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MEN FEAR DEATH as children fear the dark. To even the valiant in battle, death is "The King of Terrors." The thought of venturing into that undiscovered country from whence no traveller ever returns makes us all cowards. But, in truth, One Man did return, and His rising from the grave makes all the difference. To those who follow Him, death is no more "The King of Terrors" but "The Greatest Gain. "
If you have any worries about death, I want you to know that you can lay all your doubts and fears to rest. Jesus Christ, the only Man who has conquered death, offers you victory over death. This offer is instantly effective and is free of charge. Listen to the words of truth and life:
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He th heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life" (Jn 5:24 ).
One day, Jesus raised a dead man to life. Lazarus had been dead four days. But that was no problem to Jesus. At His word of command, Lazarus returned to life. Listen to the words of Jesus, spoken before he worked the miracle:
"I am the resurrection and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die" (Jn 11:25,26 ). Do you believe this?
Of all men, none was like Jesus. He alone was born to die. That was His one purpose of coming to earth. His death was no accident. It was no martyr's death, but it was God's eternal plan of salvation for mankind conceived before the foundation of the earth. It was a promise made from the moment of man's downfall in Eden's garden. Jesus came as the seed of woman to bruise the serpent's head (Gen 3:15 ). He came as the Son of man to crush Satan's deadly power.
Jesus's death was unique. No man's death was like His. He predicted it repeatedly. He did not have to die, for none could ever harm Him. But when the time came He laid down His life willingly. Whenever He spoke of His death. He linked it with His resurrection: They were two inseparable parts of one great event, the conquest of death for you and me. Jesus said, "I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep I lay down my life, that I may take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father" (Jn 10:11 , 17,18 ). Jesus predicted the manner of His death --- by crucifixion. He said, "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life" (Jn 3:14,15 ). "And I, If I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. This he said, signifying what death he should die" (Jn 12:32,33 ).
My purpose of writing is not to prove that Jesus rose from the death. This fact of history is amply documented and is irrefutable. Those who refuse to accept the evidence will not be persuaded anyway. But that will in no way alter the fact that Jesus did rise from the dead and is alive for ever more.
The resurrection of Jesus has far-reaching consequences for you and me as no other event in all history. It is an event which spells hope and victory over death for those who believe. Read again those words earlier quoted:
a) He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.
b) And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.
In these words we see a promise of eternal life to two groups of believers:
a) those who are dead: they shall live again, i. e. they will be resurrected, and
b) those who are alive: these shall never need to die at all.
The promise of resurrection and a deathless future for believers is a most dazzling and staggering thought. How shall it be? The answer is in Philippians 3:20,21 , 1 Corinthians 15:51-57 , 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 .
These three passages point to the return of our Lord Jesus Christ, our Blessed Hope. In Philippians 3 , God's Word tells us that at His return, our Lord will change the bodies of believers living at that time, so that they may be "fashioned like unto His glorious body" according to His almighty wonder-working power. It will be a marvellous supernatural transformation.
In 1 Corinthians 15:51,52 we read: Behold, I show you a mystery; we shall not all sleep (die), but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump...... and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
1 Thessalonians 4:16,17 further amplifies: For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
To summarise: at our Lord's return. dead believers will be resurrected; living believers will be changed. Our Lord will do this by His irresistible power, in the "twinkling of an eye," as it happened with His own resurrection.
Now we come hack to our original question: after death what? Death is the great equaliser and separator. As we all face the prospect of death, let me place before you, plainly and clearly, what it will mean tc you.
1. Death equalizes. At death all men become equal: all our physical and material possessions and achievements are cut off, suddenly and permanently. Beggar or millionaire, dropout or Nobel prize winner, mere nobody or world celebrity--at the stroke of death, there is no difference. The soul takes leave of its earthly house and the body begins to rot.
2. Death separates. Death separates soul from body. Death also separates soul from soul. Our Lord's account of the rich man and Lazarus is our highest authority in matters of the after-life. (Luke 6:19-31 )
At death the soul of Lazarus was carried by angels into heaven, while the soul of the rich man woke up in hell. We see that there was a separation of the ways, one up, the other down.
This separation is permanent and not subject to change. Also, there is no way of communication between heaven and hell. There is a separation of soul from soul: a believing wife will be separated from her unbelieving husband. It will separate the nearest and dearest.
For the believer, death holds no fears, no terrors, but great hope. To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. ( 2 Cor 5:8 ) What a blessed thought for all who believe!
At death we shall be freed from earth's toil and trouble, from sorrow and suffering, from temptation and sin. "Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them" (Rev 14:13 ).
The souls of believers will be forever with the Lord in glory, to await the future reunion with their bodies at the return of the Lord to earth.
For them the future is one endless day of blessedness and rejoicing in the presence of the Triune God, the angelic hosts and the countless men and women out of every kindred, tongue, people and nation; redeemed to God by the blood of Jesus. It will be joy unspeakable and full of glory.
For the unbelievers, sceptics, atheists, free-thinkers, agnostics, idolaters and all the rest who have rejected the Lord Jesus Christ. death is to them the greatest loss imaginable.
They lose the world and all their worldly goods. Suddenly, at one fell stroke, everything that they had lived for all their life, is cut off and taken away.
They lose the opportunity of believing the Gospel and accepting Jesus Christ, something which they had spurned in their lifetime.
They lose all hope of improving things for themselves. As the saying goes, "Their fate is sealed." They lose their hope of heaven, of seeing God, of a happy and secure future.
For them there is only the place promised by God: the torment of hell for ever and ever. It is a sad prospect. But it is entirely avoidable.
Now we come to the concluding thought.
Dear reader, I write to those who are still outside Jesus Christ. What shall we say to all these 6 things? I quote the well-known lines from Long-fellow:
Life is real, life is earnest,
And the grave is not its goal.
Dust thou art, to dust returnest
Was not spoken of the soul.
Yes, life is real, life is earnest. But life is also short, and death is sure. The question is: after death. what? To answer that question, I say to you, "Before death. what?" What you decide now in this life will determine what you receive in the next. Death is the great divide. From its verdict none can escape. To regret then is futile. To repent now is wise. Then it will be too late.
My concluding word is: Believe now on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. Believe on Him who died and rose again, and death will lose its threat over you. Believe that Christ died for your sins and rose again for your justification.
Believe and live! ACT NOW, and escape the wrath to come!
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Calvary Tract Ministry
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