Our message is an unusual theme in most church pulpits unless there is a funeral. This is one of the benefits of expository preaching – it forces preachers to handle those topics we would not be quick to choose. In doing so, God equips His people more thoroughly. It also means that we speak frankly of things often not spoken of because they are uncomfortable topics. This is helpful and equips God’s people for real life, especially when real life gets real hard. The Lord desires we learn these things, otherwise He would not have placed such things in the Bible.

Our sermon then is about death and lament, and is taken from [esvignore]2 Samuel 1:17-27[/esvignore]. Here we will grapple with the topic of dying and its effect upon those left behind. David models for us the Godly response, so let us enter this topic soberly, but also as people who possess great hope. Death is not to be a creepy and morbid thing to those who know Christ, and we should not shy away from talking about it so that we will be ready when we face a loss. Our sermon outline is as follows:

1. O, Death (intro)
2. Grief and Lament
3. A Lament in Three Parts
   1. Grief and Disgrace
   2. Grief and Thankfulness
   3. Grief and Love
4. Lessons from Death
   1. Perspective
   2. Caution
   3. Remembering the Good
   4. Remembering the Death of Deaths