The Last Enemy is Death

Death is natural, but we were never intended to live natural lives. We were always intended for the supernatural.

When I saw him, I fell at his feet as if I were dead. But he laid his right hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid! I am the First and the Last. I am the living one. I died, but look—I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and the grave.” (Revelation 1:17-18)

Sometimes I think God plans my devotions. I wrote these topics down last October and planned them all out in November. I had no idea that two days before this devotion would release that American Airlines flight 5342 out of Wichita would collide with a Black Hawk helicopter and crash into the Potomac in Washington, D.C. Wichita is a small town when you get right down to it, and I know many people who had loved ones on that flight. My heart is broken for the families, and I am continuing to pray that God will bring healing out of this tragedy. There is a fund being put together by the Wichita Foundation to support the families of the victims:

I almost changed what I was going to write about today, but it’s not my place to alter course when God has clearly told me what He wants me to write. So I just pray that what He has taught me will be a blessing and an encouragement to anyone and everyone who needs it today.

Death is part of life.

It’s all we know. Every person who is born will eventually draw their final breath and pass away. We’re dust, after all, and we go back to dust again at the end.

Death is one of those strange, metaphorical things that we don’t really talk about enough. Odd, because in many instances we are obsessed with it. Some cultures worship it. Every culture fears it. Many cultures do everything in their power to hide from it, to stop it, to delay it, even if it means causing more death to stave it off.

For humans, death is a natural part of living. So why are we so afraid of it?

I have a theory. It’s because deep in our hearts, buried far down below what all the intellectuals and academics and influencers say, we know it was never supposed to be this way.

Death is natural, but we were never intended to live natural lives. We were always intended for the supernatural. The Scriptures tell us that God has set eternity in man’s heart (Ecclesiastes 3:11), a sense of purpose and meaning and a soul-deep certainty that we are meant for more than what we can see in front of us.

I love the quote from C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity:

“If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.”

Do you agree with that? Or is that wishful thinking?

It’s a challenge to think about death, more a challenge now that I’ve gotten a little older and (I hope) a little wiser. Death has come for many people I have loved, and it keeps coming back for more. It’s never satisfied.

But here’s the thing about death. Death is God’s enemy. Did you know that? Sure, God has many enemies, most of which we’ve talked about this week, but we learn from 1 Corinthians 15:26 that Death is the final enemy to be defeated.

And when it’s time for that conflict to take place, there actually isn’t a contest. When the time has come for Death to be defeated, there won’t actually be a fight. It’s kind of strange to say that God has enemies, because having enemies implies that there are forces out there that can challenge God.

Nothing can challenge God. Not even death.

You see, the way God sees death is different than how we see it and understand it. Because we don’t actually understand death. One of the words used in Scripture for death is actually thanatos, which is more like separation. Death is separation from God.

And when you think about it that way, Romans 8:31-39 takes on a whole new meaning. That giant list of things God says can never separate you from His love? Nothing on that list can take you away from Him. Nothing on that list can come between you. Nothing on that list can truly end your life if your life belongs to Him.

Jesus signed Death’s own death certificate when He died on the cross and rose from the grave. From that moment on, death had no power over anyone who believed in Him.

Yes, the day will come for all of us (or at least for those of us who aren’t evacuated in the Rapture), when we draw our last breath. Eventually our physical bodies will stop. They were made from dust, and they have to go back to dust. But your body isn’t you. You are more than your body, and who you are is made of much sterner stuff than dust.

If you know Jesus, when you take that last breath and close your eyes, you’ll open them with Him. And even though it’s hard to remember that sometimes, even though in the mean time the grief we feel is real and valid, we have hope (1 Thessalonians 4:13). Because of Jesus, we have life eternal.

Death is dead. God be praised.

For Deeper Study

• Read Romans 8:31-39. Make a list of all the things that God says can never separate you from His love.

• Read 1 Corinthians 15:42-44. What do we learn about the concept of resurrection from this passage?

• Keep on reading a little farther in 1 Corinthians 15:54-48. What has Jesus given us (v. 57)? God makes another promise in verse 58; what is it?

• Read Acts 2:22-24. What could death not do?

• Read Revelation 20:14. What is the ultimate destination for Death? How is it possible for Death to die?

For Reflection

• When was a time you endured a long separation from someone you loved? How did that separation make you feel?

• Why do you think people are so afraid of death?

• How do God’s Words bring you comfort and hope for dealing with the death of friends and loved ones?

Weekly Memory Verse