Grieving With Hope - January 5

Read 1 Thessalonians 4:13

But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.

Reflect

Think about the last funeral you attended. What was the general feeling in the room?

I can’t think of anything worse to experience than the death of a loved one. It is devastating and heartbreaking. Death feels so wrong to us. We can’t seem to reconcile the idea of someone being alive and vibrant one minute, but dead and gone the next.

That’s because we know we were created for eternity. In Ecclesiastes 3:11, it says that God has “put eternity into man’s heart.” We know that we were created for more than this broken world. We know that we were meant to live forever. So, the finality and separation of death just screams at us that death is so very wrong. In 1 Corinthians 15:26, Paul confirmed that death is our enemy when he wrote, “the last enemy to be destroyed is death.” Death is not our friend, thus, the grief we feel when we encounter it in our lives.

In today’s passage, Paul addressed a misunderstanding the Thessalonians had about people who died before Christ’s return. “Those who are asleep” means those who have died. What happened to them? Where did they go? Will they still go to heaven? Did they miss out on eternity? Do they just have to lay there asleep while they wait for the Rapture? Paul didn’t want them to be uninformed about their brothers and sisters in Christ who died during this waiting period. He didn’t want them to grieve without hope.

So, what happens to us when we die? Interestingly, Jesus’ words to the thief on the cross next to Him give us a clue. In Luke 23:42-43, one of the criminals said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Jesus replied, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

The thief was going to die that very day, just as Jesus would. When Jesus died, he was going to return to His Father’s presence in paradise. The thief became a believer in Christ at the very last minute and still, Jesus promised that he would be with Him in paradise. When believers in Christ die, their souls immediately go to be with the Lord, even though their bodies go to the grave.

The apostle Paul confirmed this in 2 Corinthians 5:6-8: “So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.” So, even though death is our enemy, if we are redeemed by Christ, death just means that we get to be at home with the Lord. That’s why we can taunt death and say, “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” (1 Corinthians 15:55).

You see, the Thessalonians didn’t need to worry about their brothers and sisters in Christ who had died. Yes, their bodies were dead and in the grave. But their souls were alive and well in the presence of the Lord. We don’t have to worry about the souls of our Christian loved ones who have gone on before us either. Right now, they are consciously aware of God’s presence. They aren’t asleep and they aren't dreaming. They are completely at peace with Jesus, just as we know we will be one day.

Sadly, the opposite is also true. Those who are not believers, who have not trusted in Christ for salvation, they are conscious and aware as well. But they are not in the Lord’s presence. Rather, they are in eternal torment, forever separated from God (Luke 16:19-31).

Because of this information from God’s Word, we still grieve whenever we lose a beloved brother or sister in Christ. We will miss them. But we don’t grieve as those without hope. We know they are with Jesus. And we know we’ll see them again soon.

Respond

Lord, thank You for the hope we have in You. Thank You for the blessed assurance that our brothers and sisters in Christ who have died are in Your presence at this very moment. What peace to know they are at peace! And what a day of rejoicing the reunion will be one day! Amen.

Reveal

Do you know someone who has a misconception about what happens to us when we die? How can you gently and lovingly reveal the truth to them?