How often do you think about death?
That is a question and a topic that most people would like to avoid for as long as possible. There are many who seem to succeed in avoiding death for a good long while, and many others who are not afforded that luxury. But no one can evade dealing with death forever because it is the great certainty of life (well, that and taxes as the saying goes). A person postpones dealing with death to their detriment because it is the one thing in this life that you can count on – that it will end. The great mystery of life is not knowing how or when it will end, which can make life more terrifying or more beautiful. This is why we must deal with death and decide if we will choose to live in terror or beauty.
The season of Lent, being played at the very beginning of Spring, might feel like an odd time to think about death as flowers bloom and leaves resurrect on branches. But it is important to remember that Lent leads through Good Friday before resurrection Sunday. In the upside-down wisdom of the Kingdom of God death comes before life or as Jesus put it, “For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” (Mt. 16:25).
Today, let’s deal with death by talking about fear, assumptions, and certainty so that faith, relationships, and lives may become more meaningful.
Fear
Let’s face it, death is scary. It is scary because it is unavoidable yet elusive, certain yet mysterious, and an end while also being a beginning. We don’t really understand death so is scares us. This is also why, as J.R.R. Tolkien put it, “all great stories are about one ultimate topic – death.” That which we don’t understand invites adventure, adventure brings uncertainty, and uncertainty brings fear.
There is plenty to be afraid in this life and most of it can be traced to the inevitability of death. So, what are we to do, live afraid? Certainly, not! Living in fear is no life at all. Don’t take it from me. The most repeated phrase/command in the Bible is “Be not afraid”. The refrain of the Bible is yes, life is scary (always has been and always will be), but the important thing is to not be afraid.
There is a Jewish prayer that dates back to the 1800’s which says, “The world is a narrow bridge, and the important thing is to not be afraid.” The idea here is you will not get very far if you are always looking down and rarely looking forward. This mindset has buoyed the Jewish people for centuries and countless calamities. Instead of looking down in fear, move forward with hope. Hope is the right response for the human condition. Despair and avoidance are downward distractions while hope is a heads-up orientation.
Hope must be a deliberate response to fear. Hope is a human thing, and it must be practiced. This is why Paul wrote, “We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Cor. 4:18).
Hope is about remembering. Throughout Scripture, God’s people are called to re-member themselves back to God. So, God’s people-built altars of remembrance. Christians practice communion to remember Jesus’ sacrifice. People throughout all time have dealt with death by remembering what makes us human because we so easily forget.
May fear not creep in because we have forgotten who God is, who we are, and how good this life is no matter when it comes to an end.
Assumptions About Death
There is a temptation to believe that if we could control the circumstances of our death, then we could lessen its sting. Som, we prepare financially, arrange our estates, or try to optimize health to delay the inevitable. But while preparation is wise, control is an illusion. We do not get to decide when or how we die. What we do get to decide is the kind of person death will meet when it arrives.
The Christian does not approach death with bravado but with confidence. Not confidence in avoiding death, but confidence in Christ. Paul said, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Phil. 1:21). Don’t mistake this for recklessness, but surrender. It is the acceptance that our lives are not our own, and that in Christ, even death is not a loss but a passage to a new life.
This confidence grows slowly by surrendering daily. Small acts of letting go prepare us for the great surrender of death. Forgiving an offense, loosening our grip on material “security”, stepping into the unknown with trust, each of these steps become a rehearsal for the final surrender. If we are obsessed with control, death will feel like a theft. But if we practice release, death will feel like stepping into the arms of a familiar Savior.
Certainty and Death
We live in a culture obsessed with optimization. Everything must be tracked, measured, and improved. We optimize our schedules, our diets, our workouts, our productivity. Yet death resists optimization. It refuses to be controlled. And this is precisely why we need mystery, doubt, and faith.
The message we are used it is that certainty is the key to peace. But faith teaches that peace is found not in certainty, but in trust. Hebrews 11:1 reminds us, “Faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” Faith embraces the unknown rather than attempting to eliminate it.
To deal with death well, we must reclaim a posture of wonder. Instead of resisting the mystery, we must embrace it. We can sit with the unanswerable questions, knowing that God is not threatened by them. We can let go of our need to have every loose end tied up, trusting that there is One who holds the end of the thread.
Dealing with Death Well
So how do we deal with death well? We begin by living well. Here are a few ways to start:
- Surrender Daily – Every day, let go of something small. Give up a grudge. Release an anxious thought. Let go of control and let love enter in.
- Remember Hope – Set up reminders of God’s faithfulness in your life. Read stories of his goodness. Surround yourself with people who point you toward hope, not despair.
- Look for Mystery – Allow yourself to sit with the unknown. Take a break from needing answers and find rest in not needing to know. Pray prayers that leave room for wonder.
- Be Present – Stop delaying joy. Laugh often. Love deeply. Show up for the people in your life. Be here, now.
- Prepare Your Soul, Not Just Your Affairs – While practical preparations for death are wise, spiritual preparation is paramount. Walk closely with Christ. Get to know him. Let your life be a testimony that, when death comes, it meets a person already acquainted with eternal life.
Death is coming whether we think about it or not, but we are not without hope. We do not grieve as those who have no hope (1 Thess. 4:13). We are people of the resurrection. We live with our eyes fixed on eternity, not as an escape from life but as a promise that every moment matters.
The world is a narrow bridge, and the important thing is not to be afraid. Amen.
By Brandon Gilliam
