A Life Laid Down

A Life Laid Down

The Funeral of Janice Wagner – 6/5/2025

John 10:7-18

Rev. Dr. Christopher W. Brademeyer

That portion from God’s holy Word for consideration this morning is our Gospel lesson from the holy Gospel according to St. John in the tenth chapter, with special emphasis on verses eleven through fourteen which read as follows:

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me,  just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.”[1]

Thus far the Scriptures.

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

                Dear friends in Christ, today we lay to rest a dear woman, a sister in Christ, a grandmother, mother, and friend: Janice Wagner. And this is a day marked by a number of mixed emotions. There are remembrances about her life: her time as a teacher, her love of her family, and her deep Christian faith. And with all of this is a grief, a sense of loss, that, as St. Paul notes, is characterized for us Christians as one with hope.

                Janice led a hard life and had more than her share of hardships. Toward the end she struggled with her declining health and the loss of her beloved daughter, Terra. And this great suffering might tempt us to dismiss our loss of her as a good thing, since it brought to a close her grief and pain. But a woman like Janice also leaves a hole in our lives because she is a great gift to us from God our Creator. And for this reason it is good and right for us to grieve her, to miss her, and to soothe our loss with memory and recollection.

The Reason for Grief

                But if this is all we have, then we do not have any real hope in all of this. Memory fades. Recollections only give us what was, they do not give us what is or will be. And, despite all the good intentions of well-meaning people, those who have departed before us do not live in us, our hearts, or any other such thing except in the form of memories. But these are not the person, no matter how much we might wish them to be.

                This all seems very hopeless. Death is not something that we have the power or ability to roll back or do something about. And yet, St. Paul tells us that we Christians do not grieve as those without hope. And how can he say something so bold, so seemingly foolish in the face of a great enemy like death? Because of Christ Jesus, the Lord, the One who has overcome death and defeated sin and overthrown the rule of the Devil.

The Reason for Hope

                St. John records that our Lord is the good Shepherd. He is not like a good Shepherd, rather, He is the great and good Shepherd and is so because He gives His life for His sheep. If you have ever spent any time around livestock, you would recognize the strangeness of this saying. Ranchers who die caring for the herd are not good at their jobs. And yet, this is exactly what makes our Good Shepherd Good and, indeed, is the basis of our hope. Christ has given Himself for us sinners, for Janice so that death and sin and suffering would not have the final say. Jesus has the final say. As He says, He is the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end. He is the remedy for sin, death, and all other evils. No matter how strong and overwhelming they may appear, they cannot and will not overcome Christ. The greatest threats to us human beings are paltry, toothless, and defeated before Christ. As Paul says in another place, He who knew no sin became sin for us.[2] And when He laid down His life on the cross at Calvary, sin was put to death in His own death. Death taken captive. And, by rising from the dead, Christ blazed a path through the grave, proving that death does not have any power over us who are in Him.

                This is the reason that St. Paul tells us to have hope in our grief. More to the point, Jesus promises knows His own flock and gathers them to Himself. This includes our dear sister Janice. She, a sheep of Christ’s own fold, that is, of His holy Church, has not been cast aside or forgotten. She is with her Lord, just as He has promised for each of His faithful people. And lest we get sidetracked with the foolishness of trying to point out all Janices good and wonderful qualities and those beautiful things she has done in her life in order to put our minds at ease about her eternal fate, we should instead look to Janice’s Savior, Jesus Christ, the Champion, who through His humble death has redeemed Janice and all people.

                And how do we know that this saving work of Jesus applies to Janice? She was baptized into Christ where His saving death was applied to her, and she was born again by water and the Word of God. By the power of the Word of God and the work of the Holy Spirit, she was given faith in order to receive the gifts of life and salvation that come with the forgiveness of sins. And she was sustained in that faith by the Word and the Lord’s Supper.

                In other words, we need not fear for Janice. She was claimed by her Lord and sustained by the same. The Word of God is powerful and active, sharper than any two-edged sword. And it worked in Janice. She is certainly with Christ, not because of her or what she has done, but because of the certain, unchanging, and unassailable work of Christ in His life, death, and resurrection.

                So, dear friends, while we may find something of a silver lining in the departure of our friend Janice, that is, we are glad that her suffering is ended, we do not see this as the reason for our hope or our confidence. Instead, we look to Christ, just as she did, knowing that the Lord always delivers on His promises and continuously delivers His saving Word to everyone who hears it. Our hope is in Christ, the Good Shepherd, indeed, the very Shepherd of Janice.

In the holy Name of + Jesus. Amen.

 The peace of God that passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

[1] John 10:11-14 English Standard Version

[2] 2 Corinthians 5:21