Defending Death!

Defending Death!

Death, the sound of the very word sends chills from our brains to all over our body. We frown, feel bad and the overloaded expressions are perfectly normal. How normal is death in everyday life? What makes it abnormal? Why is death so unjust? Why is death avoided as a subject to be spoken about? Why is everyone afraid of Death of Loved ones? Why is Death associated with Fear, Failure, Loss, Damage, weeping, mourning and everything negative?If the entire world believes that we could overcome failure, even a hundred times, is it true that we can overcome the loss of a loved one? The anger and hurt that we have on anything related to the CAUSE of death of the loved one, could it ever be overturned? Was it even meant to be that humanity would one day understand that it’s all okay and reasonable? Statistically, Death is one of the most logical things to happen on this unique earth, cause if there was no death, the earth would never have enough place for the living!😜 But still, we don’t really ACCEPT the ABSENCE of the ones we love, however old they are or however necessary it was for them to die so their pain would just get over with on this earth.

Most of the questions theists face are that “Why would a GOOD God allow the death of a righteous person”, or simply, “He was such a good man, why did God take his life?” and so many similar questions. There are also honest answers as to “We can never question God” and other valid confessions from a human understanding. I have recently faced the loss of a loved one and I’m not writing any of these with no understanding of what is underwent when a family loses the ones they love. Personally, I refused to ask any questions to God on “WHY?” believing that He works everything for the good of his people. It’s unique to know that God would pursuantly chase this little kid (me) and tell me why He did what He did! Sometimes God needs a messenger to advocate His works to his people. So the entries in this blog are an honest effort to make people who go through the same roads that I’ve walked on to defend Death and to proclaim that it’s okay and reasonable to face death with the utmost vigor possible.

For the introduction part, Creation and Termination are two things that extend beyond the freewill of man, and not one of it happens without the Creator's divine permission. Be it worst cases of illegitimate birth or world wars, God takes the final call. He is the decision maker.

 "The LORD brings death and makes alive; he brings down to the grave and raises up” 1 Samuel 2:6.

THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD IN DEATH:

 It's only foolish to look at it this way, when people question the very right of God to terminate and blame him for causing untimely deaths or accidents. God has not given the right or will to man to choose his own or someone else’s time of Death. But the free will of man has enough influence on taking the life of his neighbor, on poisoning his own family, the free will of man also extends over the influence he has on his own body in subjecting it to abusive drugs, boundless amounts of alcohol, endless stressful work schedules, refusing the good and normal food habits and giving in to what’s not so healthy. On the other hand how much ever you strive on finding the drug that tends to promote longevity or follow perfect and healthy regime being obsessive on your take on health all of it is subject to the last call that God has to make. The one important point here is God will never snatch from you the free will that he has created you with, it’s your choice to live the life the way you want to. God does not intervene in our choices but he knows that all of it has consequences.

 And that’s the reason, wisdom calls aloud in the streets but only those who have ears to hear will hear. How is all this related to death? As much as life is very personal and the choices that we make are purely ours. The truth is even though you were the closest to the one you lost; you may not know the person’s own choices be it small or great. With what confidence or theory do we question the completely Pure God on WHY he approved Death to the person you loved? The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil. Pro16:4 God never intended anyone to be wicked, but if they were by their own free will, he was bound to punish them because of his own holiness and standards.

IT IS GOOD:

The above paragraph does not mean that death is a result of the choices one has made, it was good, and the best option that God could give given the situation. God works in the best interest of all his children to the best of his values; it’s only the best things that come to us from him nullifying all our shortcomings. God does not do the things he does unless he sees it is good. He took immense pleasure in his own creation, he takes pleasure in destroying the things that destroy his children, he takes pleasure in fighting their battles and showing them that they badly need him for a living! He also thinks it important to leave the Vengeance part to him. As much as the pain of death brings, God allows it because it is good.

