Category: article

 

Dr Wayne Grudem is an American theologian who has had a significant impact on evangelical thought.  His treatment on the concept of the image of God in humanity[1] provides a helpful perspective and a good starting point for those interested in studying what the Bible says on the subject.

One way Grudem approaches this subject is by tracing the concept chronologically through the Bible, producing a helpful example of biblical theology.  He tells the story of the image of God in humanity with four words: Creation, Distortion, Recovery, and Restoration.

Creation

The Bible declares that “God created man in his own image.”[2]  An image (paired with its parallel term “likeness”) is something that is either similar to something else, or it represents something else.  Grudem concludes that human beings were created like God (in some ways) and they had the responsibility to represent God (in some ways). Theologians essentially agree with that.  Our differences come when we seek to further define exactly in what way Adam and Eve were like God at creation, and in what ways they were intended to represent him.

Distortion

The fall into sin and depravity has distorted the

image of God in us, but has not destroyed it.  This can be

seen in the fact that God forbids murder on the basis that

humans are in his image.[3] James insists that all people

should be treated fairly because they are equally “made in

the likeness of God.”[4] So, even though the fall has

drastically changed us, there is a special dignity and

identity that we all share by virtue of that special creative

act.  The Bible does not spell out the details of that

uniqueness, and it is wrong for theologians to use it as

evidence to refute what the Bible teaches elsewhere.

 

Recovery

 

The process of sanctification that every true believer experiences can be described as a progressive recovery of the original image and likeness God intended at creation.  The Bible teaches that believers are “being renewed in knowledge after the image of (our) creator”.[5] Paul describes this process by explaining that “we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”[6]

Restoration

The goal of this transformation process is that we might some day “be conformed to the image of” Christ.[7]  The Bible encourages those of us going through the process that “Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.”[8] As Grudem puts it, the “amazing promise of the New Testament is that just as we have been like Adam (subject to death and sin), we shall also be like Christ (morally pure, never subject to death again).”[9]

Wayne Grudem is not a conditionalist: he does not believe that human beings are mortal and that believers await the gift of immortality at the resurrection.  He believes that “our souls or spirits live on after our bodies die.”[10]  But he is careful not to base that belief on the concept of the image of God given at creation. Others are not so careful.  Some assert that being created in God’s image guaranteed immortality for all humanity forever.  Here is a conditionalist response to that assertion:

1.   Genesis 1:26-27 does not clarify in what way humans were created in God’s image. 

 

2.   There are a number of things that it could mean.  It could refer to our capacity for relationship (male and female). It could refer to our essential dignity as chief of the created beings on earth. It could be that humanity represented God before the rest of creation as an idol (image) represents a god or king. In the story of creation itself, there is no evidence that immortality is implied.

3.   Even if immortality were part of the image we bore at our original creation, the fall distorted that image in certain ways that the Bible makes clear in multiple texts.  From that time on, humanity was not like God in two specific ways.  First, we are sinners, God is not. Isaiah says “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way”[11]  That aspect of the original image was gone unless and until redemption and restoration.

 

4.   Second, we are mortal, God is not. The Bible uses the word mortal to describe all humanity without qualification.

 

·        Job 4:17  “Can mortal man be in the right before God?”

·        1 Corinthians 15:54  “When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.””

·        Hebrews 7:8  “…tithes are received by mortal men,”

 

5.   God, on the other hand, is said to be immortal alone, without any qualification and without sharing that attribute with any others. 

 

·        1 Timothy 6:15-16  “the King of kings and Lord of lords,  who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.”

The concept of the image of God can be a useful tool in

explaining the gospel.  It contains all the elements one

needs to explain what God intended for humanity, how

we lost it, and how Jesus’ death at Calvary and the Holy

Spirit’s work in believers’ lives can help us to gain back

what we lost. Some, however, make that gospel

message more confusing and complicated by throwing

the unbiblical concept of the immortality of the soul

into the works.  When that is done, it becomes less

clear what it is that humanity has lost, and what we

hope to gain.

 

Grudem’s chronological approach to the issue of the

image of God can be a helpful practical means of letting

the Bible speak for itself in explaining the gospel

message. We can use the terms creation, distortion,

recovery, and restoration to explain the grace of God,

and the goal of that grace, which will be fulfilled at the

return of Christ. There is a fallen, dying world that

needs to hear that message.

       

If you are ever inclined to be philosophical, try an internet search for quotes that begin with the words “life is…” Some of my favorites are listed below:

“Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.” ― John Lennon

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.” ― Albert Einstein

“Life’s hard. It’s even harder when you’re stupid.” ― John Wayne

“Life is to be enjoyed, not endured” ― Gordon B. Hinckley

“Life’s under no obligation to give us what we expect.” ― Margaret Mitchell

“Life is too short, or too long, for me to allow myself the luxury of living it so badly.” ― Paulo Coelho

“Life is a daring adventure or nothing at all.” ― Helen Keller

“The whole of life is just like watching a film. Only it’s as though you always get in ten minutes after the big picture has started, and no-one will tell you the plot, so you have to work it out all yourself from the clues.” ― Terry Pratchett, Moving Pictures

“Life is a long lesson in humility.” ― J.M. Barrie, The Little Minister

“Life is like an onion; you peel it off one layer at a time, and sometimes you weep.” ― Carl Sandburg

“Life … is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” ― William Shakespeare, Macbeth

…And then there’s my favorite “life is…” quote of all, attributed to Forrest Gump’s mother: “Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re going to get.”

It seems that almost everybody has an idea or two about life, but we all do not agree. Even if we were unified, who’s to say that we would be right? What we need is advice from the One who invented life. We can find such advice, but we have to look in the right place – the Bible.

Summing up what God has to say about life is not going to be easy. It is a complex thing, and it cannot be put in a nutshell or on a bumper sticker. But, if one is willing to listen, he will find that the Bible does teach about life. He must be very careful, however, not to assume he knows what is there.

