Jesus

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Funeral of Ernest Harvey Benninghoff – Matthew 20:1-16

24. February 2012
St. Matthias, Apostle
Funeral of Ernest Harvey Benninghoff
Matthew 20:1-16

Dearly beloved, Eileen, Laurie, Chris, Mike, Rob, Jennifer, Paul and Patti, spouses, grandchildren, great-grandchild, brothers and sisters, and all the fellow redeemed—Grace, mercy and peace be to you from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

The text for our meditation is the Gospel according to St. Matthew, chapter 11, especially these words: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

The last few months and especially this week have been difficult for you as family. I know they have been especially difficult for you, Eileen. Harv(ey), your dear husband, father, brother, and fellow Christian fought tooth and nail with his blood disease. He fought as only a Marine can—no offense, Hilton, to the other armed forces. He was trained as a soldier and fought his disease like one. He knew he could not avoid it and instead faced it head on. Frequent transfusions and fatigue marred his days.

In the midst of this, Harvey wanted no pity party. He specifically asked that I not reveal his struggles to the congregation. Even his own siblings didn’t know the extent of his disease. In the midst of it ll, he embraced your visits as family, every Sunday afternoon being bombarded by children, grandchildren, and even his beloved great-grandchild. No, he wouldn’t let a little blood issue get in the way of embracing Rowan, as she walked across the living room for the first time, into his arms.

But it would surprise me if you didn’t know what was coming. I’d bet you knew that he was slowing slipping. Even the bravest Marine cannot escape what was on Harvey’s horizon. His congregation at Grace Lutheran Church were not oblivious, despite his private struggles. We noticed his absence. For fifty one years Harvey faithfully attend services at Grace, confessing his sins and receiving absolution from Christ himself. He cherished the Word of God preached and taught in its truth and purity. He longed to receive again the body and blood of his savior in the Sacrament of the Altar. He loved his church and wanted to see no harm come to it.

Perhaps Harvey was even a bit defensive of his congregation. I understand that he jokingly would tell the family, as he left for Grace and his wife and children for their Catholic parish, that they were secretly amassing weapons to take over his church. I’m not surprised he was concerned about me either. Even in sickness, he was concerned for his church’s well-being. He and I visited last month, not just to receive preaching and the Holy Supper, but also to discuss his heartfelt concerns. While we had only begun to get to know each other, that visit left us both reconciled, I think. This was important to Harv.

You see, Harvey had seen Grace through thick and thin, through false teachers, through economic hardship, through building of the our sanctuary and later fellowship hall, through changes to the mass over three and maybe more hymnals (or missals.) Just as he was firmly dedicated to preserving his own life and those he loved, he was dedicated to defending Grace until the last.

It was essential that I defend from the Holy Scriptures the various “changes” that he had seen in my short time at Grace. He did not want to see his church fall into error of doctrine or practice. He did not want to see schism rock his congregation. He wanted to be absolutely confident that I am committed to faithfully teaching God’s Word and that in all things I would not lead his congregation into error.

This sort of steadfastness is unusual. Harvey was a rare bird. He would be quiet and reserved and yet you knew when something was up. You could tell from his body and demeanor. And when you asked, he said it just as he saw it. Thanks be to God for such virtue. Too many silently complain, never unloading their cares and concerns as they ought. Instead, our Harvey wanted nothing less than the truth proclaimed from his church.

Fighting his disease, loving his children, and defending his congregation were not Harvey’s only labors of love. He cherished you, Eileen, in all things. He remained faithful to you through fifty three years and seven children. I have no doubt that your marriage saw struggle. No doubt, there were times you had to defend yourself just as I had, while he “stuck to his guns.” But you and he knew an uncommon kind of love, a marriage of rare grace. Only by God’s providence can anyone live together in holy matrimony as you two did. Only by the forgiveness of sins in Jesus could you and he work through thick and thin, sickness and health.

Of course, this was your vow. Harvey would never, by the help of God, break such a sacred trust. Yet, now, our heavenly Father has taken Harvey from us. So suddenly did he move from headache, to bleeding, pain, and finally to breath his last. That last day was some of the most difficult labor Harvey ever undertook. He fought death until the end, not wanting to depart from you, Eileen, or you, his dear children, and neither any of the rest of his dear family and friends.

Yet, this was his time. Our Father in heaven was calling him home. In the Father’s wisdom, those labors of love—against disease, for family, for church, for beloved wife, and for country—those labors were being brought to an end. The heavy labors that we all know too well would finally be lifted from Harv(ey). And he would want us to remember that this was not because he was better than the next guy. No, he’d want us to say that he was a damn sinner and needed Jesus.

