to
see what God thinks of us, if we want to see if God really cares or not, if we
want to see where we stand before him, we don’t look to ourselves. We don’t
look to how we feel. We don’t look at our bank account or the latest news from
the doctor. If we look to those things to see what God thinks of us, we will
often think that he was against us.
If we want to see what God thinks of
us, we look at the cross. We look to our Lord Jesus Christ who suffered for us
there. We heard the promise from the last verse of our text, “God shows his
love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” There
is the proof of God’s love. Jesus died for you. Jesus died for me. And today we
rejoice because Jesus died for Kim. Not only did he die, but he also rose again,
defeating death and opening everlasting life for everyone who believes.
It’s clear we need this. Earlier in
the argument, Paul tells us that “all have sinned and fallen short of the
glory of God.” And in the next chapter it’s worse, “the wages of sin is
death.” This is why we are here today. This is why you know that your time
is coming too. You will not live forever. We all sin, and we will all die. That’s
true for me, it’s true for you, and it was true for Kim.
But look who Jesus died for. Paul
says it very clearly in the last verse of our text. “But God shows his
love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans
5:8) Jesus died for sinners. Yes, all have sinned and fallen short of
the glory of God and are justified freely by his grace.” Yes, “the
wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus
our Lord.” Notice here what God is offering to sinners like you, like me,
and like Kim. Jesus died for us and since he rose again, he gives eternal life
away for free! Kim received that free gift in the waters of Holy Baptism and
trusted this promise.
Simply trusting this promise, Jesus
died and rose again for me, is enough to justify, to make you right with God,
and give you peace with him. If you knew Kim, if you read her posts of Facebook,
if you talked to her about what was going on, even if you were her doctor, you knew
that she had this peace—peace with God that only Jesus can give.
That peace did something incredible
for Kim. As you saw her go through this battle, you noticed that what our text
describes is exactly what happened to Kim. Let me explain:
“Not
only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces
endurance,” (Romans 5:3) Kim didn’t give up. She fought
this monster, and she fought it hard. She tried every trial available. Even
three days before her death she was ready to keep fighting for David and Emmie
especially.
All
throughout her battle, Kim had the same attitude that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
had when they were threatened with death in the fiery furnace after refusing to
give worship an idol. When the king asked what god could save them, they gave
an amazing answer. Yes, God was able to save them from the fire, but even if he
did not, they would not give in and worship the idol. In that case you remember
God was with them and saved them when they were thrown into the fire.[2]
Kim
knew that God was able to save her, to heal her miraculously, or grant success to
the doctors and their work. But even if he didn’t, even if this day came, she
would not give up. She would not loose faith in the Lord and his goodness. Instead,
she took one day at a time, daily relying on what God provided for her each
day. God was with her too.
The result was amazing. It happened
just as our text continues, “endurance produces character.” Over
and over again we all marveled. Could we have gone through such a battle with
such grace and dignity? Could we have endured with hope and with a smile like
she did? Could we have kept our faith through such a battle?
Cancer changed Kim and her family in
a lot of ways. While it showed them their own weakness—she had her tear filled
moments—they also saw God’s strength. God did give them more than they
could handle. But God didn’t give more than he could handle. The answer
then is yes, in your troubles God promises to give you the same strength he
gave Kim. That’s what the Holy Spirit does as the comforter.
That’s what this should produce in
us. “character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because
God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been
given to us.” (Romans 5:4-5) The goal is hope, looking to Christ and
knowing his life and his love.
To see what this hope means, Dave, I
want you to remember when you first met Kim. You each had coworkers who were
already married, and they thought you should meet. So Kim calls you and you
decide to meet this woman you’ve never met, hoping that there could maybe be
something there. So you went to meet her and the rest is history. Who knew, right?
Who knew who much love you would eventually have for each other, you probably couldn’t
imagine it at that moment, right?
Here’s the comparison. As much as
you loved Kim, there’s someone who loved her more. As much as Kim loved you and
Emmie, there’s someone who loves you more, we just haven’t seen him yet. As
much as anyone of us loves anyone else, Jesus loves us more and he loves them
more too. He has shown his love for us by bleeding and dying. He has given his
life for us, sinners though we are. If Jesus is willing to do that for his enemies,
just think of what he will do for his friends now that he is alive forever!
Even
though we don’t see Jesus now we love him. He loves us. We are waiting in eager
expectation, more expectation than a first date with someone we’ve never met.
We know that once we are together all pain and suffering, sin and death, will
be done!
Kim’s
suffering lead to endurance, that endurance produced character, and she had complete
hope and confidence in Jesus. But she doesn’t need as much hope anymore. You
don’t need hope once the thing you hoped would happen actually happens. She is
with Jesus and now. And whether we are
with the Lord in heaven or the Lord is with us on earth, we’re all waiting for
the day when Jesus will come, raise the dead, and restore creation.
I want to remind you of all of this,
because although Kim’s suffering is over, an new kind of tribulation has begun,
especially for her family. As you go through grief you will be challenged to do
the same things over again. In this suffering you are called to endure, to take
one day at a time. Each morning you will need to remember that God’s mercy is
there for you. This will change you and shape your character even more. But
this will also lead you to hope even more, to be confident of God’s promises to
you. This new suffering will also produce endurance, this endurance will also
produce character, and since you have the Holy Spirit, you will have hope to
meet the days ahead.
Emmie,
I want you to remember this everyday for the rest of your life. You mom left
you an amazing example of courage, bravery, as she went through this with love
for you and even joy. She taught you what it means to trust God’s promises even
when he isn’t answering your prayers the way you want him to. She clung to Jesus,
and I know you will too.
Kim
became one more example that shows we aren’t taken to heaven by an easy path.
We pass through this present life through all kinds of danger and difficulty. But
we do so with peace and joy because we know. We know! We know that Jesus, who
laid down his life for us, is alive! We know that he is Lord of everything—including
our suffering. He can work all things for good—yes, even our suffering. Since
Jesus lives, we are so sure of the future that we bear the pressure of the
present[3]
no matter what that might be.
That’s
what you saw in Kim. That’s what God wants to work in you. And he will do it.
Amen.
[1]
This roughly comes from Origin’s Commentary on this passage written around the
year 200. Find it in Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, vol. IX edited
by Thomas Bray.
[2]
See Daniel 3:1-30
[3]
This is a paraphrase of paragraph on page 89 of Martin Franzmann’s 1968 book Romans:
A Commentary published by Concordia Publishing House.
