FR7 Baptist
Active Member
I'm going to post some thoughts on an issue I've thought about a great deal over the years, that is, death. Some of these are theological while others are more personal in nature. This post doesn't have a point per se, but I believe it will lead to an interesting and edifying conversation. So, in no particular order:
1. I think all too often people live in denial or self-imposed ignorance of their own mortality. Personally, I realized very early on that my death is not afar off. Over the years, that realization rings even more true. Just so this doesn't get misinterpreted, I haven't developed some kind of terminal illness and I'm not going to kill myself. It's often said and I've experienced that as one gets older, time seems to move at an alarmingly rapid pace. I can only imagine that the passage of time only continues to accelerate. I look back sometimes and ask myself things like, "Where did the last five years go?" Even as a young man, I know my terrestrial life is about a quarter over. There is no point in insisting that death is worlds away, when in fact it inches closer with every breath I take.
2. For the believer, death is both the entry to glory and the last enemy. At the death of a believer, his soul is immediately with God. I believe in a conscious intermediate state. However, there is still the separation of body and soul. That will only be rectified by the resurrection at the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.
3. Death drives home the consequences of sin. Even though it will be reversed at the resurrection, it is human sin that leads to our deaths. I think that's something to keep in mind.
4. It has often been said that death is the Great Equalizer. One time I was listening to the Rev. Albert Mohler's radio show and he said a better way to view death is as the Great Clarifier. I don't disagree with the reverend on that point, but I'm positing that it's both. In a worldly sense, it is the Great Equalizer because you don't get to take wealth and possessions with you. There's no use in being the richest man in the cemetery. In a spiritual sense it is the Great Clairifier because all one's deeds will be laid bare before God and because what one did with the Gospel will seal one's eternal fate.
5. I've seen relatives grow old, become sick and frail, and die. I fear the frailty of old age. It's a sobering thought to know that if I live long enough and Jesus doesn't come back first, I will likely end up like that. My 99 year old great-grandmother is going senile. It breaks my heart to see her like that. She told me that her "memory loss" scares her. I can certainly understand why.
So, there you go. It's a dark topic, but it's worthy of discussion. I've been thinking about posting this for a few months now and finally decided to do it. I look forward to our discourse.
God bless!
1. I think all too often people live in denial or self-imposed ignorance of their own mortality. Personally, I realized very early on that my death is not afar off. Over the years, that realization rings even more true. Just so this doesn't get misinterpreted, I haven't developed some kind of terminal illness and I'm not going to kill myself. It's often said and I've experienced that as one gets older, time seems to move at an alarmingly rapid pace. I can only imagine that the passage of time only continues to accelerate. I look back sometimes and ask myself things like, "Where did the last five years go?" Even as a young man, I know my terrestrial life is about a quarter over. There is no point in insisting that death is worlds away, when in fact it inches closer with every breath I take.
2. For the believer, death is both the entry to glory and the last enemy. At the death of a believer, his soul is immediately with God. I believe in a conscious intermediate state. However, there is still the separation of body and soul. That will only be rectified by the resurrection at the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.
3. Death drives home the consequences of sin. Even though it will be reversed at the resurrection, it is human sin that leads to our deaths. I think that's something to keep in mind.
4. It has often been said that death is the Great Equalizer. One time I was listening to the Rev. Albert Mohler's radio show and he said a better way to view death is as the Great Clarifier. I don't disagree with the reverend on that point, but I'm positing that it's both. In a worldly sense, it is the Great Equalizer because you don't get to take wealth and possessions with you. There's no use in being the richest man in the cemetery. In a spiritual sense it is the Great Clairifier because all one's deeds will be laid bare before God and because what one did with the Gospel will seal one's eternal fate.
5. I've seen relatives grow old, become sick and frail, and die. I fear the frailty of old age. It's a sobering thought to know that if I live long enough and Jesus doesn't come back first, I will likely end up like that. My 99 year old great-grandmother is going senile. It breaks my heart to see her like that. She told me that her "memory loss" scares her. I can certainly understand why.
So, there you go. It's a dark topic, but it's worthy of discussion. I've been thinking about posting this for a few months now and finally decided to do it. I look forward to our discourse.
God bless!