The bad news

The most prevalent message throughout the whole Bible about life is that it is limited. It is a precious thing because it runs out. Life has a beginning and an end, and the end always comes too soon. A series of images are placed before the Bible reader that emphasizes this limited nature of life.

life is a shadow

One of Job’s “friends” warned him of the limited nature of life by saying “our days on earth are a shadow.”[1] He did not mean that life is an illusion. He meant that our days pass by quickly, disappearing as soon as the light hits them. Job, himself, used the same imagery when he said “Man who is born of a woman …flees like a shadow and continues not.”[2] You cannot look at a shadow, and come back in an hour or two and find it in the same place. Like life, shadows are always coming and going. Shadows do not stay put.

David expressed the same thought when he prayed “For we are strangers before you and sojourners, as all our fathers were. Our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no abiding.”[3] David combined the shadow imagery with two words that identify a temporary resident in the land. The Israelites were temporary residents in Egypt. But, even after they left Egypt and took up residence in Canaan, they found that they were strangers and sojourners there. This life is much too short to be thought of as permanent.

In his poetry, David reflects on this fact as well. He refuses to fear man, because “his days are like a passing shadow.”[4] He puts his trust in the One who is permanent, and relies on the LORD for rescue.

David’s son, Solomon reflected on this reality as well. He challenges his readers to consider their vain lives which will pass “like a shadow.”[5] He taught that people should not put their hopes in their plans for the future, because no one knows what will happen to those plans. What matters is not tomorrow, because tomorrow is not guaranteed us. What matters is today, fearing God, and keeping his commandments today.[6]

Another Old Testament saint, identified merely as “one afflicted” writes “I eat ashes like bread and mingle tears with my drink, because of your indignation and anger; for you have taken me up and thrown me down. My days are like an evening shadow.”[7] These are the words of someone who has suffered much, and does not always know why. Life just happens, and only God knows why it happens the way it does. Lots of things just seem unfair, particularly the more we realize that the limits of life do not allow for do-overs. Often we realize too late that our days are like an evening shadow, soon to be over – swallowed up in death, and nothing we can do will change that fact.

But it is not just the Old Testament that portrays life in this gloomy fashion. James instructs rich believers that they will “fade away in the midst of (their) pursuits.” No matter how powerful you are, your life is limited.

Another way the Bible says the same thing is by comparing our lives to a mist or a cloud of vapor. Job laments “The eye of him who sees me will behold me no more; while your eyes are on me, I shall be gone. As the cloud fades and vanishes, so he who goes down to Sheol does not come up; he returns no more to his house, nor does his place know him anymore.”[8] Life’s end is compared to a cloud that vanishes before one’s eyes. People disappear like they are getting beamed off by a transporter (my apologies if you have never watched Star Trek). Now you see them, now you don’t.

It is precisely for this reason that James warns his readers not to presume upon their own ability to accomplish what they want to with their lives. He writes “Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.”[9] The point is not that we should never make plans. The point is that we should not presume that we will have the time for all our plans to be accomplished. We are not in charge down here. The sovereign God is. It is his will that matters.

life is a sprint

The Bible presents our lives as a race, but not a long marathon. They are more like a 100 yard dash. Just when we are in our best stride, the finish line appears. Job lamented that his “days are swifter than a runner; they flee away; they see no good. They go by like skiffs of reed, like an eagle swooping on the prey.”[10] If you have ever watched an bird swoop down to catch a mouse or a fish, you get the idea. All the drama is over in seconds. Life is a chase, and whether you are a victim or a victor, the chase is over quickly.

Job rightly concluded that “”Man who is born of a woman is few of days and full of trouble.”[11] As Ethan the Ezrahite prayed, he asked the LORD to remember how short his time is.[12] The Proverbs instructs us “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.”[13]We never know how long we have. Our days are few.

The older we get, the more we get the proper perspective on age. When we are young, we all think we are immortal. We assume we will have enough time to do everything we will want to do. Before we know it, we are looking back on a life spent, rather than forward on dreams and wishes. We never seem to have enough time. That is probably how Jacob felt, when he told Pharaoh that his days were “few and evil.”[14] He was 130 years old at the time!

So the Bible warns us that life is a sprint. It may bring great joy or sorrow, great accomplishment or failure, but it will be over too soon. When it is over, it is over. We “are like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again.”[15] Such are the limits of this life we are born into.

inhale – exhale

Another image the Bible uses to describe human life is the breath. Breathe in, breathe out, that’s it. David proclaims “surely all mankind is a mere breath!”[16] Asaph lamented that God’s people are “a wind that passes and comes not again.”[17] Moses said that “we bring our years to an end like a sigh.”[18] The very process that identifies us as being alive is also a metaphor for our lives. We will all be dead much longer than we were alive (at least this life). That is all the more reason to make this life – that short time between inhaling and exhaling – matter.

don’t bring flowers

I have an unusual request for those of you who might attend my funeral. Please do not bring flowers. I know … flowers are supposed to show love and respect. They are something pretty you can put near a casket. They smell nice. But memorial services often take days, and then the flowers are put graveside. And what do they do? They rot. Just like all vegetation, plucked from the soil, they immediately begin to decay. Often even during the funeral service you can smell the flowers turning stale. People have to put up with a lot at funerals. They have to say goodbye to their loved ones. They have to come to terms with their loss. They have to pay their final respects. Is it asking too much for my friends to not have to do that in the midst of decaying vegetation?

The Bible uses the reality of rotting grass and flowers as a symbol for the brevity of life as well. Job says that man “comes out like a flower and withers.”[19] He may start off looking good, but that does not last long.

Almost everyone looks good in their baby pictures. The older you get, the more you start asking where that beautiful baby went. Mirrors are not very kind. They remind us that the flower that we were when we came out has begun to wither.

Moses compared a human life to grass, because “in the morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it fades and withers.”[20] Psalm 102 is described as “A Prayer of one afflicted, when he is faint and pours out his complaint before the LORD.” One of his complaints is “I wither away like grass.”[21] At some point in your life, you are going to recognize that you are not living, you are dying. Things are getting softer, grayer, more wrinkly. Your body has stopped growing and progressing. It is now digressing.

Isaiah used this reality to show the difference between all creation and its creator:

“All flesh is grass,

and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.

The grass withers,

the flower fades when the breath of the LORD blows on it;

surely the people are grass.

