The Golden Key
By J.B. Hixson, Ph.D.
07/13/2022
So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” (1 Corinthians 15:54-55)
Death. The word itself is conclusive, leaving no room for ambiguity. It invokes feelings of finality, termination, the end of the story. Death is a topic of discussion best relegated to the twilight hours of the day, not the sort of subject one discusses over morning coffee. It is perceived most often as an enemy to be avoided, not a friend to be embraced. Like the elephant in the room, death is a realty that is never far away—always lurking just beneath the shadows of the mind’s eye—but seldom worthy of direct attention. We are conditioned very early in life that death is to be feared and ignored, not faced head on. Most philosophical worldviews incorporate death as an inevitable and terrifying rite of passage that pursues, and eventually overtakes, every human being.
There is one worldview however that does not fear death: the Biblical Worldview. For the Christian, death has no sting. It is swallowed up in victory because Jesus Christ defeated death, hell, and the grave when He rose from the dead. For the Christian, death becomes the golden key that unlocks the riches of eternity. It brings us face to face with our Savior and with other Christians who have gone before us. At death, our faith becomes sight. Death is precious for those who have a relationship with the Creator through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints” (Psalm 116:15).
Have you ever had to say good-bye to someone you love? It is difficult. Sorrow floods our hearts as we deal with the perception of loss. Yet for believers, we know that the separation is only temporary. We will see our loved ones who know the Lord when He returns for the grand reunion in the sky. This blessed hope tempers the sorrow we feel in times of loss.
Our sorrow is soothed even further by the knowledge that the sufferings, limitations, pains, and burdens of mortal life are gone in an instant for our loved one. Throughout our mortal lives the body groans, eagerly longing to be clothed in perfection. We never were intended to dwell in our mortal, earthly bodies forever. The body is just a tent, a temporary dwelling place until we receive our glorified bodies in eternity.
For some, the groaning of the body is more acute than others. Physical or mental anguish plagues this mortal life day after day until death, in God’s time and in God’s way, brings welcome relief. The Apostle Paul, who endured untold tortures and persecutions during his earthly life, reminds us that “the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18).
Still, it is hard to say good-bye. Scripture gives us the example of the very Son of God Himself, Jesus Christ, who knows what it is like to have to say good-bye to people you love. On the way to Jerusalem for His impending crucifixion, knowing what was about to happen, Jesus thought about His friends. I can picture Him struggling with how to prepare His disciples for His departure. He must have wondered, “How can I explain this to them so they will understand it? How will they handle the pain of My death? How in the world do I say good-bye to My friends?”
Jesus had tried to prepare His friends, His disciples, at various points throughout His three and a half year ministry. “You know, I am going to be leaving you,” He told them once in John 7:33. But they did not seem to catch on. He tried again in John 12:34, “The Light will not be with you much longer.” They just looked at Him as if He were speaking in riddles. Finally, just hours before He was betrayed, arrested, tried, and crucified, He said it about as plainly and clearly as He could: “In My Father’s house are many mansions… I am going away to prepare a place for you… but do not worry… I will come again… and one day we will be together again” (John 14:1-3).
There are two particularly important lessons we can learn from this. First, saying good-bye is difficult. If it is hard for the Savior in His humanity, it certainly will not be any easier for us. Our emotions are such that we do not handle good-byes very well. Especially good-byes to someone we love so much. Good-byes make us feel a sense of injustice. The world seems out of joint, and it hurts. As Christians, we know that death is not an end, but rather a transition. A transition from the limitations of earth to the endless bounties of heaven. But it still hurts.
And this leads to a second lesson we can learn from our Lord’s experience with His friends. The answer to the question, “How do you say good-bye to a friend?” is simply that you cannot. And we were never meant to. Understanding that His disciples would never fully appreciate the nature of His substitutionary death at Calvary until after the resurrection, Jesus said it the only way that made any sense at the time. It was not a good-bye at all. It was a “see you later.” “I go to prepare a place for you that where I am you may be also some day.” The oft-forgotten reality of life is that there are no good-byes for Christians, only temporary separations. The Apostle Paul said it this way: “To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:8). A few years later, when contemplating his own mortality near the end of his life, Paul added: “My desire is to depart and be with Christ but I also desire to stay here and dwell with you a little longer. I am torn between the two” (Philippians 1:23).