Make no mistake, though. Our dear brother in Christ did not fear his end. He had looked death in the eye before, fighting for our nation or defending the weak and their property as a voluntary fireman. He had no fear of death for he knew his savior Jesus. He knew that even when the labor was difficult, there is promised rest for all in Christ. Jesus was carrying him, giving him the strength to do what need to be done, to say what needed to be said.

Perhaps Harvey considered his labor of love as a reflection of Jesus’ labor of love for him. Perhaps for all those years of hearing faithfully of his savior’s life, passion, death, and resurrection, he knew what it was like to serve the Holy Trinity as he served his family and neighbors. Jesus came to seek and save the lost, to redeem Harvey and all who believe, by faithfully laboring in the Father’s vineyard. So, Harvey learned what it is to work and defend, to serve and protect, to love until the end. This was not because he was better or stronger, but because he trusted and relied upon Jesus for his every need.

Harvey took the yoke of faith upon his shoulders, learning from Jesus how to labor. He learned from Jesus gentleness and lowliness of heart, even if he didn’t always show it. Finally, now, he has received the promised rest for his soul. The labor was difficult, the warfare long, but now Harvey rests and rejoices with the saints of heaven.

Dearly beloved, Eileen, Laurie, Chris, Mike, Rob, Jennifer, Paul and Patti, spouses, grandchildren, great-grandchild, brothers and sisters, and all the fellow redeemed —Jesus said: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” We hope and Harvey knows what it is like to rest from our labors. He knows the blessed rest of a death with Christ. And make no mistake, Harvey knows the reward for this labor and wears the crown of everlasting life. The battle is over and the victory won. Thanks be to God. Amen.

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

Rev. Christopher R. Gillespie
Grace Lutheran Church
Dyer, Indiana

+ SOLI DEO GLORIA +

 

Ernest Harvey Benninghoff

June 7, 1936 – + – February 21, 2012

Our Savior Jesus Christ has destroyed death and brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel. Let us remember with thanksgiving what God has done through His servant Ernest Harvey Benninghoff.

Harvey was given life by her creator and was born on June 7, 1936, the child of Hilton and Irene Benninghoff. He received the gift of Holy Baptism and became a child of God that same month at Concordia Lutheran in Hessville. On April 2, 1950, he publicly confessed his faith and was confirmed at St. John Lutheran in Calumet City. He regularly received the gracious gift of the Lord’s life-giving body and blood in the Holy Supper.

On February 7, 1959, Harvey received the gift of a beloved companion in his wife, Eileen Benninghoff neé Dumbsky. They were blessed with the gift of seven children: Laurie, Chris, Mike, Rob, Jennifer, Paul and Patti. God blessed Harvey’s life with many special people as he served God in his vocations at home, church, work, community, and country.

Finally, on February 21, 2012, God blessed Harvey with a holy death and took him home to rest in the arms of Jesus to await the resurrection of the dead.

The Lord gives and the Lord takes away; blessed be the name of the Lord.  We give thanks to God our Father through Jesus Christ, our Lord, for our brother, Harvey.

Funeral of Henry C. Klopp (Shrove Tuesday) – Romans 8:14-23

21. February 2012
Shrove Tuesday
Funeral of Henry C. Klopp
Romans 8:14-23

Dearly beloved—Mary and Christine, spouses, grandchildren Lisa, Kayla, and Sara, great-grandchildren, dear sister Esther, nieces and nephews, Betty, friends, and fellow redeemed—grace, mercy and peace be to you from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

The text for our meditation is the St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, chapter eight, especially these words placed upon Henry at his confirmation: “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.” In Name of the Father, + Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

Sons of God. Sons and daughters of the King. Children of the heavenly Father. Little lambs. Faith like a child. It may seem odd for us to refer to our beloved Henry as a child. To us he is father, brother, companion, grandpa, friend, or fellow member of the body of Christ, the church. It may seem odd to speak of Henry, an eighty-seven year old, as infant cradled in our loving Savior’s arms.

Yet, it is true. I am fond of reminding young and old alike that they are always children of their parents. Those who procreated us through their blessed marital union—freely receiving children as a blessing from God—they are and always will be our parents. Thus, the fourth commandment “honor your father and your mother” is a command for both this life and into eternity. In this life, we honor our parents by being obedient children, serving, loving, and cherishing them both while they live and even when they die.

That is to say, even when you “flew the coop,” Mary and Christine, you still were dutiful children of your father Henry. St. Paul explained why. The command to honor your mother and father has attached to it a promise, “that it may go well with you and you may live long on the earth” (cf. Ephesians 6:1ff). Even now, your father will continue to provide for you, even in death, as you honor, obey, serve, love, and cherish his memory.

