Death is an event every one of us will encounter. At some point in time, every one of us will experience the death of a family member, friend, or acquaintance, and eventually our own demise. Each individual will be affected and react uniquely to this universal experience. As a pastor, I have seen many ways in which people face death. I have witnessed it in those who are passing and in those who remain after a loved one passes. For most, facing death personally is a totally new and unfamiliar experience. I have met a few who have experienced death and were given a choice to return or were sent back by the Father, for His express purpose. Those individuals have a totally different perspective on life than those of us who have not had that spiritual experience.

Over the years, I have discovered that most who have a relationship with Christ, face death very differently than those who are unbelievers and have no hope. All though, Christians vary in their response also, when facing the unknown. Some become fearful, some can hardly wait to go, and others are actually escorted home by the presence of God.

My cousin, as he was being wheeled out of the house to the awaiting ambulance was having a conversation with Jesus. His wife said,”Cecil would speak, wait till he heard a response, then speak again!”

When I was out of state, my grandfather asked my aunt who was sitting with him to ask my father and brother to come see him. When they entered the room, they detected a glow about him. He told them he wanted to say goodbye, that he wasn’t going to make it this time. Then he laid back on the pillows he had been propped up on and with a smile on his face, he went home to be with the Lord.

My 90 year old aunt, who had been in the mission field for 40 years, was ready and eager to go. As she lay dying, she kept asking, “What’s taking so long?”

I also encountered those who needed to be given permission to leave because of their perceived responsibility toward family members. My own father was one of those. We had to assure him it was okay for him to go and that we would see to it that our mom would be taken care of.

Those who remain also respond in various ways to their loss, from the mother who needed tranquilizers, to the family who celebrated for their three lost family members in a drowning accident, because they knew their loved ones had gone home to be with the Lord. We all express and experience grief in our own ways and depths.

What I want us to see, as believers in Christ, is how God views the death of those who are His. What is His perspective?

We should never lose sight of the fact that God, our Creator, is sovereign - the supreme authority. He is omnipotent - all powerful; omnipresent - present everywhere; and omniscient - all knowing. To expound on the word, omniscient, it means complete, having unlimited knowledge, awareness or understanding, perceiving all things.

Quite often we really do not ‘understand’ the things that are taking place. However, we can always trust Him. It seems lately we have been learning of someone’s passing regularly. In our understanding, we feel they were too young, or their death was too soon, or before their time.

Look at what Isaiah 57:1 reveals to us concerning God’s perspective. The Israelites were about to suffer some very trying times. (sound familiar to what we are going through today?) God comforted the Israelites with what He said to them through His prophet, Isaiah (NLT) He says, “Good people (my note, the righteous) pass away; the godly often die before their time. But no one seems to care or wonder why. No one seems to understand that God is protecting them from the evil (the face of evil) to come.”

When the Lord takes us home so that we could escape the evil to come, what is He taking us to? A place with Him where Revelation 21:4 describes what it will be like. “And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away."

I am going to stop for now, however, we will look at this subject more next time. We will look in depth at one of the verses that has brought me comfort time and time again. It is Psalm 116:15, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.”

He is trustworthy! He loves you! He will carry you through!

Unless noted otherwise all scriptures are from the New King James Version.

NLT New Living Translation