Shakespeare wrote, “Parting is such sweet sorrow.” His thought carried no Christian hope in the face of death. It was Juliet’s sad good-bye to Romeo “till it be morrow” when they would see each other again.

But Shakespeare’s quotations have a way of popping into one’s mind in different contexts. The line slipped unexpectedly into my mind at the funeral of Harold Wicke. He was editor of this magazine when it was called The Northwestern Lutheran.

He would be embarrassed by any mention of his name in this column. But his funeral was another good-bye—another farewell for a believer in Jesus. I’ve attended more than a few. I remember some of them especially: Paul, Jerry, Don, Frank, Phoeb, and others.

I remember these funerals because they were good-byes to those who shared the heat of the day with me. We worked together and grew close. Some farewells were for those I did not know as well. Then I stood at a distance to pay my respects and say good-bye. For those who touched me, I sat quietly and felt tears well up in my eyes. At times those tears silently ran down my cheeks. Parting is sorrow.

I tried to hide those tears sometimes. I felt embarrassed of my tears because I have great comfort in Jesus for those departing believers and for myself. But I suppose I should not be ashamed of the ways these believers touched my life and how God used them in his kingdom. Jesus wept too at the death of his friend Lazarus.

At these times, I am filled with sorrow over my own loss and the empty space left behind. But I am filled with sorrow also when I see the eyes of family members filled with tears. These family members, as they walk slowly to the graveside, remain on life’s journey. Their shoulders seem to droop a bit as they carry a sudden invisible burden. Tears well up again, this time shed for them in their sorrow.

The sorrow of parting is repeated in every life sooner or later. My tears are not unique. Death comes to all regardless of their station in life. Believers must walk through this “valley of the shadow of death” just like everyone else. Yet we have a sweet hope that others do not have. Funerals for us are good-byes with the real hope of a better tomorrow.

The sorrow is real, but it is overcome by the promises of our living risen Lord. Not only did he say that he had overcome death, but he also proved it. First, Jesus demonstrated his power by raising the daughter of Jairus and the youth of Nain. Second, he said he would rise on the third day. And he did. The bodies of the faithful lie in rest from their labors, but they will arise glorious and new when the Lord returns.