For the week of the Last Sunday of the Church Year, pastors are welcome to utilize this homily for church members on hospice, adding and subtracting what they desire. A sermon hymn is added if the pastor wishes to sing to the dear saint.
Festival: Last Sunday of the Church Year
Text: Colossians 1:13-20
Sermon Hymn: LSB #540 Christ, the Word of God Incarnate
Grace and peace to you from God our Father an the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Dearly beloved in Christ, the Apostle Paul writes, “[God] has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love” [v. 13]. I’m sure the power of darkness feels very near as your body weakens and each day becomes harder than the last. There may be nights when fear creeps close, when pain feels endless, and when even the light of morning seems far away. But Paul speaks to you from that very place: there is a Kingdom greater than the one that surrounds your suffering. The darkness you feel cannot hold you forever. It is real, yes, but not final. You’ve been delivered. God has already brought you out of it and into the arms of His only-begotten Son. This is not a promise of escape from dying, but of being carried safely through it.
For, as Paul writes, “in [Him] we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins” [v. 14]. That means you’re not measured by your failures or by how strong your faith feels today. You are measured by Christ’s mercy. His blood covers every sin and quiets every accusation. When guilt whispers that you haven’t done enough, or when you look back on your life and see only regrets, remember this: the cross already answered all of them. The same Jesus who prayed for those who crucified Him now prays for you. Your forgiveness is not something fragile that depends on your effort; it is sealed in the blood of Jesus Christ, our Lord and our God.
Paul continues, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created… and in Him all things consist” [vv. 15-17]. The One who made the stars also made you, and even now He holds every cell of your body, every breath, and every heartbeat in His hand. When Paul says “in Him all things consist,” he means nothing in creation—not even your body as it fails—can slip beyond Christ’s keeping. Even the processes of death are not outside His command. The universe holds together because He wills it, and that includes you. You’re not falling apart; you’re being gathered into Him.
“And He is the head of the body, the Church… For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself… having made peace through the blood of His cross” [vv. 18-20]. You belong to a Body that can no longer die—the Body of Christ, which is also His Church. The Church’s life is hidden with Christ in God. You’re part of that life of the Church, even as you lie in this bed. The peace Paul speaks of is not an idea; it’s the very presence of Jesus. His peace doesn’t depend on your health or your clarity of mind. It flows from the cross, where He reconciled you to the Father and declared once for all: It is finished.
So, [name], when your strength fades and your world grows small, remember that the hands which formed the galaxies now cradle you. The same Christ who hung the stars has already made peace between you and God. The darkness of death that once frightened you has lost its claim. The world may see decline, but Heaven sees completion. You’re not being undone; you’re being delivered. The One who holds all things together will hold you fast until the dawn breaks and you see Him face to face.
Now may the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, keep your heart and mind steadfast in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Lutheran Column 