Takoma Park Baptist Church, Washington, DC May 17, 1992
Today is Remembrance Day in the life of our church. We take a Sunday each year following Easter and remember in a special way those who of our worshipping congregation who have passed away since the previous Easter.
In this way we hope to enshrine them more completely in the spiritual memory of the church. Not only are their names forever on the church's records, but more importantly, their names, already known in the heart of God, are lifted up one more time in the hearts of the congregation. To remember them is to love them, to make them fully a part of our history.
We hope too that this exercise will be one in which you, the members of their families, complete your grieving. We hope that today is a spiritual resource in helping each of you come to terms more fully with your loss. Each one of you has been prayed for many times, but today we come to do so once again, simply believing that our God answers prayer, our God loves you, and our God will comfort you.
And not these alone, but today we are aware of many others of you who have lost those whom you have loved. They may not have been in our church as such, but they were in the hearts of our church's people.
Now, where do you find meaning in your life? Where did these whom we name in our memories today discover meaning? Is this life of ours, whether brief or lengthy, as the poet suggested, "a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing"? Or can life have meaning?
The apostle Paul comes to terms with this in his magnificent statement, II Corinthians 4:16-5:1: "We do not lose heart … for we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens."
In a few moments you and I are going to think about the builders of this house not made with hands. We are going to discover together how to build a life with substance and meaning.
But right now I simply want to pray with and for each one of you, as best I can, conveying God’s love for you and His care for those whom you loved. Can we just join hands and pray together?
Lord of life and God of our creation, we praise you that you have set the solitary in families, creating among us relationships of love and affection which enrich our lives beyond measure. We are grateful, Lord, that none of us needs to live to himself and that none of us needs to die to himself, but that whether we live or die, we are yours. And so today we are remembering thanksgiving those we are naming in our hearts, but we are also confessing before you. We are confessing our own fear of death. We are not ready to gentle into that good night. We are afraid of what we cannot see or test. Calm our fears, 0 Lord, with a vision of the risen Christ. And we are confessing that we feel guilty about some of the things we did or said or did not do or did not say with these whom we are naming. Some of us still have that nagging worry about never quite arriving at closure, never quite making everything right. Dispel our guilt, 0 Lord, with a vision of the Cross, on which our Christ broke down all the walls of division and worked a work of reconciliation. Now, Lord, I pray that each one here will receive from your grace the power to set aside anything which holds him or her back from finishing the task of mourning. I pray that your heart will reach out to each of these hearts, so that they may be ready to say, "It is well, it is well, with my soul."
Lord, we remember and pray for the family and friends of:
James Bryant, Alberta Dawes, Kathleen Deane, Lawrence Henson, John Higdon, John Hill, Arlene Joliffe, Jarmaine Kornegay, Betty Kulda, Pauline Lindner, Gloria Lovelace, Sumner Rhodes, Mark Solomon, Robert Williams
There is something that wants to build in every person. In every individual is concealed a builder. Put a child on the floor with a stack of blocks, and before long he will stack one on top of the other, building. Give a youth a vacant lot and an imagination, and he will transform it into a ball diamond or a mud fort or a treehouse. Builders.
And give an adult a line of credit and some acreage, and it will not be long before he has thrown up a scaled-down version of the Taj Mahal. We love to build.
And when the end of life comes, something urges us to build a monument by which others will mark the fact that we have been here. No one wants to be forgotten. Everyone wants to build a monument.
I noticed with interest the story about how the District government buries the ashes of unknown and unclaimed bodies in common graves. But now, in some cases, relatives have been identified and they are horrified to find that because it is unclear exactly where their loved ones' remains are, it is also impossible to place a marker in the right spot. Something in us wants to build that monument.
By the way, while we're on that subject, in light of another story that appeared this week, let the record show that my wife has a reservation on a little plot of earth next to mine when that time comes. Church leaders, take note!
There is in each of us a desire to be remembered, and more than that, to be remembered with something permanent. We not only erect grave markers, but we also name buildings and institutions after those we wish to honor. We endow scholarships, we sculpt statues and paint portraits. We want to be remembered. And therefore we build.
