Then, they died!

I sat with a friend yesterday who is dying. She was weak, hardly able to speak. We shared Communion, prayed, and talked about hope even with tears. Then, while I drove home the news came that wreckage of the missing mini-sub, Titan, was found on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean near the wreckage of the Titanic that the explorers were descending to the depths to view. Five people perished in an instant. Two of them were, by reports, men of unbelievable wealth who enjoyed living near the edge. One friend reported, “Yes, they were aware of the risk but somehow convinced themselves that they could avoid danger, that the risks were only for other people.” Then, they died!

Now aren’t you glad you’re reading this today?  Stick with me, it gets better! Eugene Peterson, pastor and author, was visiting a Benedictine monastery in New Mexico where he took note of an empty grave.  “Did one of the brothers just die?” he asked. The answer was a shock!  “No, that’s for the next one!” An open grave was there to that community of monks of the importance of living today because life is short.  (The Pastor, A Memoir – HarperOne, 2011)  Are you aware of the one thing that you cannot outrun?  Yes, friend, it is your mortality.

Many Americans view any discussion of death and dying as “morbid” and avoid it as long as they can.  Instead of understanding death as a normal part of human experience, we have come to treat it as a failure, as if somehow be sheer force of will or with great effort we can beat it in the end and live forever.  Those who manage to create this illusion for themselves become convinced that they will somehow elude that Last Appointment and fail to invest in those things that truly matter. Those who understand death’s inevitability will choose to live the best life now.  When we see the edge of time it will keep our grip on our stuff less tight, we will be more tender and compassionate with others, and we will care for our souls and the things of the Spirit.

I believe that we are spiritually impoverished by our disconnect with mortality.
To be sure the thought of dying is unpleasant, but a person who is prepared, who accepts the process as part of ‘living,’ will generally live a better life.

In no way is it my intention to try to beautify death and dying. It is not a pleasant process, the hardest thing to endure for the dying and those who surround them. The Bible calls death  “the last enemy!”   

 Christians can face death with GREAT HOPE!  Jesus is the ‘first fruits’ of the resurrection, our assurance that the grave is not the end. He says that He is the “Resurrection and the Life, even if a person dies he will live again.”  For the moment that hope is like a spot of light on the horizon of time, like the North Star that guides the traveler.   In God’s time, that Light will lead me home.

What a difference these promises make in the process of dying. The Spirit says "For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him." (1 Corinthians 15:22-23, NIV) 

And, "I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” (1 Corinthians 15:50-54, NIV)   

Know this! Our hope as Christians does not rest on our record of stellar morality, our membership in a church, or our observance of religious rituals. We hope in Christ – the One who makes us right with God. By faith, we receive His gift and our fear is replaced with peace. 

Here is a word from the Word for all of us who are dying. Love Him, trust His grace, face death and live as those who have real hope. "But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God." (Romans 5:8-11, NLT)  That is truth to live by and that allows to face mortality without fear.

(Video of this blog at this link)

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Graves Into Gardens

I searched the world but it couldn't fill me

Man's empty praise and treasures that fade

Are never enough

Then You came along and put me back together

And every desire is now satisfied here in Your love

 

Oh there's nothing better than You

There's nothing better than You

Lord there's nothing

Nothing is better than You

 

I'm not afraid to show You my weakness

My failures and flaws

Lord You've seen them all

And You still call me friend

'Cause the God of the mountain

Is the God of the valley

There's not a place

Your mercy and grace won't find me again

 

You turn mourning to dancing

You give beauty for ashes

You turn shame into glory

You're the only one who can

 

You turn graves into gardens

You turn bones into armies

You turn seas into highways

You're the only one who can

Brandon Lake | Chris Brown | Steven Furtick | Tiffany Hudson

© 2019 Brandon Lake Music; Maverick City Publishing Worldwide; Music by Elevation Worship Publishing; Bethel Music Publishing

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