Daily Good News – A Matter of Life and Death

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May 26, 2015 1425

“If a man keeps my word, he will never see death” (John 8:51).

Chapter eight of the Gospel of John records an astonishing series of claims by Jesus, but none more surprising than this one. It must have shocked his listeners. Everyone died. The great Hebrew prophets were all dead – Abraham, Isaiah, Elijah and all the others. We can imagine the people asking each other: “Who does he think he is that he can overrule the natural laws of life?” Jesus was setting himself up as greater than the greatest of their ancestors and prophets.

But what we call ‘death’ wasn’t death to Jesus. Remember that he referred to Lazarus as ‘sleeping’ before he raised him. Jesus didn’t concern himself with physical death as we think of it. For him, that was just a moment. The person who accepts Jesus’ salvation might sleep a little while, but that is nothing compared to the life that is now assured in Christ.

Read Jesus’ words in the Gospels and make them your guiding light, and you will never die. Yes, you may lie down in the grave for a sleep before Jesus returns, but when the Lord died and rose again, he tore the gates from the prison-house of death so that it no longer has any holding power over those who belong to him. Soon he will return and awaken his people to eternal life.