Sermon from Bill Ryan’s Funeral—February 9, 2002

by Bryan Gibson

December 10, 2009

The following article contains excerpts from a funeral I preached back in 2002. It’s a little lengthy, but be sure you read it all.

Bill Ryan’s last year was his best year, despite his battle with brain cancer. Let me explain. Bill was born on July 15th, 1941, but he was born again in the early part of 2001. That’s when both he and his wife Betty were baptized into Christ for the forgiveness of their sins. As Bill said, there was no way to get around Acts 2:38 (“repent and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins”). They both then became members of the Prattmont Church of Christ, and they did this out of conviction. This church was patterned after the local churches in the New Testament, and they wanted to be part of it. Bill and Betty were good people before they did any of this, but it was in the last year of Bill’s life, to use Betty’s own words, that they “made their lives right with God.” That’s why it was the best year of his life.

I first met Bill and Betty in March of 2001. Their son, Phil Ryan, called to ask me if I would be interested in studying the Bible with them, because he thought they were ready to do that. Boy, were they ever ready! I don’t know when I’ve seen two people more eagerly embrace the gospel. They couldn’t get enough of God’s word. They reminded me of a man in the Bible named Cornelius. When Peter arrived at Cornelius’ house to teach him and his family the gospel, Cornelius said, “We are all present before God, to hear all the things commanded you by God” (Acts 10:33). Cornelius couldn’t wait to hear what he needed to do to be right with God, and neither could Bill and Betty. They had not heard much Bible teaching in the churches they had visited, so they were delighted to have this opportunity to sit down with an open Bible and learn the will of God.

Jesus used different types of soil to illustrate the different types of hearts that receive the gospel (Luke 8:4-15). Well, the gospel certainly found fertile soil in the hearts of Bill and Betty. And let me assure you, this initial enthusiasm for the word of God did not wane. They continued to study diligently; because they wanted to know everything there was to know about how to please God.

I was with Bill and Betty when they received the news of Bill’s cancer. It was on a Wednesday, and as you might expect, it was tough day for both of them. But guess where they went that night? That’s right—to mid-week Bible study. They were spent, emotionally and physically, but they still wanted to meet with their fellow Christians—study with them, sing with them, and pray with them.

What did we see in Bill Ryan through this entire ordeal? We saw an unwavering faith or trust in God. Bill never once questioned God about this illness. He never took on a “woe is me” or “why me” attitude. He knew that God’s grace had saved him from His sins, and that this same grace would lead him home (as we sang about earlier). Bill Ryan believed with all his heart the words of Psalms 23:4: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” We also saw in Bill Ryan an unshakeable hope, a hope that became an anchor to his soul (Hebrews 6:19-20). Often, when someone succumbs to cancer, we say that he fought a losing battle. His was not a losing battle, because he knew there was victory in Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:54-57). Bill saw death, not as the end of his life, but the beginning. He understood that to depart and be with Christ is far better than anything this life might have to offer (Philippians 1:23). Finally, we saw a man at peace—at peace because of his faith and hope. Paul described this peace as one that surpasses understanding (Philippians 4:7). It’s hard to preach about this peace, because it’s hard to put into words. It is best understood when you see it demonstrated in someone’s life, and we saw it in Bill Ryan’s life, even when he was staring death in the face.

Before closing, I need to do something that I know Bill would want me to do, and that is to appeal to those of you who have not made the same decision that he made. When Bill Ryan wanted to be saved from His sins and become a Christian, he knew that he had to follow God’s plan. He knew that “belief only” was not sufficient. He knew that neither “asking Jesus to come into your heart” nor “praying the sinner’s prayer” were what people were taught to do in the New Testament. What Bill Ryan learned from his study of the New Testament was that upon believing in Jesus as the Son of God, he needed to repent of his sins, confess his faith in Jesus, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. Bill understood the plain command in Acts 2:38, and he obeyed it.

Remember, too, what both Bill and Betty did after they were baptized into Christ. They joined themselves to a group of Christians who were committed to following Christ in everything they did—in their worship, in their work, in the way they were organized, in really every respect. They didn’t find a perfect church, but they did find one determined to follow God’s perfect plan. What Bill and Betty found in the denominational world troubled them. They saw division, which the Lord plainly taught against. They saw churches that had drifted more towards entertainment than edification, more towards feeding bellies than feeding souls, more towards secular education than spiritual education. They wanted to be part of a local church that would be true to the mission that God gave each local church. I plead with all of you, on God’s behalf, make the same decision that Bill Ryan did—because He did what God told him to do in His word. One day you too will walk through the valley of the shadow of death. Will you be able to walk through this valley without fear? Will you have the assurance that God is with you? Not unless you have made your life right with God. Today—right now—would be the perfect time to do that.