The grass withers,

the flower fades,

but the word of our God will stand forever.”[22]

The apostle Peter quoted this text as well. He took the same context (the permanence of God compared our impermanence) and applied it to the born-again believer. He taught that “you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God.”[23]

This is great news, because it speaks of God’s promise that our resurrected life will be permanent. But it is also a reminder that our present life is not permanent. We were not born immortal and imperishable. We were born into this world as a flower, destined to decay and die. If it were not for God’s grace in promising believers another life – a resurrection, our only destiny would be death.

Other images in the Bible remind us of humanity’s present inclination toward decay. Job reminds us that “Man wastes away like a rotten thing, like a garment that is moth-eaten.”[24] Isaiah encourages his readers to put their trust in God, not to fear man, because “I, I am he who comforts you; who are you that you are afraid of man who dies, of the son of man who is made like grass,” “For the moth will eat them up like a garment, and the worm will eat them like wool; but my righteousness will be forever, and my salvation to all generations.”[25]

This reality of a decaying world is not evil in itself. It is a reminder of the evil present in this world, and the Bible explains why this world is not permanent. God has an eternity in store for his beloved, and its beauty will never fade. It encourages us not to put our hopes and aspirations and trust in the things that are (presently) seen. We should “look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”[26]

dust to dust

God created humanity from the dust of the earth, and his word continues to remind us that dust is the destiny of that creation. Even the great Abraham, father of the faithful, referred to himself as “but dust and ashes.”[27] He held no delusions of a nature that made him incapable of decay and death.

David agreed. He spoke of the rich and prosperous, and reminded his readers that they too would become dust. He taught “All they that be fat upon earth shall eat and worship: all they that go down to the dust shall bow before him: and none can keep alive his own soul.”[28] And this text clarifies that such language does not merely reflect the fate of the body. It is the soul – the whole life – that the rich cannot keep alive. Death is the undoing of creation, which was a combination of dust and life. For “the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”[29] Death reverses the process. The breath of life returns to God, but the soul dies.

David combines a number of these images of human destiny in one of his psalms:

“For he knows our frame;

he remembers that we are dust.

As for man, his days are like grass;

he flourishes like a flower of the field;

for the wind passes over it,

and it is gone,

and its place knows it no more.”[30]

The consistent picture in the Bible is that humanity does not have what it takes to live forever. That is why we need God’s deliverance from this destiny of dust. Another psalmist puts it this way:

“I will praise the LORD as long as I live;

I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

Put not your trust in princes,

in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.

When his breath departs he returns to the earth;

on that very day his plans perish.

Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,

whose hope is in the LORD his God.”[31]

So, my friend, that is the bad news. We are destined for decay and death, and no human being can ever change that. But the Bible does not leave us there. The good news of the gospel is also consistently taught in the Bible. It has already been hinted at in those texts that encourage us to put our hope in the LORD. He is the answer to the question posed by all these graves.

The good news

The gospel is not a denial of mortality and death. It merely replaces the period of death with a comma. For believers in Christ, this life is still temporary, but the next life will be permanent. The Bible makes this clear in a variety of ways:

promised life

Jesus promised that “an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.”[32] It is a promise that this life alone does not establish our fate. Those who have rejected him, and have not experienced his judgment will at the resurrection of judgment, ending in destruction. Those who have believed in him will die like everyone else, but they will be raised to eternal life.

To receive Christ today is to receive that promise. So, the Bible speaks of receiving eternal life.

“Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you,

there is no one who has left house or brothers

or sisters or mother or father or children or lands,

for my sake and for the gospel,

who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers

and children and lands, with persecutions,

and in the age to come eternal life.”[33]

“Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial,

for when he has stood the test

he will receive the crown of life,

which God has promised to those who love him.”[34]

The Bible speaks of the believer having eternal life as a present possession, not because all people are born with it, but because it is promised by one who is reliable and faithful.

“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness,

so must the Son of Man be lifted up,

that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

For God so loved the world,

that he gave his only Son,

that whoever believes in him

should not perish but have eternal life.”[35]

“Truly, truly, I say to you,

whoever hears my word

and believes him who sent me has eternal life.

He does not come into judgment,

but has passed from death to life.”[36]

Believers possess eternal life today because the God who ever lives has chosen to raise them from the dead. Our end has a comma, not a period, because the God whom the Bible says is the only one who has immortality[37] has chosen to someday share that immortal nature with us. The Bible describes that reality in a number of ways:

a gift

To the Samaritan woman at the well “Jesus said … “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty forever. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.””[38] Notice that this eternal life is a gift, not an entitlement. Notice also that Jesus says that he will give it (future tense). He has not yet given it, but he will. He was not speaking of what believers can have today – that is, the assurance of salvation. He was speaking of the immortality that makes a person “never thirsty forever.” He was speaking of the drink to end all drinks.

When Jesus described himself as the bread of life, the Manna that came from heaven, he encouraged his listeners not to “labor for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you.”[39] Once again, the tense is future, because this is a promised gift. Life is something to seek, to labor for. It is not an innate possession.

Paul spoke of God’s coming judgment, when God “will render to each one according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury.”[40] Two judgments, but only one is referred to as a gift. Only one will be eternal life. The other judgment (wrath and fury) will of necessity end in death. Paul clarifies this by saying later “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”[41] Those are the two options for eternity: death for sin or life in Christ.

an inheritance

That Jesus promises this eternal life in the future is also shown by it being referred to as an inheritance. An inheritance is a legal promise. It is a way of legally promising someone that they will receive the gift you want them to have. Notice how this biblical language states or implies that eternal life will be inherited:

“And everyone who has left houses or brothers

or sisters or father or mother

or children or lands, for my name’s sake,

will receive a hundredfold

and will inherit eternal life.”[42]

“And as he was setting out on his journey,

a man ran up and knelt before him

and asked him, “Good Teacher,

what must I do to inherit eternal life?””[43]

“And behold, a lawyer stood up

to put him to the test, saying,

“Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?””[44]

“the promised Holy Spirit,

who is the guarantee of our inheritance

until we acquire possession of it,

to the praise of his glory.”[45]

“that you may know what is the hope

to which he has called you,

what are the riches of his glorious inheritance

in the saints”[46]

“Whatever you do, work heartily,

as for the Lord and not for men,

knowing that from the Lord you will receive

the inheritance as your reward.

