Sermon Outlines

By Frederick F. Schwindt, Evangelist

"BLESSED ARE THE DEAD"

1. This is one of those Bible passages that are extra and out of the ordinary, if that is possible:
   1. It pronounces a blessing upon the dead.
   2. This is unusual because death is the last enemy that shall be destroyed - 1 Cor. 15:26
      1. Death cut men off from life and life's opportunities.
      2. Death separates loved ones and friends.
      3. Death is the wages of sin - Rom. 6:23
2. In what way can we think of the dead to be blessed?
   1. They are no longer of service to God and men - Eccl. 9:5, 10
   2. Even their memory is soon forgotten. Is there a Bible answer?

1. Death, in itself, is no blessing; it is a loss to God and men and the cause of God:
   1. The soldiers that fall on the battlefield are a loss to their country, to their loved ones.
   2. The Christian soldiers, too, are a great loss to God, to the church of God, and to the cause of truth.
2. Dying in the Lord makes the difference:
   1. Christ has given a new meaning to death.
   2. He calls it "a sleep" -- "Our friend Lazarus sleepeth" - John 11:11
3. Sleep has in itself the element of life:
   1. "I go, that I may awake him out of sleep" - verse 11.
   2. "The dead in Christ shall rise" - 1 Thess. 4:16
   3. "Thy dead men shall live" - Isa. 26:19
   4. Christ turns night into day, death into life - John 11:25

1. They die in the Lord:
   1. They have accepted Him as their personal Saviour.
   2. Their sins are forgiven, that in itself is an unspeakable blessing.
   3. That makes them secure against the day of judgment - Ps. 32:1-3; Rom. 8:1-3; 31-33
   4. Their names are in the book of life - Phil. 4:3; Rev. 13:8; Luke 10:20
2. To them:
   1. Death is a repose, a rest from their toil in the Master's vineyard.
   2. They have faithfully finished their course - 2 Tim. 4:6-8
   3. They have endured hardship and trials all the day; night came at last and gave them rest.
3. For them death does not end all: "their works do follow them" Rev. 14:13
   1. Abraham died thousands of years ago, but his works live on in the lives of the believers - Gen. 12:1-6
   2. Paul died a long time ago, but his works multiply fruitage for the kingdom every day.
   3. Dorcas died again, but her works live on in the noble work of the Dorcas Federation - Acts 9:39-41
   4. The Pioneers of this Movement have fallen asleep some time ago, but their works today gain new momentum in the onward march of the cause of truth.
4. "Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord from henceforth":
   1. Our opening text attaches a time element to the blessedness of the dead - "from henceforth."
   2. That indicates that our text has reference to a specific time in the history of the church -
      1. We believe that it refers to the end of 1844 - the beginning of the investigative judgment.
      2. That it describes the people that die in the great second advent movement.