Why You Shouldn’t Fear Death
By Rick Warren
“For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:17 NLT).
Everyone fears death.
But, as we prepare to celebrate Easter, it’s important to remember that what Jesus did on the cross put an end to that fear.
In Romans 5:17 Paul writes, “For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ” (NLT).
How did Jesus break the power of sin and death in our lives?
The Bible says, “Since all of these sons and daughters have flesh and blood, Jesus took on flesh and blood to be like them. He did this so that by dying he would destroy the one who had power over death (that is, the devil). In this way he would free those who were slaves all their lives because they were afraid of dying” (Hebrews 2:14-15 GW).
God became human so he could die. Only a human could die. And only by dying could Jesus break the power of death. It’s the only way he could deliver everyone who has lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying.
That’s what baptism is all about. It’s a picture of Jesus defeating death. Baptism represents the truth that one day you’ll die and be buried in the ground. But then you’ll come back to life because of what Jesus did on the cross.
Romans 6:3-4 says it like this: “Don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? When we were baptized into his death, we were placed into the tomb with him. As Christ was brought back from death to life by the glorious power of the Father, so we, too, should live a new kind of life.”
Your baptism is a symbol to the world—and to you—that death will not be the end of you.
You have nothing to fear because Jesus conquered death.
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This devotional © 2018 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
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