Hope in the face of Death

Death and taxes. 

It's a quippey pretty well known phrase for the reality an inevabilitu of both things. Right now tax season in the USA is coming up in a few weeks. And we just entered Holy Week, as we prepare the remember in solemnity the death of Christ on the cross, and then celebrate His resurrection.

Death is a reality. One that will come to each and every one of us. The last week I've considered the reality of this, not just because of Easter. But also because someone who was a friend died, passing from this life to be with the Lord. 

Do we consider death? 

At times my mind has been captured in the wondering thought of what death actually is. It's something that whole our culture tries to deny we think about it, but I think many suffer in thinking about it in silence. We try to put out the inevitable reality that death comes for us all.

In my mind this became evident during the pandemic. Many in our culture mentally and emotionally broke at the stark confrontation that death is a reality. We have taken Death, and that it happens and shoved it in a back room, trying to sanitize and forget it so we can go on living our lives. 

Thankfully, I don't think about Death a lot normally. But I think we all should have a healthy understanding of it. Not to live in fear or apprehension, but to actually live life as it was intended...

Knowing that there is more than the here and now.

While for much of human history we have either idealized Death as a way to be remembered, or taken it as something to totally fear.

What Christ does is He gives us ultimate hope and victory in the face of it. Our final enemy is actually defeated. It's sting has been taken, and it's finality has been revered for those who trust and giver their entire allegiance to Christ and love their lives for Him. 

This is not for the sake of moping around saying, "I'm gonna die, just waiting around while I plan my funeral", or joyfully going into every deathly situation stupidly. What it means for us, because of the gospel that we can look death right in the face, know that we are in the hands of the King, creator, savior of the entire universe with the ultimate hope and promise that even after we die, it will be reversed in resurrection and we will indeed live again

 

So as we move into this Easter season, remember and consider the cross. The brutal reality of what it meant, and the impending death that Jesus was aware of from the beginning of His ministry. Remember that death comes for us all...but it doesn't end there

The cross changes everything. There is resurrection life in Christ