Edwin Lester Funeral

Cody Hale

Funerals • Sermon • Submitted 5 years ago

2 Corinthians 4:7–18

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Patriarch of the Church

Today, we are here to celebrate a man who is, in many ways, the patriarch of our church family. To the best of my knowledge, Edwin was the oldest remaining male member of Iron City. And, I realize that in a era in which many people are members of churches that they don’t attend or have much to do with that doesn’t seem all that important, but that is not the case here and this means all the world to me. In more ways than one this church has saved my life, and as I’ve reflected back on the sheer force of that what’s struck me is how much of that has been influenced by Edwin Lester over the last 65 years without me even realizing it.

Today, we are here to celebrate a man who is, in many ways, the patriarch of our church family. To the best of my knowledge, Edwin was the oldest remaining male member of Iron City. And, I realize that in an era in which many people are members of churches that they don’t attend or have much to do with that doesn’t seem all that important, but that is not the case here, and this means all the world to me. In more ways than one this church has saved my life, and as I’ve reflected back on the sheer force of that, what’s struck me is how much of that has been influenced by Edwin Lester over the last 65 years without me even realizing it.

To the Church at the Thessalonica, Paul was challenging them toward lives of greater holiness and dignity when he exhorted them in verses 11 and 12. He said to them:

English Standard Version Chapter 4

But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more, 11 and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, 12 so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.

A Humble, Hard-working Man

I can’t think of words more fitting of Mr. Lester than those. When I think of Edwin Lester, there are three words that really come into my mind: humble, hard-working, and faith. And, what’s interesting is that I believe that those words have a relationship with each other as Paul is bringing those very concepts together as important to a life that pleases God. Humble people work hard. They don’t believe themselves to be entitled to anything. You see, Mr. Lester was a man that didn’t believe that his hard work would make him right with God. He would was as good of a neighbor as you could have. If he had food in his garden, you had food on your table. It was as simple as that. However much he had, he aimed to share it. But, he didn’t do that so that God would like him or love him or accept him. He did that because God had already embraced him through Jesus Christ. And, it brought a profound humility into his life. I’m told that Mr. Lester could make men half his want to quit trying keep up with him. Tony Snider said that it was like he had a ‘split personality.’ He’d be cutting up with you eating lunch, and then when you started back to lunch he turned into a machine. Why? God, by his grace, had only given so many hours and so many breaths and so many heart beats, and Edwin Lester took advantage of every one of them. This is the evidence of grace-drenched humility.

Humble + Hardworking = Faith

But, when I think of Mr. Lester, I think of him most as a man of faith. I wonder if there’s someone here today, and you wonder why it is that Edwin lived the way that he did. Because, honestly, by many standards, it doesn’t make sense. Think about this with me. Mr. Lester didn’t just work. He worked hard. Really hard. Many of you probably worked with him. And, when he wasn’t working for himself, he was working for his church, or he was working for his family, or he was working for his neighbor. Honestly, was the man ever not working? And, you think to yourself: I just don’t think I’d live that way, right? Then, he’d make money, or get a garden, or have the opportunity to make more money than he did make, or pay somebody more than he had to pay them, or charge someone less than he had to charge them, or give all of his vegetables away that he worked so hard for. Now, honestly, what sense does that make? It makes none! None at all! Unless, you believe the very next thing that Paul writes, and Edwin believed it everything in his bones, and Ethelyn believes it with everything that’s in her bones, so much so that they’re willing to stake their comfort on earth on it!

English Standard Version Chapter 4

13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.

“I already Know.”

When I came to Iron City as pastor, Edwin and Ethelyn were two of the first people that I ran into in the lobby. I’ll never forget Edwin saying to me, “We’ve been praying for your since before we knew what your name would be” and the comfort that brought to me to know that such a man and woman of God were praying for me. I’m not sure if I’m supposed to tell this story or not. A few years ago, Edwin called me and asked me to go and visit a man in the hospital. It was a man that he had shared the gospel with a number of times but had refused to receive Jesus as Lord. Edwin wanted this man to be saved more than anything, and he asked that I visit him and share the gospel with him one more time, and I said that I would. Of course, Edwin said that he would be praying the whole time. During that visit, the Lord saved this man. I was so excited to run out and call Edwin as soon as I got to my truck. Now, he didn’t know that I was going to making the visit that morning, and I had called as soon as I had left because I wanted to be the first one to talk to him. When he answered, I said, “Your never going to believe what happened this morning.” He said, “I already know what happened.” I said, “What?” He said, “_____ was saved this morning. When I was praying, God told me today was the day that He was going to save him, and I’ve been waiting on you to call me all morning.” Now, how do you respond to that? Brother Edwin was a humble man, a hard-working man, but he was mostly a man of faith. He could afford humility, and he could afford to work hard mostly for others right now because his faith was in the future! That’s what I want you to see. His faith was in the future! Mr. Lester was a man of faith, and it defined everything about him.

Pain Giving Way to Glory

In , Paul compares us to jars of clay that are constantly cracking and breaking. We face affliction and pain, hardship and struggle. But, for those who are in Christ, those are like Edwin who have repented of their sin and placed their faith not in their good name or their hard-work but in the finished work of the risen Christ, the pain of this life is giving way to glory in the next. You know, Brother Edwin didn’t escape this broken world unscathed. He had his battle scars. He cried his tears. He knew sleepless nights. And, these last days, as you cared for him, were difficult. But, here’s the promise that Paul gives to us. Here’s the promise of the Gospel: Because Christ was raised, for Edwin, looking back on all of that suffering and all of that hardship seems light and momentary and good compared to the glory he’s now received. Paul says it like this:

English Standard Version Chapter 4

16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. 17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

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