The Case for Death, Again

I've been sadly lacking in blog posts for quite some time now, but here we go. I have posted before about a potential non-fiction book idea called The Case for Death, which I spent a little time on recently. Here is the updated version of the first part of what I have so far.

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The world is full of a vast variety of life, and even within our own species, there is a plethora of diversity.  We come from different places and go to different places.  We are all different shapes and sizes, skin colors and personality types.  Some of us play Duck Duck Goose, while others play Duck Duck Grey Duck.  We have different likes and dislikes.  Two people can look at the same thing and yet not see the same thing.  We are each like the snowflakes of winter, for no two of us are identical in every way.  God did not create us from an assembly line, choosing from a small set of default personality types, churning out human beings with limited variations.  No indeed; he took great care to mold each of us with his hand.  He made us each different, giving us each a uniqueness that is truly our own.  Yet there are certain things that are true for each of us.  First, we are each created and wholly loved by God.  He created our lives for a distinct purpose.  The second universal truth is often more difficult to accept.

One of the undeniable truths about our human lives is that, eventually, they end.  Each of us was born of a woman, our bodies knitted together in her womb by the very fingers of God.  We begin life as an infant, then grow big and strong and capable of amazing things.  I see other people with accomplishments that I can’t even fathom.  How did they do that?  How is that even possible?  I don’t understand it, but there are people all over this planet who amaze me on a regular basis.  God created us to live big, amazing lives, full of great purpose, and there are many people out there who are living their lives to the fullest.

However, we are not meant to carry on with such amazing things forever.  Someday, each of our bodies will lose its vibrancy; blood will no longer flow through our veins, our minds will no longer churn with imagination, and life will no longer pour out from within our physical selves.  This is not something we can outrun or evade or deceive, for death is simply an inevitability that we must accept.  Yes, science is continually looking for ways to extend our lives, which there is nothing wrong with, of course.  We long to be immortal, to never have to say goodbye to the existence we know.  Yet even the most brilliant advances in science or the most impressive technological innovations will not defeat the inevitability that is coming for every one of us, eventually.  Each of us has a day, the final day of our Earthly lives, perhaps soon, perhaps not for many years.  Only God knows the day, for He is the one that created that day, and every day from now until then.

Even as we acknowledge and understand that our future includes death, it is true that we often fear it and despise it, holding on to our lives and our remaining time with all our might. Humans fear their death like nothing else, and that fear stems from the fact that we simply do not fully comprehend the part that death plays in our lives.  We look at it from the human perspective, not from that of an eternal God.  We miss His plan for us; His plan for the end and the beginning of each human life. For all things, good or bad in the sight of men, work together for the goodness of God.  We find it difficult to understand that God’s plan for our lives includes the day they end.

The scriptures tell us not to fear.  Once Jesus has become our lord, and God becomes the center and purpose for our life, there is nothing to separate us from Him and the salvation that we now have. Nothing in this world, no powers in the spiritual realms, and not the eventual death that leads from this life into the next.  Once the choice has been made, God will never leave your side.
I’ve found that most fears are inherently irrational.  We fear spiders, despite the fact that they are tiny, fragile, and usually harmless.  One of my main fears in life is public speaking.  It turns me into a man who can barely put together a coherent thought.  When I’ve been in the unfortunate position of having to give a speech, I need to have every word printed out before me.  If I don’t, I my mind will likely become a completely blank.

Here’s a true story.  During a speech class in grade school, I stood up in front of the class to give an instructional speech on how to fold a paper airplane.  I got up with my piece of paper, and my mind went blank.  I had absolutely no idea what to say.  I was completely terrified.  And so, I didn’t say anything.  Not a single word.  I simply stood there, folded myself a paper airplane while my hands were shaking, and then sat down.  I got in C in the class, which was probably much better than I should have received.  Oh, I hated speech class, so very much.  I hated the way it made me feel, from the moment I knew I had to give a speech to the moment it was over, and then some more.  It wasn’t until a speech class I had in college that I received better than a C in such a class.  I still hate it when I have to talk in front of a group of people, even if that group is fairly small.
Is this fear rational?  Of course not.  What do I think is going to happen?  Did my fellow students in speech class surround me and beat me up?  Do I get taken outside and dragged through the street whenever I open my mouth at work?  No, of course not.  There is nothing truly bad that happens when I speak in front of people.  The bad things that happen are occurring all in my head, due to the fear I’ve built up over the things that won’t actually hurt me.  The pain and suffering that comes from fear is usually self-caused and worse than the actual consequence that result from the thing we fear.

We fear things because we do not understand them, or because we give them too much power.  We make ourselves weaker than we need to be.  We allow ourselves to be overtaken by things that have no real power over us.  This includes spiders, public speaking, and, of course, death.

We must change the way we view death, for it is not the end, but merely a time of change.  It is not something to be feared, but something to be understood and accepted. As strange a thought as this might be, death is actually something to look forward to. Not in any depressive or suicidal manner, but in such a way that we long to be with Christ in the world to come. For this world is not our home; we are as aliens in a foreign land, and Heaven is our true home. Our father waits there for us, ready to welcome us into his glorious kingdom, and we should wait patiently and yet with excitement for the day when we walk those streets of gold. We will no longer be strapped with the problems of this world.  We will no longer live in fear, but will have all of eternity to be with Christ.
Our time on this Earth is precious, and even while we are young and the years seem to stretch out before us, death is coming for each human, some long before they expect it. We know not what day will be our last, but that is not for us to choose. God has planned each day of our lives, and He knows what day He will call you away from your body and into His presence. Do not fear that hour, for a greater glory awaits us than we could ever experience in these bodies. Live each day as though death was around the corner, for it truly is, even if we do not see it.
In The Case for Death, in order to improve our understanding, we will consider seven different myths about death.  These are things that, as a race, we humans often believe as fact, and yet, they are not true in the eyes of God.  Some of these myths may be difficult to accept, yet we should be striving to see things as God sees them, for he is the ultimate source of all knowledge and truth.  If we rely on our own understanding, we are putting our faith into something that is terribly flawed and limited.  God is eternal, and only through Him and His word will we be able to truly understand and accept death.

I am not writing this book as a theologian (because I’m not one).  I’m not a Bible scholar, though I feel like I could defeat the average American in Bible trivia (which my family did play often growing up).  I do not perceive myself as having a better understanding of the infinite truths of God than any other soul in the history of the world.  I am merely a Baptist preacher’s kid, now in my mid-thirties, who wants the world to know Jesus.  I want the truth and the good news of my savior to be known and accepted by everyone in the world, because the eternal fates of all unbelievers hang in the balance.  I also want today’s Christ followers to be lights shining to the world, not fearing the world or the difficult truths it holds.

We do not know what tomorrow holds, but the unknowns of tomorrow should not hold us back from living well today.  God holds your life in His hands, and His timing is perfect. Trust in Him and do not fear the future, and do not fear death, for on the other side of our last day is the first day of a beautiful beginning.