You are serving the Lord Christ.”[47]

So, although the Bible presents the bad news of our present mortality in all its starkness, it gives equal representation to the glorious good news – the hope of eternal life for those who believe and serve Christ. His kingdom is an eternal kingdom, and those who are part of that kingdom will be eternal as well. But something must happen before that promise becomes reality.

a resurrection

Jesus taught “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”[48] God desires something that has not yet taken place. He desires (his will is) that believers in his Son have eternal life. The way he has chosen to accomplish this is that he has given his Son authority to raise us up on the last day. When Jesus returns, he will raise the dead. This resurrection is not an incidental part of God’s plan, it is crucial to it.

Jesus taught three specific things about the nature of those who be raised to eternal life.

“those who are considered worthy

to attain to that age

and to the resurrection from the dead

… cannot die anymore,

because they are equal to angels

and are sons of God,

being sons of the resurrection.”[49]

1. The believer who is raised is raised immortal. He cannot die anymore. The curse of death which had been placed on him in Eden no longer applies.

2. The believer who is raised is raised with a new status. He is no longer “a little lower than the heavenly beings”[50] because he is now equal to the angels.

3. The believer who is raised is raised with a new character. It is a full resurrection, not a mere resuscitation. He has gone from being an adopted son by grace to a son of God by nature. He is comfortable in the presence of the Almighty because those things about him that were part of the old nature have passed away for good.

a relationship

Jesus, praying for his disciples before his crucifixion, said “you have given (me) authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”[51] There is more to eternal life than merely living forever. It involves a shared life with the Father and the Son. It is an eternal relationship. Apart from this relationship, eternity would have no meaning.

We learn best how to live that eternal life today, not by trying to stay alive longer, but by cultivating that relationship. The LORD has provided three major means for us to do so.

1. By seeking counsel from God in his word we learn to hear what he wants to say to us.

2. By seeking his face in prayer we learn to communicate our thoughts, feelings and desires to him.

3. By seeking fellowship with other members of the body of Christ (the church) we learn to see him as he has chosen to manifest himself today.

an appointment

When Paul and Barnabas were preaching at Antioch of Pisidia, the Bible says that “as many as were appointed to eternal life believed.”[52] This is comforting, because it speaks of God’s sovereignty in salvation. It is also comforting in that it does not speak of any believers that were excluded. In other words, there were no sincere people in Antioch who would have become Christians, but did not have the chance.

an escape

Jesus encouraged John on Patmos with these words:

“”Fear not, I am the first and the last,

and the living one.

I died, and behold I am alive forevermore,

and I have the keys of Death and Hades.”[53]

These words are an encouragement because we all have an appointment with Death and Hades as well. That inevitable reality that the bad news of the Bible makes so clear, speaks of a prison that we all go to at death. Good and bad, young and old, rich and poor – we all have a sentence in that prison. But the good news is that we have a friend who has escaped, and he has the keys. We have a redeemer, a rescuer, a savior.

The Challenge

The Bible challenges us to accept both the bad news of death, and the good news of the promise of eternal life through Christ. Responding to this challenge will help the world see the difference between us and the rest. The hallmarks that identify true believers in this age are:

1. True believers seek that which has been promised. As Paul put it, “Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”[54]

2. True believers take hold of that which is promised. Paul urged Timothy to “Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called”[55] He did not command Timothy to rest on assumptions. He urged him to take every action necessary to ensure that his hope was sure.

3. True believers wait for that which is promised. Jude urged his readers to “keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.”[56] He called for not passive waiting, but active anticipation. A person who actively anticipates eternity in God’s presence will be seeking to sustain his relationship with God today.

The Bible gives an honest perspective on life. It teaches us that life is not permanent, but it someday can be. The difference is Jesus Christ, and the resurrection that is his alone to give. He has promised this resurrection to us by his grace — “And this is the promise that he made to us- eternal life.”[57]

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[1] Job 8:9.

[2] Job 14:1,2.

[3] 1 Chronicles 29:15.

[4] Psalm 144:4.

[5] Ecclesiastes 6:12.

[6] Ecclesiastes 12:13.

[7] Psalm 102:9-11.

[8] Job 7:8-10.

[9] James 4:13-14.

[10] Job 9:25-26.

[11] Job 14:1.

[12] Psalm 89:47.

[13] Proverbs 27:1.

[14] Genesis 47:9.

[15] 2 Samuel 14:14.

[16] Psalm 39:11; 144:4.

[17] Psalm 78:39.

[18] Psalm 90:9.

[19] Job 14:2.

[20] Psalm 90:6.

[21] Psalm 102:1,11.

[22] Isaiah 40:6-8.

[23] 1 Peter 1:23.

[24] Job 13:28.

[25] Isaiah 51:12, 8.

[26] 2 Corinthians 4:18.

[27] Genesis 18:27.

[28] Psalm 22:29 KJV.

[29] Genesis 2:7.

[30] Psalm 103:14-16.

[31] Psalm 146:2-5.

[32] John 5:28-29.

[33] Mark 10:29-30; Luke 18:29-30.

[34] James 1:12.

[35] John 3:14-16.

[36] John 5:24.

[37] 1 Timothy 6:16.

[38] John 4:13-14.

[39] John 6:27.

[40] Romans 2:6-8.

[41] Romans 6:23.

[42] Matthew 19:29.

[43] Mark 10:17; Luke 18:18.

[44] Luke 10:25.

[45] Ephesians 1:13-14.

[46] Ephesians 1:18.

[47] Colossians 3:23-24.

[48] John 6:40.

[49] Luke 20:35-36.

[50] Psalm 8:5.

[51] John 17:2-3.

[52] Acts 13:48.

[53] Revelation 1:17-18.

[54] Philippians 3:12-14.

[55] 1 Timothy 6:12.

[56] Jude 21.

[57] 1 John 2:25

One should always read the psalms with a view toward what the human writers are feeling. The psalms are – after all – poetry, and poetry of every age seeks to pass on emotions rather than mere facts. The psalms are also part of that body of scripture referred to as wisdom literature, which means they reflect what God’s people have discovered about life by living it with God in mind. So, we should expect to find the psalms theologically correct, even though they are not theological teaching. Because the psalms are inspired scripture, we should expect them to agree with the theology taught elsewhere in scripture, since the shared inspiration is from the same Holy Spirit.