Actually, we build not only to remember what we were. We also build in order to express what we dream about. We build in order to make a statement about ourselves, and not only what we have been, but also what we hope to become.
The District of Columbia 200 years ago was a dismal swamp, inhabited only by a few brave souls who believed that this young country would succeed and that its chosen capital city had possibilities. And so the infant government took a hill which L'Enfant said was like a brow waiting to be crowned with a jewel, and there set the foundation of the great capitol building. A mile or so away, along a wide swathe of mud called Pennsylvania Avenue, the builders built what was then the largest house in America. It was roundly criticized! They said it was more fit for a European king than for the president of an impoverished democracy. There were only a few travelers, and they complained of the mud, the heat, the mosquitoes, and the foul air. But somebody saw in this city and in this nation enough potential to build here, and to build on a grand scale.
It has to do with making a statement about ourselves. It speaks both about what we have been and about what we expect to become. It is doing something that will last. It is expressing a dream.
I want to suggest to you this morning that these whom we remember today in a special way teach us that it is only a gift for Christ that will last. The song says it well, "Only what you do for Christ will last."
There is a wonderful story in the Old Testament that will help us come to terms with this. This story has to do with the passing of one generation and the rise of another. And it teaches us important lessons about our desire to build, in the light of God's eternity.
I
The story opens with a preacher making a mistake. I rather hate to admit to you that such a thing can happen! But at least the preacher corrects his mistake quickly. The preacher is the prophet Nathan, and his congregation is one man, King David.
I Chronicles 17:1-15
David had big ideas, grandiose ideas. He had decided that it was time for God’s people to build a temple, a permanent temple for the worship of the nation.
But God said to David, "Did I ask for that?" "Where did you hear that command, David?" "Did I speak with any of the judges of Israel, saying, 'Why have you not built me a house of cedar?'"
David had grand ideas: but God said, "Not yet".
You need to be reminded of a little history here. Ever since the giving of the Ten Commandments through Moses, the people of Israel had worshipped in the Tabernacle. The tabernacle was a large, portable structure, suitable for a wandering people. It could be carried wherever they went.
David had become convinced that it was time for God's house to be made permanent.
But God said, "Not yet". God said, "When did I ask anyone to do this?" To which of the judges did I ever say, "Build me a house of cedar?"
And so David had to pull back from his dream. His dream was not to be fulfilled within his lifetime.
I dare say that most of us do not realize all of our dreams within our own lifetimes. We often reach for more than we can easily grasp. We dream great dreams and think great thoughts, but cannot always see them through to completion. Their time has just not yet come.
But there is something I want you to notice about this. I want you to notice that even though our God may keep us from fulfilling our dreams completely, He does not cancel out the dream. He does not invalidate the dream. He does not tell David that such a house is never to be built; rather He tells David that David will not build it, but that David's son will build it. When the time is right the dream of building will be fulfilled.
God did not say No. He said, Not yet. Not No; just Not yet.
I do not know why God denied David his dream. I do not know why David's hope to build a legacy was refused. I only know that a compassionate God embraced that vision for someone else to complete.
In just the same way I do not know why some of those whom we honor today had their lives cut so short. It seems such a terrible waste that young men like Mark Solomon and Jarmaine Kornegay should meet such tragic ends and so young. With them perished a host of dreams, not only their own but also their parents'. And the "why" question lingers on and on and on.
When John Higdon was taken from us, we all marveled at his talent and at his creative energies. Someone compared him to Mozart, two centuries ago, flourishing so young and ending so soon. Why would his work not be finished?
But I would say to you who mourn, to you who feel so cheated because they never had a chance to make their mark or to build their monuments … I would say to you that in the heart of God those dreams have found rest. In the mind of God and in His plan their lives will find meaning, their dreams will be built, their hopes will be validated. I cannot explain this, I cannot tell you exactly how God will do it; but I believe as firmly as I believe anything that an infinitely compassionate God will not lose these young men or that they should have died in vain. To their dreams He has not said No; He has simply said, "Not yet."
Builders of dreams they were; builders of legacies they might have become except for the cruelties of this world. But trust the God who said to David, "You will not build, but those who come after you, they will build, they will complete your dream."
