90. WHEN WE DIE. Job 14:14.

After AD 616, The first Christian Missionaries came to the courts of King Edwin in Northumbria in England. When they presented the Gospel. The King listened; then consulted his advisors. One Nobleman said; “Life is like a banquet hall. Inside is light, and warm with feasting, but outside is cold and dark. A sparrow flies in through a window at one end...and out through a window at the other end. That’s what life is like. At birth we emerge from the unknown, and for a while we are here...reasonably comfortable and happy, but then we fly out into the cold...dark … unknown future. Can this new religion … lighten that darkness for us.?” We who believe in the resurrection can answer, “YES!” a faulty heartbeat, a malignant cell or tragic accident can end life as we know it. But that’s not the end. And unless you believe that, here is what you are left with, from Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians (15:17-20) ”And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith has nothing to it, you are still guilty of your sins. And those in Christ who have already died are lost. If our hope in Christ is for this life only, we should be pitied more than anyone else in the world. But Christ has truly been raised from the dead – the first one and proof that those who sleep in death will also be raised. For the believer, the end of life on earth is the beginning of a Glorious life with Christ in Heaven. When you die, you simply leave a lesser form of life, and enter a greater one. Consider the first law of thermodynamics; neither energy, (Like your soul or spirit) nor matter, (as in your body) can be destroyed. They can be transformed into other forms, but they can’t be annihilated. Burris Jenkins said it this way; “No single atom in creation can go out of existence, according to the scientists, it only changes in form. We cannot burn up anything, we can only change its state from solid to a gaseous state. Neither is any energy or force ever destroyed; It is only changed from one form to another.” If a person ceases to exist, they will be the one thing in the world that does. So when you die, what happens? The Bible says; “For we know if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building, from God, a house not made with human hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed but further clothed. That mortality may be swallowed up by life. Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, Who also has given us His Spirit as a guarantee In (2 Corinthians 5:1-5) if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed but further clothed. That mortality may be swallowed up by life. Think of it like this; Your last day on earth, will be your best day ever! How awesome is that. In (Philippians1:22-23.) Paul tells us “If I continue to live in this life, my work will produce more results. I don’t know which I would prefer. I find it hard to choose between the two. I would like to leave this life and be with Christ. That’s by far the better choice.” So no matter how difficult or blessed your life is here and now, your best days are ahead; days without end, experiencing the joys of Heaven. So make sure your ready when your time comes. The Bible says in (Hebrews 2 14-15)” we are people of flesh and blood. That is why Jesus became one of us. He died to destroy the devil, Who had power over death. But He also died to rescue all of us who live each day in fear of dying.” Theologian Adolf van Harnack said- “Christ’s grave was the birthplace of an indestructible belief that death is vanquished and there is life eternal. It is useless to cite Plato… It is also useless to point to the Persian religion and the ideas and literature of later Judaism. All that would have perished, but the certainty of the resurrection and of a life eternal which is bound up with the grave in Joseph’s garden has not perished, and on the conviction that Jesus lives we still base those hopes of citizenship in an “Eternal City,” which makes our earthly life worth living and tolerable. He delivered them “who, through fear of death, were all their lifetime subject to bondage” Good News: You don’t have to be in bondage to the fear of death! Dr. Simon Greenleaf, The royal professor of law at Harvard And is one of the world’s leading authorities on legal evidence shone the searchlight of his knowledge on the evidence of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and revealed every thread of that evidence to the most probing critique . And when he did, He concluded that the evidence was so tremendous that in any unbiased courtroom on earth, it would be proclaimed a Historical fact. Dr. Elisabeth Kebler Ross a leading authority on death and dying, along with Dr. Raymond Moody jr. two well-known psychiatrists, examined the case histories of over 500 people who came back to life after being pronounced dead by their Physicians. Their research will convince anyone with an open mind. The people in the study described either a location of beauty, marvel, joy and peace, or they described something dreadfully horrific, And although their bodies were real, They reported floating outside them. after being confirmed “dead”, Some who were blind were able to see, they talked about people who came into the room what they looked like and what they did when they got there. Yet when these people were brought back, the ones who were blind could no longer see. In his book “Life After life” Dr. Moody writes;- “A doctor told me of his experience in attending a man who had been confirmed dead. He succeeded in resuscitating the man who then sued the doctor for bringing him back into this miserable existence from the glory he had experienced. One woman, describing her experience after she had suffered a respiratory arrest, the doctors trying to resuscitate her were pounding on her body while she was over them, looking down, and saying, “Leave me alone” The apostle Paul explains why. In (2 Corinthians 5:1-2) “For we know, If this earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in Heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead by our heavenly dwelling. So Rejoice, Be glad and Happy. when you die you will actually come to life, The New Real Life that lasts forever. Praise and Glory to Our God. Thank you for reading these thoughts on “When We Die.” We all have an appointment with our Creator, none of us knows How, when or where that will take place. So be a good scout and “Be Prepared”. See you there, God Bless. Phaline.