Paul wrote in 1 Thess. 4:13 that we mourn, but we do not mourn like those who have no hope. I’m having to remember that. The friend that I was writing about last night did pass away during the night. I had a restless night thinking about it. It was a night when you don’t know how much you’ve slept or when you were awake or not and dreaming or not.
I had read before the chapter in the Problem of Pain by C.S. Lewis on Heaven. It gave me much to think about. I’m a weird guy, but when I approach something like this, I see it as a chance to learn. I’ve done much thinking now on the resurrection and the afterlife and what a difference it makes.
The resurrection is what changes everything. My friend Laura who passed away? I will see her again. This is only temporary. That is what changes everything. I do not have to go around and say “Never again.” I only have to say “Gone for now, but we will certainly meet again.”
In the Monk series, detective Adrian Monk is tormented by a criminal with being told that the last thing his wife said to this criminal was “Bread and butter.” No one could figure out what that meant until Monk told in the end. He and his wife would walk together and if they had to separate hands, she’d say “Bread and butter.” It was a way of saying that they were splitting for a moment, but they would be back again. If my friend could say something to me now, it’d be “Bread and butter.”
We Christians can rejoice because death is not the end. Death has been defeated. Christ has come and brought life. We are approaching the stable door now and seeing that there is a world beyond. We are facing the deep magic from the dawn of time with the power of the deeper magic from the dawn of time.
Death has worked itself in reverse. The greatest tool of the enemy has become the great friend of the believer. In the end, death becomes the chariot that takes us to the house of the bridegroom for the consummation of the holy marriage. It turns out that death is now simply a joke.
I can rejoice then. Don’t get me wrong. I’m sad. I’m very sad. My eyes were watering up this morning as I read the news that Laura had died. I am still getting sad as I think about it. Throughout the day, I have been quiet. I wanted to smack the person who told me “Good morning” at work today. What’s so good about it? My friend is dead.
It’s not the end though. The resurrection is the promise. Laura will live again. When she does, it will be in a place where friends will never be separated again.
Yes my friends, death is not the end. It’s just a minor interruption. I mourn, but unlike others, I have hope.
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