With those concepts in mind, I invite you to read Psalm 39 with me. Reading this text with its original context in mind will help us to feel what the author felt. Along the way, we might also find reason to question a popular theological concept or two. I am convinced that both the emotion and the theology of this psalm speaks against the popular and pagan notion that human beings are born with immortality. If you happen to agree with that notion – and even consider it biblical – I urge you to look carefully at this text.

I also think this psalm speaks to the concept that some have that God wants them to right every wrong they will face. It tells the story of a godly man who went wrong by taking charge when God wanted him to “sit this one out.” It speaks to the need for all of us to keep who we are in perspective – compared to who God is.

1 TO THE CHOIRMASTER: TO JEDUTHUN. A PSALM OF DAVID.

I said, “I will guard my ways,

that I may not sin with my tongue;

I will guard my mouth with a muzzle,

so long as the wicked are in my presence.”

These are the words of a believer who sees a particular injustice, and is tempted to respond to it. Yet he (the subscription says he is David) determines to keep silent. He apparently feels that if he complains about this injustice, the wicked who are in his presence might use that complaint against him. So, he applies a muzzle to his mouth. He is conflicted. He wants to talk, yet he knows he should not. The reader is asked to imagine him strapping a muzzle onto his mouth to prevent himself from speaking. If he speaks, he runs the risk of sinning with his tongue.

I dare say that if you and I were to start listing all the things about life down here on this planet that are injustices, our list would be huge. Yet, resisting the urge to be constant complainers, we have learned the skill of muzzling ourselves too. It is true that there are lots of things wrong with this world. Paul describes this present creation as in bondage to corruption, subject to futility, and eagerly longing for future freedom.[1] David saw the results of that bondage to corruption in his own life and family. Yet, he decided not to lash out at the Creator because of the brokenness and disfunctionality he saw in creation. It was a wise choice.

2 I was mute and silent;

I held my peace to no avail,

and my distress grew worse.

Yet, the wise choice to keep silent in the face of injustice does not lead David to immediate harmony. He holds his peace, yet does not experience peace. Instead, the knowledge that things are not right in the world around him leads to distress and turmoil within him. His Creator has given him a conscience, and that conscience will not leave him alone.

Some philosophers claim that the problem is in our view of the world. They claim that if we only looked beyond the apparent disharmony and pain in the world and within ourselves we would see a greater harmony and economy at work – which would grant inner peace and joy. Do not believe it. The world around us is really broken, and it needs to be fixed. If you look deep inside yourself and get in touch with your inner child, you will find that she is a spoiled brat.

The Bible does not invite us to rewrite our experiences. It challenges us not to embrace the evil around us and call it good. Instead, it encourages us to look clearly at all that is wrong with our environment, and run to our creator for answers. Yet, it also warns us that we will not find all the answers now. We will have to learn to be content with a relationship with the one who has the solution to the problems we find. As long as we focus on the problems instead of He who is the solution, our knowledge of what is wrong will only be an ever-increasing burden. We will suffer in silence, and our distress will grow worse.

3 My heart became hot within me.

As I mused, the fire burned;

then I spoke with my tongue:

David confesses that his wise choice to remain silent did not give him the solution he was looking for. The pain he was holding back was a flame burning in his heart. It grew larger and larger, until he gave in and let his mouth explode.

And that is it. that is the end of what David was worrying about. He confesses that he made a wrong choice and bleated out his complaint, and then the narrative ends. We are never told the exact nature of the complaint, or whether David’s emotional outburst accomplished anything. The reason is simple. This is not a psalm about David’s problem – whatever it was. This is a psalm about David’s relationship with the LORD.

4 “O LORD, make me know my end

and what is the measure of my days;

let me know how fleeting I am!

David confesses that he had been guilty of taking the world upon his shoulders, and in the process of doing so he discovered that the world did not fit on his shoulders. He saw the truth, and he could not handle the truth. That is why, after he lashed out in anger at a fallen world, he addresses his LORD. For a short while, he had been tempted to think that he was going to settle something. But, after coming to his senses, he recognizes that settling that problem is not his job. There is one who will outlast him. He, the LORD, is the judge.

Every few years, most nations on this planet hold elections, and we desperately try to convince ourselves that an elected executive is what we need to solve our problems. Then reality sets in, and we spend another few years complaining about how the person we voted for (or against) has let us down. The reality is that even someone as great as king David is incapable of solving the problems that really matter. David recognized this. That is why he asked the LORD to remind him of his end – the measure of his days – how fleeting he is. David needed to be reminded that God was immortal, and he was not.

Yes, you read that right. The LORD’s life would go on and on, but David’s life would come to an end. Here is a theological concept which is mirrored elsewhere in scripture. Paul says that God alone has immortality.[2] Jesus says that we mortals should fear God because he is able to destroy human beings entirely (body and soul) in hell.[3] But Solomon says that we humans pass the few days of our vain lives like a shadow.[4]

David took solace in that theological reality. He finally saw that his was not the responsibility to correct all the world’s problems. That is what he has a Creator for. His responsibility was to stay focused on his relationship with the LORD – that Creator. By admitting his own mortality, David found the solution to his personal turmoil. The justice he was seeking would not come from his own hands. It was in the hands of his immortal LORD.

5 Behold, you have made my days a few handbreadths,

and my lifetime is as nothing before you.

Surely all mankind stands as a mere breath! Selah

Nowadays (as far as I know) we do not use handbreadths to measure anything but horses. The idea, however, is still quite clear. Our days are numbered. They are few, and the older we get, they seem too few. Even if we do have the joy to experience a few days with our grandchildren, we do so with the bittersweet knowledge that we will probably not know them all their lives.

David asks us to look at our lives from God’s perspective. To him, even a lifetime that we might consider long is nothing – as a mere breath. Breathe in, breath out, that is it. That is a human life from God’s perspective.

Centuries later, some human philosophers will get together and say that it is not so. They will posit the most ridiculous anthropological concept ever imagined. They will suggest that human beings live just as long as God does – for eternity. Strangely enough, many in the world will believe them. The concept of the immortality of the soul will be born.

But David is having none of that silliness. He honors God by admitting that he alone is immortal. He shares that characteristic with no one – at least not yet.[5] David’s point is that since God will outlast his problem, it is God he should have turned to with the problem, instead of trying to solve it himself.

