“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

-Jesus of Nazareth 

Isn’t it exciting when, many years after the original, a sequel is made to your favorite film? I guess in all reality it depends on how well it is done and whether it was warranted to begin with. Sometimes it is a blessing. Sometimes a curse.

Recently I reposted a story from 2018 titled “The Eulogy and The Legacy”. This original was from my previous endeavor The Walk To Remember. It is a tale of two funerals. One a going home celebration for a dear sister in Christ. A celebration of passing from this dark and shattered world and into the presence of The Father. The other a dark realization that Hell is for real. A knowledge that the man that was in the urn denied the Salvation offered to him. A hired pastor that was left speechless, unable to offer praises for the soul of the departed. The question was simple. “What kind of funeral will you have?” However, this “sequel” will ask a different question under the umbrella of the same theme. The same plot, but with different characters. Instead of focusing on what happens after we draw our last breath, I will focus on us while we still breathe. What life are you leading?

Allow me to introduce you to our characters. We bid farewell to my friend’s mother and our former next door neighbor. Their story has been told. We now meet Doris and Herman, and Alice and H.V. Paternal and maternal, respectively. My grandparents.

The reason why I chose to write this is not to anger anyone in my family. Nor is it to exploit, belittle, or embarrass anyone. No. It is simply something that I have been wanting to get off of my chest for years. A weight and a burden upon my shoulders. It is the uneasy feeling that I felt as my Grandpa Herman was hours from death, that I asked my father if Grandpa was saved. In which case the response was “He was baptized as a little boy”. It is the uncertainty I have in my heart as my Granny Alice and PawPaw H.V never attended church, nor did I ever hear either of them speak of God or read a Bible. It is the comfort that I have that my Grandma Doris hungered for God. She sent her pastors chasing after our unruly family members, watched The Crystal Cathedral (don’t throw stones in there), attended church whenever possible, and sung hymns. I forgive her for being a Methodist.

It is the knowledge that none of these have a bearing on Salvation. 

“…not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit”

-Titus 3:5

You see, the weight that is upon my chest rests in where they are right now. For my use of past tense for my beloved grandparents was no accident. I had one grandmother that exemplified a relationship with The Christ. Her husband was a quiet man that seldom spoke and attended church with her on occasion. I had another grandmother that never exemplified a relationship with The Christ, who had a husband that saw glimpses of God in the final hours of his life. He was the last one to leave us. All were sweet. All were amazing people that touched and influenced my life in their own way. I wish they were all here. I hope to see them again. However, being sweet, amazing, and influential does not save you. It does not guarantee you into the halls of Heaven. Our loved ones cannot go to Heaven for being good. Our loved ones are not in Heaven because we want them to be there. Not everyone is there. 

“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’”

-John 14:6

There is only one way. The Way. If there was another way to reach the gates of Heaven then there would not be a need for The Christ’s atonement on Calvary’s tree. For Him to say that He is the only way while being surrounded by options would make Him into a liar. If being good gets us there, then our Salvation is based solely on our works. It defeats the necessity for the cross. If works can save us, then why was His death necessary? He would have chosen to bow to Death for the purpose of what? Other than being, as the unbeliever may say, another “foolish martyr”.

The doubt that I carry within regarding my grandparents simply rests on the outward showing of their faith. If it was ever there to begin with. One grandparent showed zeal for The Kingdom of God. The other three did not. What’s remarkable, however, is that in truth none of that matters. My Grandma Doris could have simply been showing works without ever trusting in Jesus. Seeking the lost for the purpose of church growth. Although this is unlikely, but it does happen. Herman, Alice, and H.V could have had a profound faith that they kept to themselves. Offering prayer daily when no eyes were upon them. In which case only one grandparent would not be in the presence of Gods glory. They all could have had a saving faith. Or none of them. In reality I will never know the answer until I close my own eyes for the forever sleep.

“Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven.”

-Jesus The Messiah

But what does such an example look like? It does not have to be a daunting task in the mission field, eating bugs and dodging death from persecution. It does not have to be standing upon 1st and Elm, preaching to passerbys. It does not have to be accosting strangers in the public square, saying “Hey buddy! Let me tell you about Jesus”. It can be as simple as deflection, responding with “By the Grace of God” when asked “How do you do it?”. It can be leading in prayer in the middle of Taco Bell. It can be the cleanliness of our speech, and giving Him the credit. It is acknowledging Him in our everyday life, putting Him first, and letting it be known. Humble, meek, and simplicity in devotion. You don’t have to be the voice of thunder. Silence is not golden in the case of our profession of faith.

I will never forget after the funeral for my last grandparent, PawPaw H.V. The pastor that offered the eulogy had mentioned how he spoke of God in his final days. A subject that I had never heard cross his lips. My cousin came to me and asked if I thought that he was in Heaven. I paused for a moment and told her that I think that he is. In reality I do not know.

She did not know for certain so she asked me. I do not know for certain myself. I have to “think” that any of them are there. There is only one way- to fall upon the knees and cry out for the saving blood of Jesus Christ. Repentance. Salvation. Regeneration. All by His Love and Grace. Not by our hands.

Do not leave this world leaving your loved ones guessing.

“But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?”

-James, the brother of Jesus