 This might be difficult to accept as a fact as we wait outside hospitals building castles on how we would spend our time with the dying on the bed, how we would celebrate birthdays, how we would show more love and appreciate the non-appreciated things in them! God knows all of this enough and so deeply that he makes the wisest decision of breaking all these castles and letting them die as we watch the blood pressure levels lower. Yes, the news from the doctor that the time of death is 7:07 am is predestined by your maker.

If we could just think in our little minds from God’s perspective, how traumatizing it would be for the one who was moved with compassion for a widow’s son, to let your hope crash like a sandcastle on the shore. Think as to how the one who wept at Lazarus’s tomb would come weeping to your rescue. If he had not closed his eyes for that one second, our Loving God could never have caused death. If Our God had not forsaken us for that moment, the goodness behind it could not have occurred. In just a comparison with Jesus on the cross, crying in a loud voice.

“About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" (which means "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"). Matthew 27:46

If death had not overtaken Jesus for that one moment, where would we get the goodness of being saved by the blood that was shed on the cross. No death is an implication of the sacrificial death of Jesus on the cross, not even close, but isn’t it the wonderful death that has saved, saves and will save every life on earth? Is death bad, now in the light of the one way to salvation?

THE TIME OF DEATH:

Just till my daughter gets married, at least till my son grows up a bit, at least 50, at least 60, He was so young, the baby was just 3, just one year after their wedding, in all shapes and sizes comes the time of death. Simply, God knows. The one who created the entire earth is not ignorant of what’s going on in your life.

But God is faithful; He will not suffer you to be tempted beyond that which ye are able to bear, but with the temptation will also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. 1 Corinthians 10:13

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." 2 Corinthians 12:9

It is interesting to note that both these verses start with the word BUT. The one who created the human heart knows exactly what it’s like. Thanks to Paul for recording the probably exact words as God spoke to him.  God knows that his children will have so much pain and will go to him and say that I can’t hold on, I can’t bear it, I can’t take anymore and so on… a gentle reminder to all of us is that His grace is way too big for us to exhaust it with our pain. All through you will only be carried; you needn’t even walk, till you have the strength to do so. You don’t have to face the giants ahead; He will be there before you. He only allows the pain of death because He KNOWS you can overcome it with the water from his well. Only. 

 He works out the timings, well ahead much better and again, in the BEST way. Some of it you will realize only after a long time. In the intermittent time, all that we got to do is Trust! Even when we do not understand it all, it takes a little faith to trust his already experienced amazing grace. It's foolish to think that the Sovereign Loving God just closes His eyes when he takes away people from earth. No, the dear master planner God plans the death of every individual. He does everything perfectly in His timing when everything God does is so, How much more would a death be planned by God who created?

 “a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;” Ecclesiastes 3:1 

The one-second accidents, two-minute delays as much as God extends His hand to save his people exactly in the right time, He also lets them die when it's time.

Someone close to me once said to me,

 “It either makes you or breaks you, dear”.

 So if you’re going through a similar situation, don’t let it break you but make you. For, times like these are like precious moments in a goldmine. Don’t come out of the mine without picking up your learning which is much more valuable than the bags of gold.

THE BEST PART: Death is not the END!

It is the same way with the resurrection of the dead. Our earthly bodies are planted in the ground when we die, but they will be raised to live forever. 1 Corinthians 15:42

Thank God, everyone lives forever but not here in this world! We realize so much of the depth of the wisdom and love that God has expressed in planning the Eternal life for us only after we so closely lose someone we love. God is exceedingly good in that He never lets us stranded by anything, even death. Death is just a doorway to where we're meant to be. Death may be painful to people on earth, but the loved ones who have left have left for their own Good, when they know God, again only when they know God. If belief in Jesus Christ is the gate pass to Heaven, then Death validates the gate pass. Now, this is a huge subject which I only prefer to mention here!

Note: The words above is just a page of a book that could be written from all that I have received, from all that God taught and is still teaching me. Let’s see if I could contribute more. But for now, this is all!