God gave us parents and marriage as the highest example of the Father’s own love for you, his children. From Henry’s own faithful calling as Father, he taught you how it is to be patient and kind. He taught you how Fathers do not provoke their children to anger, but instead bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. So also, in faithfully loving his beloved wife Catherine, even as she suffered and died at a young age, we learned how Christ loves His church, suffering with us patiently as we all journey towards death.

Henry gladly would give his life for his beloved. We know this well, for he served faithfully in his duty in service to His country. He joined the ranks of warriors, there sheltering Catherine, Mary, Christine, and indeed all his friends and neighbors. So, Henry taught us how our God willingly laid down His life for the sake of the whole world, sheltering us from the bombardments of sin and death, sent by the evil one to destroy us.

Henry learned this noble trait from His own heavenly Father, who also brought him up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Our heavenly Father rescued Henry from death 87 years ago when He brought Henry safely from death to life in the waters of the Holy Baptism. He nurtured Henry through the His Holy Word, the pure spiritual milk and meat of salvation. He instructed Henry to fulfill his vocations of citizen, neighbor, husband, father, and most of all Christian. Henry cherished these things, honoring his heavenly Father.

Henry, or Mike, as the family calls him, loved and honored his heavenly Father not merely in good times. He honored his Father even when He spoke with a strong Word of rebuke. Henry loved and still loves his heavenly Father for discipling him with both the rod and the staff. It is true. None of us like it when our Fathers rebuke us, tell us where we’ve gone wrong, or even help us understand the severity with a bit of physical pain. Its hard to imagine actually cherishing the discipline of God.

We know that for the faithful this is true. How could Henry persevere through the pacemaker and rehab, stroke and more rehab, finally succumbing to pneumonia? How could Henry know that this even in pain and sickness, the Lord was training him in righteousness? Henry knew because this discipline came each week to him in the Divine Service.

Today is Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday. Sometimes it is called Fat Tuesday, Mardi Gras, or Pączki day. No doubt, here in the region, if you eat a bunch of those delicious fried pastries, you’ll end up with a few pounds to show for it. Yet, the older name is Shrove Tuesday. To shrove is to present oneself to their pastor or priest for confession, a practice now usually moved to the beginning of Ash Wednesday services.

This was the case for Henry, too. Each week he confessed his sins before his heavenly Father. Each week Henry faithfully admitted that he had not honor his Father in heaven as he knew he should. He had not always been faithful to his children, perhaps at times even provoking them to anger. He had not loved his spouse perfectly, perhaps with a wandering eye or a unclean thought. Henry confessed these things out loud before the altar of the Lord, knowing full well that he deserved punishment.

Yet, for Henry, there was no hope in merely confessing. Throwing yourself to the feet of God, pleading for mercy, has no guarantee or hope attached to it, unless this repentance is grounded in the promise of the forgiveness of sins. So also for us today—to shrove has yet a second component. It is not simply to confess before the pastor or priest but it is also to receive absolution from the pastor as from God himself. Absolution. Forgiveness of Sins.

By the blood-bought forgiveness of sins of Jesus Christ we are brought back into the loving embrace of our heavenly Father. Henry now rests in from all his labors, from his struggles, from his pain and grief, not by his effort or worthiness. No, Henry placed his hope in nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness. He was led by the Spirit of God through waters of Holy Baptism to be God’s own child.

Henry approached his death not with fear. No, his every confidence was in the adoption of sons, received by the Spirit, by whom [Henry] cried “Abba, Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with Him in order that we may also be glorified with him. 

There is no doubt that Henry suffered with our Lord in those last days. He bore the cruelty of sickness and death, finally giving up his spirit with a dying gasp, just as our Lord breathed his last from the cross. We grieve today with the whole creation waiting to finally be set free from the bondage to decay. We mourn the loss of a dear father, brother, companion, uncle, and friend in Henry.

We know and Henry knows fully the freedom of the glory of the children of God. Henry knows now what is like to be set free from slavery to sin. Henry’s eager groaning has finally reached its fulfillment in death. A death like Christ’s that will be but a blink of the eye. Yes, we will lay Henry in the tomb but only for a brief moment.

Then our Lord will call out with the voice of the trumpet and the sound of many rushing winds to Henry. He will call out Henry from tomb and raise him and all the dead. He will give unto Henry and all believers in Christ eternal life. It is true that this is a time for sorrow and grief, for mourning and even groaning.

We too, like Henry, will find these brought to an end in Jesus. The time of discipline will be complete in death. Then, in Jesus, we are made heirs with Him of crowns of victory, songs of triumph, and feasting with joy. We are, even now, adopted children of our heavenly Father, forgiven saints of God. We may wait eagerly now, living a life of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. For Henry this labor and warfare is over and He has already received what was promised to him so many years ago—For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. Thanks be to God!

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

Rev. Christopher R. Gillespie
Grace Lutheran Church
Dyer, Indiana