6 Surely a man goes about as a shadow!

Surely for nothing they are in turmoil;

man heaps up wealth

and does not know who will gather!

Having reflected on the nature of God, now David stops and takes a good look at the rest of humanity. He sees how humanity as a species is guilty of the same kind of blunder that he had fallen into. Like David, the human race is seeking to build a heritage that they are destined to leave to others. Like David, they worry themselves all their lives to heap up a treasury that they will not be able to enjoy. Their shadow will pass, and someone else will gather in the wealth.

David had become one of the richest men of his time, but he also learned to realize how insignificant it is to be rich. Wealth for many becomes a bondage, and a thing that one must struggle for the rest of his life to maintain. The rat race never ends – until life ends. When it does end, all that stuff that the wealthy has accumulated is just stuff. David was a rich man who developed the heart of a Lazarus. He had riches, but they had ceased to have him.

7 “And now, O Lord,

for what do I wait?

My hope is in you.

So, David had come to see that his personal struggle for justice was a means that the LORD used to bring him back to himself. The key and solution to all the things that we strive for is found in God himself. Many have troubles, but do not turn to God. David had troubles, and they forced him to see God for who he is. The LORD is the treasure we all seek. Most of us just do not know it. He is the One we are waiting for. He is our hope.

8 Deliver me from all my transgressions.

Do not make me the scorn of the fool!

Having seen his relationship with God as the most important pursuit there is, David now reflects again on that original pursuit of justice. Many a human being has been destroyed by seeking justice instead of seeking the Just One. David confesses that his attempt to take matters into his own hands only led him to ridicule. He confesses the attempt as what it was – a transgression.

But, why did he see it so? Was he not seeking to right a wrong? Yes, but he came to learn that while God commands us to right as many wrongs as we can, the attempt should never cause us to put ourselves in God’s place. The prophet Isaiah encourages God’s people to “learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause.”[6] But it was this same prophet who, after seeing the LORD in a vision, declared “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”[7] The LORD is the eternal source of all justice, redemption and restoration.

9 I am mute;

I do not open my mouth,

for it is you who have done it.

What the LORD had done was rebuke David for his attempt at usurping the throne of heaven. Even God’s king is still a mortal man with no business taking God’s place. So the one who could not help but scream out against injustice in verse three is struck dumb in verse nine. He is finally forced to admit that the resolution of the problem will come from God’s action, not his.

10 Remove your stroke from me;

I am spent by the hostility of your hand.

David had lived his life as a “hands on” kind of person. If there was a bear or a lion endangering his father’s flocks, David would take care of it. If there was a noisy Philistine threatening his brothers and embarrassing his king, David would get his sling. There is a time for “hands on” in the Christian life, but all of us must learn to let God be God. That calls for some times of “hands off.” David’s ordeal led to his being disciplined by the LORD so that he could take his hands off and let the sovereign God be sovereign in this situation.

His loving Shepherd LORD was making him to lie down in green pastures.[8] The Israelis use the same Hebrew word today for a knockout in a boxing match. Sometimes a gentle shepherd has to be a little more than gentle. Sometimes our loving God has to push us down with a hostile hand.

11 When you discipline a man with rebukes for sin,

you consume like a moth what is dear to him;

surely all mankind is a mere breath! Selah

The LORD laid his heavy hand of discipline upon his servant, David. It consumed what was dear to him like a moth consumes a cloth. It reminded him of his own temporary nature. It caused him to contemplate the mortality of all mankind. He stopped to think about what he had experienced, and it gave him perspective.

12 “Hear my prayer, O LORD,

and give ear to my cry;

hold not your peace at my tears!

For I am a sojourner with you,

a guest, like all my fathers.

Once more, David speaks out. But this time he is speaking out to the right party. He addresses his complaint to the right department. He sees himself not like a dominant king, but as a dependent sojourner. He is not the master of the house, but a guest, dependent upon the master’s hospitality. He does not pronounce judgment like a “hands on” person. He prays. He cries out for God to hear. He cries tears for God to see.

13 Look away from me,

that I may smile again,

before I depart and am no more!”

Does it seem odd for a psalm to end this way? Should there not be a resolution of the original problem? Was there another ending to this psalm that has been lost due to time or a copyist error? No, this is the end of the psalm. The reason the original complaint was not resolved is that resolving our problems is not the most urgent thing for God to do. The most important thing is not that God solve my temporary problems. The most important thing is that he restore my relationship with him.

So, David prays for God to “look away” from him. He wants God to ease up on that hand of discipline upon him, so that he can “smile again.” Once again, he admits that God is immortal, and he is not. Too soon David will “depart” and be “no more.” David asks for his final days to be spent in joy and happiness. He wants to have learned from his mistakes, but he does not want his mistakes to define him.

He seems to have also learned his lesson about being “hands on.” He is willing to let God handle the big stuff in his life. That original problem – the one that vexed him so much earlier – is not even mentioned again. He seems comfortable letting God be God. That is a lesson we all need to learn.

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[1] Romans 8:19-21.

[2] 1 Timothy 6:16.

[3] Matthew 10:28.

[4] Ecclesiastes 6:12.

[5] The New Testament reveals that Christ brought immortality to light through the gospel (2 Timothy 1:10). Believers can be raised to life immortal, and this will happen at Christ’s return (Romans 6:5;1 Corinthians 15:42; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). This immortality is not innate (we are not born with it), but is a gift from God’s grace (Romans 6:23).

[6] Isaiah 1:17.

[7] Isaiah 6:5.

[8] Psalm 23:2.

At the office this week, one of my co-workers (who came from a Catholic background) was asking me about my church. He had heard the term evangelical before, but was not clear on what the word implied. I told him that when a church calls itself evangelical, it tends to emphasize the gospel, rather than some church tradition or heritage. The term comes from the Greek word euangelion, meaning “good news.” My co-worker’s question brought back to my mind something that I had learned some time ago: most evangelicals do not really know what the gospel is.

