“How long O Lord? Will Thou forget me forever?”

These are the words of David from what we identify as Psalm 13:1. In this Psalm David is feeling very isolated and alone, even from God. He is convinced God is hiding His face from him (not responding), which he struggles deeply with and feels very much in harms way (v. 2).

Death is unavoidable –
I have been to one funeral last week, was at the hospital when another person passed away, met with another person whose spouse passed away last month and had a very good friend lose his mother… all within a week.

Death is a very difficult issue for all of us. We have no control over death and no matter how skilled the doctors and how far advanced the technology we cannot avoid it. How we deal with death can be even more despairing because none of us has any first hand experience or control with what happens on the other side. It is amazing to me however, to listen to people who want nothing to do with God, can’t stand religion, and do not believe in Jesus, assume that when they die they will go to a better place. In fact, it is virtually a culture value; if you ask anyone, I suspect that a huge majority will assume they are going to a better place.

David response in Psalm 13:5-6 (NAS) draws on his past experience with God:

“But I have trusted in Thy loving-kindness;
my heart shall rejoice in Thy salvation. I will sing to the LORD,
because He has dealt bountifully with me.”

The New Testament gives us this statement in 1 John 5:11-13 (NAS):

“And the witness is this, that God has given us eternal life,
and this life is in His Son.
He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.”

What is profound here is that NOT EVERYONE has eternal life; there are many who are not prepared for death. In other words, not everyone will go to a better place. Our temptation is to conclude that the really bad people do not deserve to go to a “better place”. But the Bible is very clear here that only those who have the Son have the life, because the life is bound up in God’s Son. Only if you have the Son (if you know what that really means) do you have the life. Do you know for sure that you have the Son? If you have the Son, you have absolute confidence what will happen to you when you die. If you don’t, then it is only wishful thinking.

Pastor Brad