American horror writer H.P. Lovecraft claimed that the most powerful fear is fear of the unknown, but I think, for most, it is more likely the fear of death—notwithstanding that, to an extent, death and the unknown are synonymous. Even for the Christian, death can be (frankly, is) a terrifying prospect, and it tempts us constantly towards fear and debilitating anxiety. Yet, I think it need not do so.
The Scriptures commend consideration of mortality as an opportunity to better understand our relationship to Christ. In his Second Epistle to the Corinthians (Ch. 4, v. 10), the apostle Paul says of himself and his companions that they are “[a]lways bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.” Death is a part of Christ’s identity and thus of every Christian’s. Jesus is not merely the eternal God; according to the Revelation of John (Ch. 1, v. 18), he is “[…]he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, [is] alive for evermore, Amen[…].” Perhaps death is the central attribute of Jesus’ identity.
To Moses, God famously declared, “I AM THAT I AM,” (Book of Exodus: Ch. 3, v. 14), so it seems undeniable that life is at the core of God’s identity. However, Jesus—God the Son—presents himself quite differently. Before his crucifixion, he instructed his disciples to commemorate, not his birth, nor his resurrection, but rather his death (The Gospel according to Luke: Ch. 22, v. 19). Expounding the significance of communion in his First Epistle to the Corinthians (Ch. 11, v. 26), Paul says, “[… A]s often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till he come.” When Christ says, “This do in remembrance of me,” the remembrance is, perhaps most fundamentally, of his death. Likewise, describing baptism, Paul says, “Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?” (Epistle to the Romans: Ch. 6, v. 3). Death is at the heart of the ceremonies of communion and baptism—because death is at the heart of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
In Leviticus (Ch. 17, v. 11), God says, “[… T]he life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the alter to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.” It is unfortunate but undeniable that death is the consequence of sin and that the atonement of the human soul to God cannot come except through the sacrifice of blood—of life. The message of the Gospel is that, as God demands a sacrifice, he also provides one: Himself.
In the Gospel, we learn that God became a man, Jesus Christ, and dwelt among us. This is what is commonly called the Incarnation. But, if we end the story there, the Gospel is incomplete, and the Incarnation itself is incomplete. In the Epistle to the Hebrews (Ch. 2, v. 15-16), we read, “[… Jesus] also himself likewise took part of [flesh and blood]; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” The death of Christ was, in this respect, the completion of the Incarnation. Christ said, “It is finished,” when he died because it was his death that ended the reign of death and sin over humanity: “[… S]in, when it is finished, bringeth forth death,” (Epistle of James: Ch. 1, v. 15) and Christ tasted that death for everyone (Epistle to the Hebrews: Ch. 2, v. 9).
It is through the death of Christ, through God sharing completely in the sufferings of humankind, that the miracle of the resurrection, the hope of humankind sharing completely in the life of God, is made possible. Paul says in his Second Epistle to the Corinthians (Ch. 5, v. 19), “[…] God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them,” and Christ’s death completed that reconciliation. In so doing, it delivers all who believe in Christ from sin and death (The Gospel according to John: Ch. 3, v. 16; Epistle to the Romans: Ch. 10, v. 9-13) and has the power to deliver us also from the fear of death.
The Bible tells us the gift of eternal life comes freely through faith in Christ (Epistle to the Ephesians: Ch. 2, v. 8); God does not ask us to struggle to attain it or to maintain it (Epistle to the Ephesians: Ch. 2, v. 9). The struggle was Christ’s and so—as noted above—is finished (Epistle to the Galatians: Ch. 2, v. 21). But, the Christian—that is, the believer—is called not merely to receive salvation but additionally, if they will, to follow and live by Christ, demonstrating his person and his message to others. In this discipline, meditating upon the presence of Christ within us and our lives and drawing closer to him, we find the strength to live the present mortal life: “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” (Epistle to the Galatians: Ch. 2, v. 20) In his First Epistle to the Corinthians (Ch. 15, v. 51), Paul tells us that not all Christians die before Christ’s return, saying, “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,” but for most—including for Paul himself—death is a part of the Christian pilgrimage. However, it need not be a source of weakness.
The believer’s strength comes from God (Book of Exodus: Ch. 15, v. 2; Book of Psalms: Ch. 118, v. 14, 21; Book of Isaiah: Ch. 12, v. 2; Epistle to the Philippians: Ch. 4, v. 13), and Paul declares in his Epistle to the Romans (Ch. 8, v. 37-39) that death has no power to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Christ’s work changed death into an act of love—into an expression of the perfect love of God (The Gospel according to John: Ch. 15, v. 13). Even if we are yet imperfect, God’s love, manifested in Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, is perfect and has the power to cast out our fears (First Epistle of John: Ch. 4, v. 18). When we meditate on his love, his life, his death, and his resurrection, our own mortality need only remind us of our constant fellowship and walk with our victorious Lord Jesus Christ, who is behind us and beside us and before us and within us. We may have no strength or courage of ourselves, but Paul says in his Second Epistle to the Corinthians (Ch. 3, v. 5), “[… O]ur sufficiency is of God;” and again in his First Epistle to the Corinthians (Ch. 3, v. 21-23), “[… L]et no man glory in men. For all things are yours; Whether […] life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours; And ye are Christ’s; and Christ is God’s.” Christ gives to us all things—including the power to live and die without fear. As the Moravians say, “our Lamb has conquered; let us follow Him.”
(Photo by Julia Weihe on Unsplash)
Comparing Notes 