Death-the final eclipse…
“Son,
your dad passed away this morning.” “Son,
your mom is now in the arms of Jesus.” “Little
one, your papa is with us no more, he went to be with his family in heaven.” “Sir, we pray your wife is in a better place
now that she is gone.” “Child, an
automobile accident took your parents today.”
These are the words, no one wants
to hear. They are words that strike to the very heart of who we are as human
beings. They are words that no one can
describe to you-the pain you feel and
keep feeling long after the shock of the loss.
I still feel the sting today of those words last fall when my mom called
to tell me, my about my dad passing away in his sleep that morning. I cried for what seemed like a year but was
only a few minutes. I still wish I could have talked to him one more time.
It’s painful to be a writer and not know how
to put down exactly how you feel. It’s
also painful to have to listen to someone else’s thoughts about your father and
not be able to speak a word of encouragement or knowledge.
Death-the final eclipse-is not a
metaphor for space as so much for time. Time wasted. Time diluted. Time squandered. Time misused.
Fruitless time. Unproductive time.
Pointless time. You catch my drift I hope. Time is all we as humans are given on earth.
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 "For everything
there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born,
and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to
break down, and a time to build up; a
time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time
to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace,
and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to seek, and a time to lose; a
time to keep, and a time to cast away; a time to tear, and a time to sew; a
time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace."
Everything else in life we must
beg, barter, and plead for. Yes, God
relinquished His mighty power on earth in the form of His Spirit, through His
Son. However, even that is time driven: He
has already said He is coming back for a spotless bride. He has already said His Son will be back to
claim what was declared to Him by the angels.
From
the Bible: Ecclesiastes 8:8-No man has power
to retain the spirit, or power over the day of death. There is no discharge
from war, nor will wickedness deliver those who are given to it.
God can and will do what He wants
in His time. He just does it in His way
and under His direction. Even the things
we think are done according to our will, He orchestrates them to His will.
Gen
18:23-33 “Then Abraham drew near and
said, "Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose
there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place
and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put
the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the
wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is
just?" And the LORD said, "If I find at Sodom
fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake."
Abraham answered and said, "Behold,
I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. Suppose five of the fifty righteous are
lacking. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?" And he said,
"I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there." Again,
he spoke to him and said, "Suppose forty are found there." He
answered, "For the sake of forty I will not do it." Then he said,
"Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found
there." He answered, "I will not do it,
if I find thirty there." He said, "Behold, I have undertaken to
speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there." He answered, "For
the sake of twenty I will not destroy it." Then he said, "Oh let not the Lord be
angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there."
He answered, "For the sake of ten I will not destroy it." And
the LORD went his way when he had
finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.”
For death to be permanent in the
life of a non-believer is literal hell.
Death in the life of a
believer is, however, the ultimate reward and
therefore the ultimate end to this journey we call life. Heaven is freedom. Hell is chains.
Heaven is life. Hell is final
death. Heaven is ultimate rest. Hell is ultimate torment. For when believers in Christ come to their
final stop, all will be forgiven.
Genesis_14:22
But Abram said to the king of Sodom,
"I have lifted my hand to the LORD, God Most High, Possessor of heaven and
earth,
Genesis
24:7 The LORD, the God of heaven, who
took me from my father's house and from the land of my kindred, and who spoke
to me and swore to me, 'To your offspring I will give this land,' he will send his
angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there.
Psalm 14:2
The LORD looks down from heaven on the
children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God.
Psalm 121:2-8 My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved; he who
keeps you will not slumber. Behold, he
who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is your
shade on your right hand. The sun shall
not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.
The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and
forevermore.
Death came about because of free
will and the laws that were broken.
Before sin and death, there was
harmonious bliss that lasted for who-on-earth knows how long? However, because
of the sin of Adam and Eve by the gall of the serpent’s tongue, we are born
into sin, we live in sin and we will die in sin. Yet, there is a way to overcome this sin nature
and sin problem we so desperately have. More on that in a moment.
Death and sin are so
interchangeable it makes the demons blush.
For without the demonic atmosphere buzzing around, death would have no
sting over you, the grave could not hold you and the victory would be yours
eternally.
God gave man and woman, something
no other created being has, a will and a soul. His love for man and woman far outreached His
desire to have puppets on a marionette string do His eternal bidding. Yet, He desired a relationship, fellowship, and worship from the one thing He knew
might reject Him.
When death entered the world
through one selfish act of treason, it sent a shock-wave through the entire galaxy. God knew this would happen even before it
happened, yet He allowed it to happen to prove a point. That point is, without Him as your Lord and
Savior, life is not worth living unless you are living it in His arms. Under His wings. In His bosom.
Under the shelter of the Almighty.
Within the confines of His tower.
Within the crevice where His glory shines forth.
Exodus
33:17-23 And the LORD said to Moses,
"This very thing that you have spoken I will do, for you have found favor
in my sight, and I know you by name." Moses said, "Please show me your
glory." And he said, "I will
make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you, my name 'The LORD.' And I will be gracious
to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.
But," he said, "you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and
live." And the LORD said, "Behold, there is a place by me where you
shall stand on the rock, and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft
of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will take away my hand, and you shall
see my back, but my face shall not be seen."
Proverbs
18:10 “The
name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is
safe.”
Exodus_19:4 “You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore
you
on eagles' wings and brought you to myself.”
Psalm_17:8 “Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings”
Psalm 57:1 “Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for, in you, my soul takes
refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge, till the storms of
destruction pass by.”
God in His infinite wisdom, knew
we would face death. He knew we would be
bombarded with the finite edge of eternity.
He knew we would be inundated with the possibility of never seeing our
loved ones again. Yet, He provided a way
for us to be with Him. To experience happiness. To experience true joy. To
experience utter happiness. To be with
Him.
If you wish to experience this ever-powerful
and life-changing deal, I can introduce you to Jesus Christ. I can help you to the peace that passes all understanding. I can assist you in having a personal
relationship with Jesus Christ. All you must
do is accept that you need a savior. Accept that God wants to have a heartfelt relationship with you. Believe that God raised Him from the
dead. Believe that God will save you if
you ask Him to. Confess your sins to Him
and accept His forgiveness for them.
Death can be a harrowing incident yet a glorious
one to experience. It can leave you with
guilt or gladness. Heart-ache or happiness. Regret
or repentance.
God’s love for you is tantamount
to His power manifested in the life and death of His Son. Are you ready to Accept? Believe? Confess?
No comments:
Post a Comment