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April 2018 Newsletter

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God’s Encouraging Word …

when I deal with death

Everyday tragedy bombards you.  The world news scene is constantly flooded with horrible stories.  Another bombing, another mass shooting, and another natural disaster fill your newsfeed.  This sad and frustrating news isn’t just out there.  It’s personal.  A co-worker is diagnosed with a terminal illness.  A close friend dies.  You’re attending the funeral of a family member.

No matter how many happy days we enjoy, these sad days come too.  When faced with death, our hearts may cry out, “It shouldn’t be this way!”  And we’re right.  It shouldn’t be like this.  Death is a jolting end of life.  Death is a separation of body and soul.  We don’t want that.  God doesn’t want that.  God didn’t intend it to be like this when he created the first man and woman.  Why is it then that death eventually comes to all people?

Quite simply and tragically, death comes because of sin.  The first man and woman rebelled against God.  When they chose to rebel, they brought death upon themselves.  And they have passed both their sin and death on to all their descendants—to you and to me.  We see their rebellion in our little rebellions—in our lies, our pride, our arrogance, our hate, our sin.  And where there is sin, there is death.

How much does Jesus hate sin and death?  Jesus detested sin and death so much he fought and defeated them.  Jesus took our sin.  In our place, Jesus suffered and died.  He endured the punishment we deserved.  When Jesus died, his death was not a result of his sin.  Jesus’ death came as punishment because he shouldered the sins of the whole world—every one of your and my sins.  Since Jesus dealt with the cause of death—which is sin, death lost its sting.

Jesus comforted a friend who was grieving the death of her brother by proclaiming: “I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.”  Jesus promised that because he is “the resurrection and the life,” all believers will be raised to eternal life too.  Jesus gives eternal life to all who believe in him.

You will face death over and over again—in the relentless stream of world news and in the sad news that death is striking those you love.  Listen to Jesus’ words.  Trust Jesus.  He is the resurrection and the life.  One day death will come to you.  And even though you die, because you believe in Jesus you will live eternally with him in heaven.