House of mourning
Death is not a pleasant reality to face, whether our own or that of our loved ones. And often we try to keep ourselves distracted from it as much as possible, at least its more sober reflections, as most of us have become desensitized to the bloodshed so common in our various outlets of entertainment. But the knowledge of death is worth our deep consideration. There’s value in going to the house of mourning.
Most of us would likely want to attend a party rather than a funeral. But parties quickly become shallow and meaningless when we ignore the sober realities of death. Funerals on the other hand force us to consider the meaning of our own life. And we walk away with a deeper appreciation for our time that remains.
To be sure, it’s easy to start taking life for granted when we’re just seeking one proverbial party after another. But we understand how fragile life is and how precious little time we have left when we reflect on death. The reality of death motivates us to live a life worthy of God’s calling for our life as we magnify his love.
Better to go to the house of mourning than to the house of feasting, for everyone dies – and so the living take it to heart.
– Ecclesiastes 7:2
The land of the dying
Death comes to us all. Whether young or old, good or bad, rich or poor, no one escapes and we’re all moving closer to that day with every breath we take. This is the land of the dying. But this is not the end of the story. Because Jesus Christ was raised from the dead, never to die again, we too who have died with him also get to live with him for eternity. In the new heaven and new earth there is no more death. And so our death in this life then becomes our birth into the land of the living.
Of course, we still grieve when we’re separated from our loved ones in this life. But we grieve as those with hope – knowing that we will finally leave this land of dying ourselves and enter into the land of the living to be reunited with our fellow saints and live with Christ forever.
And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.
-Revelation 21:4
Photo by Grant Whitty on Unsplash
