4 Truths to Remember for Those Afraid of Dying
By Aaron D’Anthony Brown
“In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?” (John 14:2)
The Greatest Fear
I’ve been told that public speaking is a greater fear than death for most people. Perhaps that is true, but if you told someone they had to speak to a crowd or die at that very moment, my guess is that most people would stomach their discomfort and talk. They may fumble their way through the speech, but they would be alive. So many people enjoy being alive in the physical sense. But that enjoyment is fueled by a fear of what comes afterward.
Does that describe you? Are you afraid of dying?
I had a chat with a friend recently, and he spoke about his fear of death. Since he doesn’t believe in Christ or an afterlife, he talked about how after we die, we cease to exist. Imagine that. It’s true that most of us won’t go down in history books. The people we know and love will also eventually pass away. Any memory of us will fade. Ostensibly, we vanish into nothingness. This image of death is rather bleak, and I imagine that’s the case for anyone who doesn’t believe in something more. For them, this life is all there is. Once it’s gone, nothing awaits.
However, the thoughts shared by my friend are not exactly unique. I know Christians who have been fearful of death. They avoid thinking about it as much as possible and focus on living life. Similarly, I, too, have, at different points in my existence, been afraid of death. However, God has not called us to live a life of fear. Not to death. In fact, God has given us reason not to fear death at all.
Intersecting Faith & Life:
Jesus conquered the grave.
Perhaps the main reason believers should not fear death is the victory Jesus has claimed on our behalf. He died and was punished for our iniquities. The damnation that would have found us no longer will because of the sacrifice Christ made. If you believe in that sacrifice, then reaffirm your confidence that Christ has taken care of you. Death will find you, but Hell will not claim you. You are one of God’s children.
Scripture talks about Heaven.
I remember talking to my mechanic about his near-death experience. He told me that he actually did technically die, but was brought back. Before that happened, he spoke of a field that he was standing in. He said he had never felt so much peace and that he didn’t want to come back. That experience reassured him that Heaven is real. Now, I can’t advocate for believing in people who talk about coming back from the dead and recount experiences Of Heaven or Hell. Maybe some of them are telling the truth. What we can say with certainty, however, is that the Bible makes mention of Heaven a few times. We don’t get the full picture, but we definitely get hints. Jesus Himself talked about His father’s house having “many rooms.” He’s preparing a place for you and me. Maybe death will catch us by surprise, but not Jesus.
God has not given you a spirit of fear.
Whether you fear death, public speaking, or something else, God has not called us to live a life of fear. There’s a reason that Scripture tells us over and over again not to be afraid. Two reasons, actually. One, fear is a natural part of our sinful nature. It’s a consequence of not accepting what we can’t control or understand. The second reason is that God wants us to know that he is bigger than our fears. Any fear. We stop panicking when we start trusting.
Fear the Lord, not death.
If we are fortunate enough to die of old age, perhaps we’ll be patiently or eagerly awaiting what is on the other side, but one thing we can do right now is have faith. God has not called us to live in fear of anything else but Him, and even that biblical fear is a reverential attitude towards the Lord. Loving, acknowledging, and trusting in His majesty. When we do that, we realize that this life is meant to be enjoyed, but this enjoyment is but a fraction of what’s to come.
Heaven is real, and it is so much greater than this life.
Further Reading:
Revelation 21:4
Isaiah 41:10
2 Timothy 1:7
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