Divinity Defining Death. Rev 4
Revelation 6: 9 – 11, 7: 13 – 17; 1 Corinthians 15: 1 – 4, 20 -26
We can never give all to God unless God is all and absolute.
In the West humanity defines death as loss. However, Divinity defines death as gain. Humanity sees death as the destroyer. Divinity sees death as the enemy. These are two distinctly different views about death.
A few evenings ago I caught the latter part of the ABC TV programme, “You Can’t Ask That”. The focus was on centenarians. Most questioned the meaning of life and none seemed to see the possibility of life beyond the grave. Not that the show was about life after death. However it was clear that many questioned what the purpose of life was. Their answers strongly suggested that life was meaningless apart from family and personal stuff. Christianity’s answer to the meaning of life is so profound in its simplicity: to praise our Maker. There lies a sermon in itself, but today I want to focus on what happens to us when we die.
The secularist and atheist argue that death marks the end of everything for us. I am a little bemused when I attend a secularist funeral. Naturally no mention of the resurrection, but the Celebrant must offer some comfort. So we get eternity brought in via the back door. They will talk about your loved one living on in your memory. It’s intended to be comforting. Whether it is I don’t know. The issue remains that the belief is that death ends life for us – full stop.
On the other hand Christians are not so clear. Listen to our conversations and we seem to be all over the place. A notion exists that there is life after death. Unfortunately it is more akin to the ancient Greek worldview of a spiritual realm above the earth, and the Greek view of the soul. Christians have modified this view to include a realm of punishment below the earth. Of course they believed in a flat earth so the language is caught up in that view of heaven above and hell below.
The people of the Bible believed that God began life, sustained life and brought life to its conclusion. Their hope was in God the Creator who will eternally keep us [Ps 121]. By the time we get to Jesus’ life and ministry there is a general view amongst the Jews that God would raise the dead when the Kingdom of God comes. They believed God would establish his Kingdom on this earth. Heaven was not their destiny. As I have said before, heaven is God’s control tower. God’s future kingdom on earth was their ultimate future. The Jewish faith held that God would raise them in a general resurrection and give them new bodies. Paul expresses this quite clearly in 1 Corinthians 15. If we keep this understanding in mind we will find it easier to understand NT thinking.
Jesus’ disciples, who were all Jews and they sensed that Jesus was the Messiah who would bring in God’s Kingdom. (Remember Messiah is the Hebrew for Christ.) They were a little uncertain about Jesus as the Christ when he was arrested, beaten and crucified. But then that amazing event, which was first witnessed by women, changed everything. Jesus’ resurrection confirmed who Jesus is and it told them that God’s Kingdom had come in Jesus. Jesus is seen as the first to be raised from the dead. A new era had begun for them. They didn’t know how it would unfold, but it had begun.
Jesus had turned everything upside down. Everything about Jesus is strange. He was powerful yet humble, self-sacrificing, included women in his group, and he died a death at the hands of the Romans with the collaboration of some Jewish leaders. This should not have happened to God’s Messiah. But the Resurrection of Jesus completely changed their understanding. The resurrection showed that Jesus had conquered death. The ultimate enemy of humanity, death. Amazingly it was sacrificial love that destroyed the power of death not might and force. What the first Christians quickly came to understand was that faith in the Lord Jesus Christ meant that through him they would share in the Resurrection. They didn’t see heaven as a destiny. They saw the Resurrection heralding the Kingdom of God, and that they would share in it.
We have some marvellous lessons from our readings today and the Bible as a whole. I hope the Spirit opens your heart and mind to them.
Firstly, Revelation confirms the truth, as 1 Corinthians does, that when we die as faithful followers of Christ we will be incorporated into the presence of God. The promise of Scripture is that the believer goes to God. Remember that Jesus spoke about being the bread of eternal life and that those who believed in him would have eternal life [Jn 6: 27; 3:16]. No matter what we experience on this earth, if we trust Jesus and walk in his footsteps we will reign with him as priests and kings. [Rev 1:6; 5:10; Cf Isaiah 61:6; 1 Peter 2:9]. This language of ‘priests and kings’ only illustrates our intimate relationship and fine status with God the Creator.
John of Patmos sees that trials and tribulations are coming to the church. However it will not be a total disaster for the Church. Rather the opposite is true. John paints a picture of those Christians, who have died through persecution, sitting under the altar before God in the heavenly throne room [Rev 6:9]. They are told to wait ther in God’s presence until the Resurrection. In other words when we die we go to God and wait until the day of the Resurrection and the conclusion of the Kingdom of God on Earth. Their acceptance and protection is displayed in this marvellous picture of intimacy. Before the throne of God is the heavenly altar and they rest there in the very presence of God. The imagery is merely reinforcing the truth that when we die and especially when we die as faithful people, we will enter into the presence of God. It also implies that we should not see this life as all that is. This earthly life is only a small part of eternity.
When I think of what has given me the greatest satisfaction in life I think of worshipping God. There have been times when I have been worshipping God that I have experienced what Charles Wesley wrote about in that lovely hymn Love Divine. The last two lines say it all.
Till we cast our crowns before thee,
Lost in wonder, love and praise.
These words tell us all. When we give God our all we end up with more than all. I am speaking of those moments when everything else pales into insignificance in the face of God’s loving, restoring and calling presence. Instead of speaking of joy – a good word – I think I just feel totally satisfied. My longings, dreams, retaliations, justifications all collapse into this moment of wonder and praise before the Creator God, the Christ and the Holy Spirit.
The second thing I understand and want to affirm is that God includes the unbeliever. The book of Revelation reinforces this truth, which is expressed in Isaiah and the NT as a whole. Although there is a difference between dying as a faithful witness of Christ Jesus and dying as an unbeliever, the unbeliever will also be ultimately included. How and when this is achieved I do not know, but I do know and believe that God’s love and power is never limited. Scripture alludes to this many times. We cannot exhaust the love of God.
The third thing, which the book of Revelation clearly affirms, is that God is Lord of all. If God is Creator of all it means that God is never out of control. God’s lordship means God has absolute authority. Therefore no matter what is happening to us we are never beyond God’s care and compassion. It follows that we can never give all to God unless God is all and absolute.
Fourthly the Resurrection sets out our purpose in life. We are to live our lives in praise of God and as a witness to God and the Lord Christ in the power of the God the Holy Spirit.
Hold dear to these truths my friend, but now may I offer you a postscript on our funeral service. Yes a ‘P.S’. Please make sure that your family knows your wishes for your funeral. Nothing saddens me more that experiencing a Christian’s funeral where the non-believing family determines not to have a Christian funeral. Or they determine to water down the funeral to suit their beliefs rather than their loved one’s beliefs. Tell your children what you want. Remember if we rely on the Resurrection of Christ Jesus to be with God, then let us celebrate the Resurrection faith at our funeral too. And ‘P.P.S.’ Remember a funeral service is a celebration of the deceased’s life – a celebration of their Faith in God the Creator. Secondly, a funeral service offers a structure to grieve and mourn the loss of our loved one. The funeral service is both for the deceased and those who mourn. Our funeral service is also our final earthly witness to God.
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Peter C Whitaker, Leighmoor UC: 04/06/2017
pgwhitaker@tpg.com.au
/ www.leighmoorunitingchurch.org.au