Oh, they know that if they believe in Jesus they can receive eternal life (and that is certainly true). But most would be surprised to discover that this conditional statement is not the biblical good news. The Good news that the Bible teaches is something different. Consider, for example, the following texts which contain the word euangelion:

“Jesus traveled throughout the region

of Galilee, teaching in the synagogues

and announcing the Good News about

the Kingdom. And he healed every kind

of disease and illness.”[1]

This first occurrence of the term in the New Testament is remarkable for what it does not say. It does not say that the gospel is a theological concept that someone must believe. No, the good news is not about a theological decision one makes (or prayer that one prays) as much as it is about a kingdom that one can join. Jesus himself is the king of that kingdom. He teaches about himself, and then proceeds to back up that teaching about himself with miracles that prove he is who he says he is. The gospel here is not as much about what you and I believe as it is about who Jesus is.

“Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is

proclaimed in the whole world, what she has

done will also be told in memory of her.”[2]

When Jesus commanded us to proclaim the gospel to the world,[3] he was not referring to another gospel: a gospel other than the one he was preaching. Yet he had not been proclaiming his death and substitutionary atonement. As important as that truth is, it is not the heart of the gospel. The heart of the gospel is something else.

“But none of these things move me, neither

count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might

finish my course with joy, and the ministry,

which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to

testify the gospel of the grace of God.”[4]

Paul called his message “the gospel of the grace of God.” He was set apart to teach and proclaim this gospel.[5] It was the good news – not that we can do something for God (like believe in his Son) – but that God has graciously done something for us. The good news is Jesus himself – a gift of God’s grace.

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel,

for it is the power of God for salvation

to everyone who believes, to the Jew

first and also to the Greek. For in it

the righteousness of God is revealed

from faith for faith, as it is written,

“The righteous shall live by faith.””[6]

Knowing this gives the reader a fresh perspective on how Paul describes the gospel in Romans. If the gospel that is the power of God for salvation is the person of Christ himself, then the faith that leads to the righteousness of God is not just acceptance of his forgiveness. It is acceptance of all that he is, all that he has done for us, and all that he will do. The gospel does not simply draw our attention back to the cross. It also draws our attention to the eternal ramifications of the cross. It is good news, not just because of something done in the past, but also because of the future.

The righteousness of God revealed in the gospel is not simply the fact that God regards us as righteous because of what Jesus did for us. It is a righteousness that is imputed by justification, and imparted by sanctification, and realized by faith in future glorification. So, the good news that is the gospel touches us in all three tenses.

Past:

Jesus died for me. I have been saved from my sin by the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. My sins are atoned for by his death. They are forgiven. I am no longer on the list of those whose destiny is eternal death.

Present:

Jesus teaches me. I stand forgiven, and have access to the Holy Spirit to affect true change in my behavior. I can now live in victory over sin, and grow in the likeness of Christ. The key to living this life is the gospel message that Jesus proclaimed when he was on this earth. He gave commands which can drastically alter my life. But I have to learn and obey those commands. I am a disciple of Christ. I must choose to live like one. The gospel is the gospel of the kingdom. If I choose to live outside of the principles taught in the gospel, I have not responded to the gospel, regardless of what I believe about the atonement.

Future:

Jesus will make me immortal. I have an eternal destiny that will begin the day Jesus breaks the clouds and returns from heaven. On that day, if I am still alive, I will be transformed, and never taste death. If I die before that happens, I will be raised to life at Christ’s command when he returns, never to die again. The gospel is good news because it shows us the destiny that is our beyond the grave. It does not deny that death is real. It shows hope beyond death.

“Now I would remind you, brothers, of

the gospel I preached to you, which

you received, in which you stand, and

by which you are being saved, if you

hold fast to the word I preached to you

– unless you believed in vain. For I

delivered to you as of first importance

what I also received: that Christ died

for our sins in accordance with the

Scriptures, that he was buried, that

he was raised on the third day in

accordance with the Scriptures”[7]

This explains why Paul’s most extensive presentation of the gospel is found in a chapter entirely dedicated to the resurrection. There is no gospel without the resurrection. Because Christ was raised, we now can have victory over the penalty of sin in the past, and the power of sin in the present. Because Christ will raise us from the dead, we now have an eternal destiny – a future besides destruction in hell.

You cannot really understand the gospel without this perspective on the future, and that is exactly what the problem was in Corinth. The believers in Corinth had lost the good news of the resurrection. They had lost the gospel.

“how can some of you say that there

is no resurrection of the dead?[8]

Throughout the world today, this problem continues to exist. People live with no eternal hope. They live for today because they think today is all that we have. Author Paul David Tripp calls it “eternity amnesia.” He outlines the following symptoms of this malady:

1. Living with unrealistic expectations.

2. Focusing too much on self.

3. Asking too much of people.

4. Being controlling of fearful.

5. Questioning the goodness of God.

6. Living more disappointed than thankful.

7. Lacking motivation and hope.

8. Living as if life doesn’t have consequences.[9]

We can understand it when people who do not know Christ live this way. But all too often, those of us who claim to know Jesus find the same symptoms. Tripp explains that “because we fall into thinking of this life as our final destination, we place more hope in our situations, relationships, and locations than they are able to deliver.”[10]

We are victims when we should be living in victory. The victory was already obtained by Christ. Because of what he did for us, we need never live as if these temporary lives are all that we have. We can see everything that happens now in the light of the glory that awaits us in eternity. We can tolerate pain and failure because we understand them to be temporary setbacks. We can better grasp the significance of success when we see it from the standard of eternity as well. We can look on every soul we encounter as another being who is potentially immortal and glorified, which might help us tolerate their present imperfections. We can have a better attitude about our own present failures to hit the mark.

“And if our hope in Christ is only

for this life, we are more to be

pitied than anyone in the world.”[11]

If you take away the resurrection, Christianity is an empty religion with no real hope, and believers are of all people most to be pitied. The reason is that all human beings are born mortal. We have a death sentence hanging over us because of Adam’s rebellion. We imitate Adam by being creatures who return to the dust. But the hope of the resurrection gives us an opportunity to imitate Christ, the man from heaven.

“As was the man of dust, so also

are those who are of the dust, and

as is the man of heaven, so also are

those who are of heaven.”[12]

People who live without the forever perspective can only hope to accomplish “of the dust” things. No matter how happy or successful or significant their lives, that happiness, success and significance will be buried in the ground when they die. But people who have a forever perspective – a gospel perspective, can accomplish “of heaven” things. We can make an eternal difference in other people’s lives by pointing them to the Savior. We can get our minds off of the things which enslave others, because our focus is on serving the “man of heaven.”

