And we are not afraid but are quite content to die, for then we will be at home with the Lord. 2 Corinthians 5:8

 

Whether you fear it, have faith that gives you hope in it or just ignore it, all of us will experience death.

 

Here’s what death doesn’t have to mean: the end of love. One wise Christian leader facing terminal illness explained what this means. He remarked, ‘”When some people say, ‘Well then you die. It’s just over. There’s nothing to be afraid of.’ My response is, ‘What you’re saying is that death means the end of love. And you’re telling me not to dread that?’… Give me a break!… But if I know there’s love on the other side of death, I can face it. And if I know there is infinitely greater love, then I can really face it!”[1]

 

Our faith in a God of love who longs to spend all eternity with us in friendship, offers us a hope that scoffs in the face of death. Paul, writer of much of the Bible’s New Testament, came close to death many times and declared: “…we are not afraid but are quite content to die, for then we will be at home with the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:8).

 

Death isn’t an ending for the follower of Jesus but rather a beginning. It’s a transition, a graduation to our finally perfect bodies, the end of our sin struggle and never-ending joy in the One in Whom we live and move and have our beings (Acts 17:28).

 

As Tim Keller expressed it with the last words that he shared publicly, “There’s no downside for me. Not in the slightest.”[2] This same confidence can be your in relationship with Jesus.

 

[1] Huckabee, Tyler. “Tim Keller on Facing Death (and Resurrection).” Relevant Magazine, Relevant Media Group, 23 Nov. 2015, relevantmagazine.com/magazine/tim-keller-on-facing-death-and-resurrection/. Accessed 19 May 2023.

 

[2] Keller, Timothy. “There is no downside for me. Not in the slightest.” Instagram, 19 May 2023, www.instagram.com/p/CsboBfrg-ps/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==. Accessed 19 May 2023.