"'Everybody
dies Mom.' Those were the words I said to my mom several months ago
when we were having one of our daily phone calls. “Even if God does heal
you now,” I said, “Someday you will die. We all will die.”
I realize, somewhat regrettably, that those words were blunt, callous and maybe hurtful. Especially when talking to someone with cancer. But I didn’t say those words to hurt my mom or because I was being unsympathetic. Those were the kind of direct words my mom would have said to me if the roles were reversed. And mom knew this. She agreed with me during that same phone call.
Mom was a pretty blunt, straightforward and direct person. She didn’t sugar coat her words a whole lot. Sometimes her words hurt and sometimes they didn’t, but mom’s words always came from a place of truth and love. Even if we didn’t realize it at the time. Nevertheless, I said those words to my mom because, even though we were hoping and praying for God to perform a miracle, the truth was, someday my mom (and my dad) would leave us behind.
The truth is this: None of us are getting out of this world alive. The minute we entered into this world we all were infected with a terminal disease. That disease is called “sin.” And the only outcome of sin is death. That’s the hurtful bad news. The truthful and loving good news is this: death is dead because Jesus Christ conquered it. And, only through Christ Jesus, can we live through death.
John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” What that means is that, even though our physical bodies can die, if we believe in Christ Jesus, our spirit, the thing that really makes up who we really are, does not have to die. What’s also interesting about John 3:16, and thanks to Pastor Mike for pointing this out, is that even God himself wasn’t exempt from losing someone He loved. God sent His one and only son to die in our place for all the sin we would become diseased with when we came into this world. God understands the pain we feel when we lose someone we love. He understands it because He’s experienced it himself. And just as it pained God to see His son die on the cross, it pained Him to think about all of His creation lost to death. So God decided to paint a better picture. A picture of himself, his son Jesus Christ, and all of us, together, spending eternity with him. No more tears. No more hurt. No more sickness. And no more death. I don’t know about you, but I’ve experienced enough tears, enough hurt, enough sickness and enough death in just my 38 years here. And while I’m sure I’ll experience more of these things before leaving this world, I want to be certain that I’ll be going to a place where those things exist no more.
My dear friends, listen to me. Death will come for us all. But God is real. His son, Jesus Christ is real. These are not things we believers tell ourselves just to cope with life and death. No. I have seen God perform miracles. I have seen Jesus Christ change my life and the lives of others around me.
Please know this, a life with Christ, here on earth, is not painless. It’s not without tears, hurt, sickness and death. But through a life with Christ, we are able to overcome these things in this world.
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33
Praise you Lord. Amen."
I realize, somewhat regrettably, that those words were blunt, callous and maybe hurtful. Especially when talking to someone with cancer. But I didn’t say those words to hurt my mom or because I was being unsympathetic. Those were the kind of direct words my mom would have said to me if the roles were reversed. And mom knew this. She agreed with me during that same phone call.
Mom was a pretty blunt, straightforward and direct person. She didn’t sugar coat her words a whole lot. Sometimes her words hurt and sometimes they didn’t, but mom’s words always came from a place of truth and love. Even if we didn’t realize it at the time. Nevertheless, I said those words to my mom because, even though we were hoping and praying for God to perform a miracle, the truth was, someday my mom (and my dad) would leave us behind.
The truth is this: None of us are getting out of this world alive. The minute we entered into this world we all were infected with a terminal disease. That disease is called “sin.” And the only outcome of sin is death. That’s the hurtful bad news. The truthful and loving good news is this: death is dead because Jesus Christ conquered it. And, only through Christ Jesus, can we live through death.
John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” What that means is that, even though our physical bodies can die, if we believe in Christ Jesus, our spirit, the thing that really makes up who we really are, does not have to die. What’s also interesting about John 3:16, and thanks to Pastor Mike for pointing this out, is that even God himself wasn’t exempt from losing someone He loved. God sent His one and only son to die in our place for all the sin we would become diseased with when we came into this world. God understands the pain we feel when we lose someone we love. He understands it because He’s experienced it himself. And just as it pained God to see His son die on the cross, it pained Him to think about all of His creation lost to death. So God decided to paint a better picture. A picture of himself, his son Jesus Christ, and all of us, together, spending eternity with him. No more tears. No more hurt. No more sickness. And no more death. I don’t know about you, but I’ve experienced enough tears, enough hurt, enough sickness and enough death in just my 38 years here. And while I’m sure I’ll experience more of these things before leaving this world, I want to be certain that I’ll be going to a place where those things exist no more.
My dear friends, listen to me. Death will come for us all. But God is real. His son, Jesus Christ is real. These are not things we believers tell ourselves just to cope with life and death. No. I have seen God perform miracles. I have seen Jesus Christ change my life and the lives of others around me.
Please know this, a life with Christ, here on earth, is not painless. It’s not without tears, hurt, sickness and death. But through a life with Christ, we are able to overcome these things in this world.
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33
Praise you Lord. Amen."
Originally published to Facebook 11/4/17
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