It is better to go to the house of mourning
than to go to the house of feasting,
for this is the end of all mankind,
and the living will lay it to heart.

 

Sorrow is better than laughter,
for by sadness of face the heart is made glad.

–Ecclesiastes 7:2-3

In the verses above, the Lord is trying to make realize that we do learn more from trials and times of difficulties than we do from good times and times of pleasure.  These verses remind us that true wisdom is shaped in the furnace of affliction.  Just like we learn in Psalm 119:67 & 71.  

Psalms 119:67  – “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep your word.”   Psalm 119:71  – “It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes.”

Afflictions remind us that we are not in control. They teach us that we don’t have all the answers and were never meant to. They teach us how to be wise.  Godly wisdom is living life with the end  in view.  Nothing gives us an eternal perspective like death.

We live in a time when people are living longer due to the advancement in medicine.  Death is far removed from most people.  100 years ago, life expectancy was shorter than it is now, while there has always been a fear of death, death was common, people were accustomed to seeing death.  Back then, when people died, they mostly died at home, in the presence of their families and loved ones. This is not the case today.

The fear of death seems heightened in our society today because death is not common, it is far removed from most people. Most people who die today usually die either in the hospital or in a nursing home, most do not die at home. In many cases, the family is not even there at the time of death and may never see the person again until the time of viewing where the person is dressed to look like he/she is sleeping instead of dead.

In talking about the fear of death in our time, Pastor John MacArthur in his teaching on Hebrews 2: 15 said this: “people do live in the fear of death. Death is called the king of terrors. There is nothing as frightening as death. We do everything we can to try mask death, try to avoid death.”

If there is one thing that we learned during this pandemic is the terrifying, almost paralyzing fear of death in our society.  People are willing to do anything to prevent death, and I mean anything. At first, there was a lot of uncertainties and unknown surrounding the virus, but a year later when much have been known about the virus, there are people still living in terrifying fear. A teacher in an online private school recounted how one of her students had not been outside his home since March of 2020!  Some professing Christians even now, are frightened to gather either in small or large groups for Christian fellowship with other believers out of fear for the virus.

Most of the response by professing Christians to the pandemic has been ungodly to say the least. Why do I say so? Because it has not led to more holiness, righteousness  and seeking after God. Instead, it has led to more anger, frustration and reliance on government than on God. We see it all around us. 

 

But this fear of death in the godly must he mixed with hope. The nature of death to a believer, is quite changed. Death is in itself a curse—but God has turned this curse into a blessing. To a child of God, death is not a destruction, but a deliverance. – Thomas Watson

 

We shall all die one day. As much as we may try, no one can control the day or time of her death. Death came as a result of sin, it is an enemy. While sin brought death into the world, we can rejoice because, Christ has dealt with sin and death, once and for all.

I do believe there should be a healthy far of death. A healthy fear of death is rooted in the fear of God. What we are witnessing in our society is an unhealthy fear of death.

The Puritan Thomas Watson in his Work “The Great Gain of Godliness’ in a Q&A gave a little glimpse on a healthy fear of death. I have summarized it below:

Question: How far may a child of God fear death?

Answer 1. So far as the fear of death is a curb bit, to keep him from sin.

Answer 2. so far as it makes him die to the world.

Answer 3. so far as this fear fits him more for death…we set our soul in order.

Watson goes on to say:

But this fear of death in the godly must he mixed with hope. The nature of death to a believer, is quite changed. Death is in itself a curse—but God has turned this curse into a blessing. To a child of God, death is not a destruction, but a deliverance.

 An unhealthy far of death is not rooted in the fear of God. It is the fear of terror. Unlike the godly fear of death, it does not curb sin, instead it expands it through irrational fear that causes some people to take ungodly, sinful action.  It does not make a man die to the world, instead causes him to embrace the world by being self-centered, focusing more on self, than on God.

We should not have an unhealthy & ungodly fear of death. Why? Christ has conquered death.  Watson says at the end of that quote “To a child of God, death is not a destruction, but a deliverance”.   This is the comfort of the believer, in Christ, death is a deliverance and a victory. For the believer to be absent from the body, is to be present with the Lord. 2Cor. 5:8

Talking about fear in his book “Enjoying God”, the late Dr. RC Sproul said “Our deepest fears flow out of our fragility. I am afraid of cancer. I am afraid of flying. I am afraid of pain. I am afraid of the valley of the shadow of death. These fears are relieved when I realize that Jesus holds the keys to death and to Hades. The threat of death is the threat of nonbeing. Jesus died. When he strode forth from the tomb, he carried with him the keys of death.”  Hallelujah!!!