Christ Lutheran Church
Cleveland, Ohio
May 29, 2026
by: Rev. Dean Kavouras
For the Christian Burial of
The Reverend Father Peter
Everett Mills
Holy Death
Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus. And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!” (Revelation 14:12-13)
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If you read the obituary for our father and brother in the faith, you will find the term “holy death” used three times. A term that is on par with Holy Baptism, Holy Matrimony and Holy Church in said obituary.
Now “Holy” is God’s adjective. When we call something holy we acknowledge that it belongs to God. Thus we talk about Holy Baptism because it is God’s washing of regeneration. And about Holy Matrimony because marriage belongs to God. Also Holy Church because the church belongs to him, indeed dwells inside of him, and he in her. This is our “dwelling place” Beloved, for all generations.
When the church of Jesus Christ talks this way she is not “whistling past the graveyard,” or “spraying pixie dust” into people’s eyes.
Far from it.
Instead she speaks pure truth! The kind that is never heard in the dilapidated chatter of the culture. And she does so because she bases all said claims on the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, by which “salvation unto us has come.”
Because of this she faithfully acclaims the words that Jesus spoke to Martha upon the death of Lazarus. “Your brother will rise again.” (Jn 11:23). And Jesus still says to you today: “Your brother will rise again.”
Then what?
Then Father Peter will “behold” his Lord face to face; and he will KNOW his Lord even as he, Peter, is known by his Lord and ours. (1 Cor. 13:12)
And so our text for this day is: “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”
Yes, Peter is now blessed because of his baptism into the Holy Trinity. Now this is not figurative language. But Biblical reality because by Holy Baptism we enter into the Holy Trinity, who also enters into us.
Father Peter, along with all his fellow theologians have spent their lives trying to explain the inexplicable, in human language no less but barely scratch the surface. But now he knows in full, and so will we!
When the church of our Lord Jesus Christ speaks this way she stares into the gaping jaws of death and sings:
“Jesus lives the victory’s won,
death no longer can appall me.
Jesus lives death’s reign is done,
from the grave Christ will recall me.
Brighter scenes will then commence.
This shall be my confidence.”
Thus we find in Peter’s obituary, three times the phrase, “Holy Death,” by which we mean, God’s death. A death which God decreed over the whole world when Adam and Woman “ghosted” the Lord of Life, and struck out on their own.
“How’s that going for you, O Man?”
If anyone says: we’re doing good he is either a liar, or embarrassingly inexperienced in human affairs. For “All have sinned and are in frantic need, of the glory of God.” (Rom 3:23) A glory which cannot be found in the vast universe. But only in the wounds and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Suffered “for us men and for our salvation.”
Make no mistake the DEATH that Peter suffered last week was “HOLY DEATH” Holy because it was decreed by, “The LORD who kills and makes alive; who brings down to Sheol and raises up.” (1 Samuel 2:6)
And so the death that each of us will experience sooner or later is also God’s decree. God’s will. Not in retribution for our sins, though he would be justified if it were. But instead He kills also only to make alive.
To restore our humanity to us.
“To raise us up to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,”
To re-form us into New Creations. In a New Testament founded on the “divine blood” of the Crucified. Holy Blood sprinkled on us in baptism and given us to drink in the “Cup of Salvation, which “runneth over with life.” Or as Saint Paul says it,
“For in Adam we all die, but in Christ
we shall all be made alive.” (1 Cor. 15:22)
Now if you believe anything less than this, or different than this, you will not consider death to be holy. But a grisly monster to be avoided at all costs. But compare that to Psalm 116:15 where David writes, “Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.”
Now so far you probably haven’t heard what you came to hear. Namely that we should sing the glories of Peter Mills. His flesh would have loved that, because he was no less vain than the rest of us.
But if we did sing his praises and not Christ’s – premier theologian that he was – he would burst forth from his casket before our eyes, and give us the tongue lashing that we would deserve.
But that said, our text does speak of: our good works that follow us into heaven. These are the treasures that our Lord tells us to store up there: where neither thief can steal, rust corrode, nor moth destroy.
Our Brother was not short in that department; because he was filled with the love of God.
Yes he liked to play the hard-boiled egg.
And it seems that he was hard-wired to be aloof, but that is not the whole story.
His greatest Christian work was to give up a lucrative law practice in Sacramento CA in his late 30’s, leave his friends and all that he accomplished; to pick up his family and move to Fort Wayne IN to enter seminary, to serve his Lord as a Holy Priest.
His greatest Christian work was to, along with his dear wife, Jean, adopt four children from various countries around the world. They sit here amongst us today: Joe, Andrew, Abbey and Hannah along with Lisa who was 10 years old when Peter married Jean.
They were all brought into a loving family. Were all baptized and instructed in the holy Christian religion. Were all educated and made ready to enter adult life, which they have. And he spared no expense to give them as good a life as possible.
Also, like Job, no one who ever came to his door, left empty handed. He gave and gave and gave of his own hard-earned resources. He had pity on the poor, especially fellow pastors who had been impoverished by ungrateful congregations that had thrown their pastors under the bus.
But we must stop now lest, as we say, the good Father should rise up and send us all home.
If he did rise up before us he would likely harp on his oft-repeated theme: It is the job of the church to teach people how to die.
Sometimes people did not like him because he would not give them what they wanted. Because he was well aware as a Lutheran Pasture that: all of us want the wrong thing. But he always gave them what they needed. Namely the crucified and glorified Lord Jesus Christ who comes to us packaged in Divine Liturgy.
And what do we all need. We all need to know with clarity how to pray, how to believe, how worship, how to live a godly life, and … how to die.
And so our text says: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!” (Revelation 14:12-13) To this end.
“Blessed art thou Peter,
for flesh and blood hath not
revealed this to thee,
but my Father in Heaven.”.
Rest from your labors, now O Simon Bar Jonah. For as the church sings:
“And the grave that shuts us in,
shall be prove the gate to heaven.
Jesus here I die with thee,
there to live eternally.”
And as regards those left behind for “a little while,” hear the Word of the Lord:
“For my God will supply all your needs
according to the riches of his grace
in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 4:19)
And again,
“For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,” says the LORD, who has compassion on you. (Is. 54:10)
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. Amen