LIFE TO DEATH TO LIFE
Photo by Aditya Saxena on Unsplash
This post is taken from my book, The Perfect Savior, a forty-day Easter devotional. Order from Our Daily Bread, Amazon, or BarneyCargile.com
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My friend Marilyn awoke one morning to learn that she’d been officially dead for several weeks. Her ordeal began when she attempted to renew a prescription. A clerk informed her, “I’m sorry, but you’re listed as deceased.” Evidently, another woman in the county with Marilyn’s name had died. Rather than cross-checking her identification, the two women’s identities were switched. Even the Social Security Administration failed to confirm my friend’s social security number (go figure) to be certain they were dealing with the correct Marilyn. Her bank account, annuities, and medications were all frozen.
Seems like restoring her identity would be easy, right? But Marilyn and her husband, Jim, had stepped into a quagmire of paperwork purgatory. Some days Marilyn spent hours on hold with government agencies, attempting to convince them she was indeed alive. Then the IRS got involved, and let’s just say that didn’t simplify her situation. After battling layers of bureaucratic blunders for six months, Marilyn was declared officially alive again.
In a tiny way, Marilyn’s life-to-death-to life story parallels the resurrection of Jesus. In Revelation 1:18, Jesus told the apostle John, “I was dead, and now look, I am alive forever and ever!” Obviously, there are huge distinctions between Marilyn’s resurrection and that of Jesus. Our Lord’s resurrection wasn’t some sort of clerical glitch. He literally died and literally rose from the dead. Never to die again.
Because Jesus rose, we have the assurance of a reward that lies ahead. Hebrews 6:19-20 states, “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where our forerunner, Jesus has entered on our behalf”.
Except for those alive when Christ returns, a day will come when all of us will die. For real, not because of some careless clerk. My soul will exit my body, and I will join Jesus in eternal bliss. All because Jesus arose from the dead and conquered death forever.
Ponder:
During times of trouble, how can you find strength in Christ’s resurrection?
In the midst of exile, how do you suppose Jesus’s words, “I was dead, and now look, I am alive forever and ever” impacted John’s live??
Pursue: For a deeper dive, study Hebrews 6:16-20.
Lord, free me from my fear of death. Help me trust you, my resurrected Lord.