Word of Salvation – Vol. 40 No.45 – December 1995

 

Life After Death

 

Sermon by Rev. W. Wiersma on Lord’s Day 22

 

Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord.

It seems to me that the two subjects for today, the resurrection of the body and eternal life, are comforting and exciting only to people who are somehow involved in the suffering of mankind or who seriously desire to serve and praise God.  To put it differently, the resurrection and eternal life are meaningful subjects only to those who are faced with death or who themselves have taken up their cross, are denying themselves and are following Christ.

Let’s face it, many of us are far too comfortable with this earthly life to give much thought to what will happen to us when we die.  Most of us don’t want to think about our own death till we are at least retired, or till some signs of old age and decay become too strong to be ignored.

Many of us are too engrossed in this life and the pleasures of this life to think about the things that are above.  Quite a few of us reckon that as long as we are happy and comfortable, that’s all that matters.  And much so called Christian teaching is geared to just that desire for earthly comforts and pleasures.

How cold and callous can you get!  Never to shed a tear for the suffering and the dying; never to get involved in the hurt and fears of your neighbour.  Just to be concerned for your own happiness.

O Lord save us from our heartlessness.  Give us hearts that beat with love; hearts that can weep with those who weep.
Lord, forgive that we often walk at great distance around those who have been crushed by the cruelty of men.
Forgive us for refusing to get involved – for failing to share Your love with the needy.
Break through the walls of immunity which we have built up for ourselves, and grant us the sensitivity to feel the hurt that is caused by sin and death.
Grant us the openness to sense the despair of those who know they are perishing.
Grant us the compassion to share the word of life and hope with them.
In Jesus’ Name.

It is to those who are prepared to face and deal with death and dying that the resurrection of the body has profound meaning.  Resurrection means that life is not pointless and senseless.

I am reminded of the book of Ecclesiastes which seems such a disturbingly pessimistic book – everything is seen as vanity.  This is so because much of it is written from the viewpoint of the natural man.  I mean it describes how life is actually experienced.  Without the viewpoint of faith in God, without the hope of resurrection, life can appear utterly pointless and prospect-less.

But Christians – believers in Jesus Christ – know of the resurrection of the body.  They believe it because their Lord and Saviour has risen from the dead.  He who died for His people now lives for His people.  He who calls us to share His death, invites us to share His life.

Paul calls the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.  Jesus promised that where He is, His people will be also.  “In my Father’s house are many mansions,” He said.

Now, quite frankly, the Bible tells us very little about what happens when Christians die.  The Christian church has been in the habit of talking about going to heaven.  And that is fine, so long as we realise that the Bible does not tell us much, if anything, about what it is like for believers between the time of their death and the moment of their resurrection which will take place when Christ comes back to this earth in glory.

You can look up the references which the Catechism gives for its statement that the believer’s soul will be taken immediately after this life to Christ its head.  Under Answer 57 you will see reference to Luke 23:43 and Philippians 1:21-23 (read these verses).

But the emphasis in the Scriptures is not on our going to heaven.  It is on something else.

I am referring, for instance, to the promise that nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.  Nothing will be able to rip believers out of the grasp of our Saviour’s hand.  So in death, as much as in life, the believer is the Lord’s and is under the love and protection of God.

In Colossians 3 the apostle Paul says that our life is hidden with Christ in God.  We are therefore urged to set our minds on the things that are above, and not on things that are upon this earth.  We are to value the life we have in Christ.  What that life in all its fullness is really like, will be revealed when Jesus comes again.

The point to remember here is that our body will be part of that glorious life, just as Christ’s body is part of His victory over death and of His resurrection to life.  This means that our complete person is saved.  Salvation from perdition and death is not just something for our soul – it is for our body too.

Perhaps that is why the Bible has more to say about the new earth, where the people of God will live after Christ’s return, than about heaven where Christians are said to go after death.  In fact, you can see from the second lot of references under Answer 57, that Scripture has more to say about the resurrection body than about the soul of believers.

The whole issue is, I believe, put in the right perspective in the last line of Answer 58, which speaks about the blessedness in which we are to praise God eternally.  Life, in the real sense of the word is God-centred.  Eternal life is to know God.  Eternal life is to have a good relationship with God.  Eternal life is not to be seen as an endless lazing about on downy clouds.  How boring that would be!

Eternal life is pictured in Scripture as Paradise restored and improved.  We were originally created to glorify God in loving and thoughtful care and enjoyment of God’s creation.  Is that not what life on the new earth will be about?  About serving God; about serving God in an environment that is free from the frustrations, stress and hurt brought about by sin.

Life is about serving God in an atmosphere of perfect peace, of perfect contentment and love.  Life is the joy of adoring the wisdom and power of Him who has designed and made all things.  I’m almost inclined to say that in heaven, I mean on the new earth, there will possibly be a lot of crying – there will be many tears of joy.  What kind of joy?  The joy of recognising the goodness and wisdom of God.  Is that not what brings tears of joy to our eyes now?  The joy of hearts united in faith and love?  The joy of wonder at God’s mercy, grace and power?

Yes, we have begun to experience something of that joy already, haven’t we?  I know for sure that some of us have.  I have seen people crying tears of joy in church and in their homes.  I have seen radiant smiles and heard songs of praise in which we express our joy in God and the joy of the fellowship of faith in Christ with each other.

It is a pity isn’t it, that joy usually doesn’t last very long?
Isn’t that a struggle for some of us, or should I say, for most of us?
That the warmth of gazing upon God’s goodness in all that He has made and done seems to go so quickly?  Coldness returns all too soon.  Too soon we are taken up by petty matters and arguments.

Lord, who shall deliver us from the body of this death?  When will I be able to rejoice in the Lord without distraction and anger, pain and blasphemous thoughts?

We have our spiritual highlights – but most of the time it is all pretty mundane.  Will we ever love God with all our heart and with all our strength?

Lord, fill us with Your Spirit.

And even in that we have to live by faith and live in hope, for in this life even the holiest of men have only a small beginning of the perfect obedience which God requires and the Holy Spirit gives.  We must keep on praying.  But perfect blessedness is a thing of the future, because not until we see Jesus as He is, shall we be fully like Him in perfect holiness and righteousness.

But we have the Spirit.  We have faith in Christ, the down-payment of what is still to come.  We have Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.  And His promises are sure.

As we wait for their fulfilment, we are called to pray and serve.  We are called to complete the suffering of Christ.  We are to give our life in sacrificial love for the advantage of our neighbour, for it is those who lose their life that will find it.  It is those who serve and suffer for Christ who will share His glory and honour.

May the Lord, through His Spirit, grant us much compassion for those who are perishing.  In caring for them our hopes will be challenged.  And looking to Christ we shall find our hopes confirmed.

Amen.