Pastor’s Corner - April 8, 2021
I follow Jesus because he is “the Resurrection and the Life” (John 11:25). This bold statement does not deny death. Like Jesus and everyone else who was and is and will be born in this world, mortality is inevitable and unavoidable. Death is scary. We don’t know when or how it will come to us. We do not know what it will be like and we do not know all the details of the life on the other side of death. This uncertainty can create anxiety about and fear of death. This fear is understandable, and this anxiety is universally experienced. But fear and anxiety need not have the last word on death.
Both living and dying are to be done with God. Living and dying with God can be meaningful and purposeful. Jesus shows us how to live well and to die well.
Jesus had some fear and anxiety about death. In prayer he asked God to provide another way besides the cross but no matter what he was determined to be faithful to God’s intentions.
When the way of the cross was shown to be necessary, Jesus followed with resolve and faith. He even used his dying to bless others, offering forgiveness with his waning strength and energy.
Jesus was open about the way he was feeling while dying. He felt abandoned by God in the midst of the pain. He voiced that feeling and in doing so moved through that feeling to a renewal of trust in God, so that when his final breath was near at hand, he was able to say, “into your hands I commit my spirit”.
I want to follow Jesus’ good example in the days of my earthly journey, through the transition we call death, and moving into life everlasting that Jesus’ promises. My trust in Jesus supports my life and my death. Knowing he will be with me in every moment, to live and to die well, strengthens my commitment to Jesus’ leadership.
How about you? Who do you trust? Can your leader carry you through all of life’s transitions