And so do not lose heart. Do not lose heart. What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? I say No. No, it does not. It simply waits for God's timing. "We do not lose heart … for we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens."
Remember that only what we do for Christ will last. A gift for Christ is a gift that lasts. But it will be done in God's time and in God’s way.
II
Now, let's see what we can learn about when God's time is and what God's way is. If we are going to dream great dreams and build monuments to express our hopes, we have to let God do that in His own time and in His way. What is His time and what is His way?
God says to David, “I will make for you a name, like the name of the great ones of the earth … When your days are fulfilled to go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for me."
Look at it. The way God accepts our dreams is by helping us build the next generation, so that they can accomplish the task. The dreams and hopes of those you loved are now given to you to complete.
Our God is always preparing someone to step into the shoes of those who are taken away. Our God does not leave us without somebody to take care of what needs to be done.
When you lost this husband, this parent, the brother or sister, you thought, "My loss is irreplaceable. I can't recover from this. This person was indispensable, this person we can't do without. “
But by now you know that a gracious God is preparing somebody else to take up where they left off.
During Deacon John Hill’s last months, I don't know how many of you said to me that you are in this church because of him. He recruited others, he enlisted and encouraged others. Some of you would even say that he pestered you into this church. What was that all about? It was God at work preparing the next generation. Mr. Hill used to say, "I love this church. I want it to be a great church. I'll never leave this church." You know what? He hasn't. He may be deceased, but he has not left this church. Our gracious God is building John Hill's monument in the lives of others whom he brought.
Alberta Dawes was a woman of great faith and of a large compassion. Her commitment to the things of the spirit was obvious. She seemed to take a special delight in seeing young people develop. At her passing one of her family said that she felt herself feeling a desire to pick up where Mrs. Dawes had left off, to build on Mrs. Dawes' faith and dream. You see, our God builds our dreams in the next generation.
Gloria Lovelace, as you remember, kept us all in the dark about the seriousness of her condition. I remember that I visited her on a Sunday afternoon and was shocked at what I saw; I came back here and said to several of you that we needed to intensify our prayer for her, and you said, "What are you trying to tell us? Is she dying?" We could hardly believe it. But then we learned that this careful, meticulous, bright, capable woman was in fact writing a game plan, preparing detailed instructions for the care of her son and for the others whom she would leave behind. Our God is always at work in us to prepare the next generation to complete the dreams we cannot complete.
I am saying this morning that you and I are the inheritors of a powerful legacy. Before us have gone some great souls, with large visions and powerful dreams. If I am right that God is at work in us to complete their dreams, then we dare not settle for too little. We dare not compromise what they dreamed, we dare not set small goals, we care not adopt little dreams, else we will be resisting the very purposes of God.
“We do not lose heart … for we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” And remember that only what we do for Christ will last. A gift for Christ is a gift that lasts. It can be done if we will let God enlarge in us the hopes and visions of those who have gone this way before.
III
Now let’s look at what David did in response to all of this. First, God had said, “No, David, you may not build this temple. The time is not yet. I hear your heart, but the time is not yet.”
And then God had said, "But the next generation will do it. Solomon your son will be able to build the temple. You just prepare him."
What was David's reaction to all of this?
Most of us would have said, "If I can't play, I'm taking my marbles and I'm going home. God, if I can't have it my way, then I'm just not interested. If I cannot build a monument to me, then I will do nothing at all." That's what most of us would have done, I suspect.
But not David. David was a builder. David was a true builder. Even though the Temple would not bear his name; even though he would never see it completed; even though they would all say that he was extravagant, David responded by gathering the finest and the most precious materials he could find. David responded by committing himself to the future even more vigorously than before. David responded, though disappointed, by preparing generously for God's dream.
Listen to the account: I Chronicles 22:2-5
I tell you, the world is starving for people with magnificent visions who are willing to pay the price for beauty and to prepare the way for splendor.