Knowing our future can free us to truly live in the present.

“In a moment, in the twinkling of an

eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet

shall sound, and the dead shall be raised

incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

For this corruptible must put on

incorruption, and this mortal must put

on immortality. So when this corruptible

shall have put on incorruption, and this

mortal shall have put on immortality,

then shall be brought to pass the saying

that is written, Death is swallowed up

in victory.””[13]

The resurrection is God’s victory, and ours. The gospel is the good news about that victory. It is the story of God entering this world of sin and pain through his Son, and taking on that sin and pain through the atonement on the cross. It is the story of the crucial battle won on the cross, and demonstrated by Christ’s resurrection. It is the story of the final victory over sin and pain through the resurrection at Christ’s return. Coming to faith in Christ is entering into that story. We know how the story ends. That is why we can have an eternal perspective.

As we celebrate the resurrection this year, may the knowledge that Christ’s tomb is empty help us to avoid eternity amnesia. May we not live recklessly – like there is no tomorrow. But may we live fearlessly, because there will be a tomorrow. The gospel assures it.

Jefferson Vann

Williamsburg, Virginia, USA

Saturday, February 18, 2012

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[1] Matthew 4:23 NLT, (see also Mark 9:35).

[2] Matthew 26:13 ESV.

[3] Mark 13:10.

[4] Acts 20:24 KJV.

[5] Romans 1:1.

[6] Romans 1:16 ESV.

[7] 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 ESV.

[8] 1 Corinthians 15:12b ESV.

[9] Paul David Tripp, Forever: Why You Can’t Live Without It. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2011). Kindle edition, location 254-287.

[10] Forever, location 416.

[11] 1 Corinthians 15:19 NLT.

[12] 1 Corinthians 15:48 ESV.

[13] 1 Corinthians 15:52-54 KJV.

I overheard two men talking the other day, and caught the last bit of a conversation they were having. I do not really know what they were talking about, but I can hazard a guess. They concluded their talk with “she’s in a better place.” My guess is that they were talking about a loved one who is now dead. Perhaps they were consoling themselves with thoughts that their loved one was no longer suffering and in Jesus’ protection until his return. But I wonder if those men knew what they were talking about. Does the Bible describe death – even the death of a believer – as “a better place”?

The first recorded death in the Bible was that of Abel, who was killed by his brother, Cain. The Bible states that “the LORD had regard for Abel.”[1] Did that mean that Abel was taken up to heaven when he died? No, the Lord told Cain “the voice of your brother’s blood is crying to me from the ground.”[2] Abel did not go to a better place when he died. He went to the ground where his brother had buried him. That was the very reason that the Lord cursed the ground for Cain. He told him that “When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.”[3]

The great saint and father of the Israelite nation was Abraham. When he died, did the Bible say that he went to a better place? No, it says that “Abraham breathed his last and died in a good old age, an old man and full of years, and was gathered to his people.”[4] We went where his pagan ancestors had gone: the grave. The Bible says that “Isaac and Ishmael his sons buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, east of Mamre, the field that Abraham purchased from the Hittites. There Abraham was buried, with Sarah his wife.”[5] Of course, it is popular for people to speak of burying a body, but still believe that the real person has gone elsewhere. Moses, the author of Genesis, entertained no such delusion.

David was called a man after God’s own heart.[6] Surely if anyone was to be granted a residence in a better place at his death, it would be David. But the Bible declares that “David himself never ascended into heaven.”[7] It was his descendant, Jesus Christ, that would sit at God’s right hand until his enemies are made his footstool.[8]

When Jesus faced the death of his friend Lazarus, he wept. He knew that death was not a better place for Lazarus. He did not console Lazarus’ sister Martha with the notion that her brother was not really dead. Instead, he told her that “your brother will rise again.”[9] He had told his disciples “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him”.[10] If Lazarus had gone to a better place, it would have been cruelty to bring him back.

Even Jesus did not go back to his Father at death. After his resurrection, he told Mary Magdalene “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father.”[11] He had been in the tomb, and he was raised from that tomb. His ascension forty days later came not as a result of his death, but because of his victory over death. His words to us now are not “do not fear death because it will take you to a better place.” His words to us are “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.”[12]

Christians can be comforted at the death of a loved one. Our comfort comes not because we believe death takes us to a better place. The Bible says “the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing”.[13] David prayed that the LORD would deliver his life because “in death there is no remembrance of you; in Sheol who will give you praise?”[14] Our comfort comes because we know death is not the end. It is a terrible prison where our body decays into nothingness while our personhood exists in a state of unconscious sleep. But our Savior has the keys to that prison. When he comes again, he will raise us from the dead and set us free from death forever.

The world needs honest Christians. It needs people who do not hide behind fairy tales, and deny the existence of death. It needs people who will tell them that death is real, but that Jesus is real too. The world needs hope that extends beyond the cemetery. Believers can offer that hope, but we have to do so with integrity. It is wrong to say that death is a friend when the Bible calls it an enemy.[15] It is wrong to imply that the blessed hope is a better place at death when the Bible says Christ’s second coming is the blessed hope.[16]

When the Thessalonians wanted to know about their loved ones who had fallen asleep in death, Paul told them not to “grieve as others do who have no hope”.[17] His instructions for them to teach each other were as follows:

“For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words. ”[18]

That is all the encouragement we need. Our hope is not in some mythical place that believers supposedly go when they die. Our hope is Jesus. He will not forget us. Death is real, but so is he.

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[1] Genesis 4:4 ESV.

[2] Genesis 4:10 ESV.

[3] Genesis 4:12 ESV.

[4] Genesis 25:8 ESV.

[5] Genesis 25:9-10 ESV.

[6] 1 Samuel 13:14.

[7] Acts 2:34 NLT.

[8] Psalm 110:1.

[9] John 11:23 ESV.

[10] John 11:11 ESV.

[11] John 20:17 ESV.

[12] Revelation 1:17-18 ESV.

[13] Ecclesiastes 9:5 ESV.

[14] Psalm 6:5 ESV.

[15] 1 Corinthians 15:26.

[16] Titus 2:13.

[17] 1 Thessalonians 4:13 ESV.

[18] 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 ESV.