David had seen that his son Solomon, without his help, would not be ready to undertake the task. And so David, still nurturing his share of the vision, still maintaining his dream of a house of God that would be strong and beautiful and worthy, David gathered the finest of materials and the very best resources. David, despite every reason to be disappointed, did not compromise the excellence of his dream. Instead he insured it. He insured it by providing all that Solomon his son and successor would need. And listen to how well David wanted to prepare: "The house that is to be built for the Lord must be exceedingly magnificent, of fame and glory throughout all lands; I will therefore make preparation for it.”
We as a congregation of God's people have been gloriously blessed with men and women in our heritage who saw magnificence and who were not ashamed. How I love to think of Sumner Rhodes. Sumner had such an eye for beauty; for him, art and photography and the written word, all of it displayed the glory of God. He could not abide anything that was tasteless and drab. It had to be colorful, it must be glorious. Magnificent is the Bible's word. Exceedingly magnificent.
Kathleen Deane, even in her 90's, and even with a failed memory, spoke often of the beauty of music, the splendor of language, the joy of children; all these were important to her. And the world is a far, far better place because of those who will see something magnificent and who will prepare the finest for the future.
Pauline Lindner, baptized in her senior years, living very frugally on nothing but Social Security, often said to me, "I cannot give much, but I will give all I can, I will give so that the work of the Lord may continue." And in that gift there is a magnificence, because it is so filled with faith, that outstrips what even the wealthiest may give.
And so because we are surrounded every day with such a cloud of witnesses, "We do not lose heart … for we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." And it is a magnificent house. It is a glorious and splendid life that they rive with Christ, hidden in the heart of God. For remember, only what we do for Christ will last. A gift for Christ is a gift that lasts.
Let me in closing turn this message in a very practical direction. Let me tell you what it means to me to speak today of men and women who have gone before us, whose dreams were not always fulfilled, but whose hopes were given encouragement by our God. Let me think with you about what it means to honor the legacy of those who let God prepare a new generation to do His work. And let me describe for you the magnificence, the greatness, that I believe God wants to come out of their visions.
I believe that although they did in their time what God would allow them to do, and that they did well for that time, that we are in a new day, and therefore we must do better.
This house of God is much like the temporary tent that David wanted to replace. And, in fact, many have been wanting to repair it or improve it for years. But God said to them, "Not yet". "Not yet". He never said, “No"; He said, "Not yet". We actually have drawings that were done perhaps forty years ago representing some of the things we are now talking of doing. There was a dream then, but God said, "Not yet."
But now God has prepared a new generation. God has prepared us and brought us to this day, with all of our skills, all of our energies, all of our resources. I look at who we are: most of our new members are young adults, and I see there God preparing a new generation which will need this house of worship. I look at our members, especially those who continue to join us, and I see tremendous potential. I see professional people, with good careers ahead of you; bringing children into the world, needing to be trained in the way of the Lord. I see worthy successors to the dreams dreamed by those who have gone before. And I know we must respond. This is our time. This is our day. This can be our finest hour.
To them God said, "Not yet". To us He says, "now". Now.
And so I am asking you today to do what David did. I am asking you to do something magnificent. I believe that only a great church is worthy of Christ and only a great church will be equipped to serve the next generation. I am asking you to do what David did and to prepare confidently, boldly, and completely for the future. We have an opportunity, not only with the vote we will take in a few minutes, but also with the financial commitments we will make in a few weeks … we have an opportunity to build and build magnificently.
Yes, it will stretch us. Yes, it will cost us. Yes, it is true that it will take struggle and sacrifice. No one is more conscious of that than I, because I am aware that spending money on a building can mean keeping church staff salaries low for a long time to come. And yet, I am persuaded that it is God's call for us to build and build worthily all that has been planned. My wife and I are prepared to give well beyond the tithe we already give in order to be faithful to that vision. I do not ask you today to do something that we are not ourselves willing to do.
People of God, I ask you to dream a dream which is not impossible, to reach a star which is not unreachable. Says the poet, "A man's reach should exceed his grasp, else what's a heaven for?"
We have an opportunity to give a worthy gift for Christ, knowing that only what you do for Christ will last. Builders we, all are. Builders of memories and of monuments. But only what you do for Christ will last.