Yes, death is the golden key that unlocks the riches of eternity. But do not miss this next statement. The only way that the terror of death is tamed is by faith alone in Christ alone. Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live” (John 11:25). “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
Have you trusted in Jesus Christ as the only One who can forgive your sin and give you the free gift of eternal life?
07/13/2022
So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” (1 Corinthians 15:54-55)
Death. The word itself is conclusive, leaving no room for ambiguity. It invokes feelings of finality, termination, the end of the story. Death is a topic of discussion best relegated to the twilight hours of the day, not the sort of subject one discusses over morning coffee. It is perceived most often as an enemy to be avoided, not a friend to be embraced. Like the elephant in the room, death is a realty that is never far away—always lurking just beneath the shadows of the mind’s eye—but seldom worthy of direct attention. We are conditioned very early in life that death is to be feared and ignored, not faced head on. Most philosophical worldviews incorporate death as an inevitable and terrifying rite of passage that pursues, and eventually overtakes, every human being.
There is one worldview however that does not fear death: the Biblical Worldview. For the Christian, death has no sting. It is swallowed up in victory because Jesus Christ defeated death, hell, and the grave when He rose from the dead. For the Christian, death becomes the golden key that unlocks the riches of eternity. It brings us face to face with our Savior and with other Christians who have gone before us. At death, our faith becomes sight. Death is precious for those who have a relationship with the Creator through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints” (Psalm 116:15).
Have you ever had to say good-bye to someone you love? It is difficult. Sorrow floods our hearts as we deal with the perception of loss. Yet for believers, we know that the separation is only temporary. We will see our loved ones who know the Lord when He returns for the grand reunion in the sky. This blessed hope tempers the sorrow we feel in times of loss.
Our sorrow is soothed even further by the knowledge that the sufferings, limitations, pains, and burdens of mortal life are gone in an instant for our loved one. Throughout our mortal lives the body groans, eagerly longing to be clothed in perfection. We never were intended to dwell in our mortal, earthly bodies forever. The body is just a tent, a temporary dwelling place until we receive our glorified bodies in eternity.
For some, the groaning of the body is more acute than others. Physical or mental anguish plagues this mortal life day after day until death, in God’s time and in God’s way, brings welcome relief. The Apostle Paul, who endured untold tortures and persecutions during his earthly life, reminds us that “the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18).
Still, it is hard to say good-bye. Scripture gives us the example of the very Son of God Himself, Jesus Christ, who knows what it is like to have to say good-bye to people you love. On the way to Jerusalem for His impending crucifixion, knowing what was about to happen, Jesus thought about His friends. I can picture Him struggling with how to prepare His disciples for His departure. He must have wondered, “How can I explain this to them so they will understand it? How will they handle the pain of My death? How in the world do I say good-bye to My friends?”
Jesus had tried to prepare His friends, His disciples, at various points throughout His three and a half year ministry. “You know, I am going to be leaving you,” He told them once in John 7:33. But they did not seem to catch on. He tried again in John 12:34, “The Light will not be with you much longer.” They just looked at Him as if He were speaking in riddles. Finally, just hours before He was betrayed, arrested, tried, and crucified, He said it about as plainly and clearly as He could: “In My Father’s house are many mansions… I am going away to prepare a place for you… but do not worry… I will come again… and one day we will be together again” (John 14:1-3).
There are two particularly important lessons we can learn from this. First, saying good-bye is difficult. If it is hard for the Savior in His humanity, it certainly will not be any easier for us. Our emotions are such that we do not handle good-byes very well. Especially good-byes to someone we love so much. Good-byes make us feel a sense of injustice. The world seems out of joint, and it hurts. As Christians, we know that death is not an end, but rather a transition. A transition from the limitations of earth to the endless bounties of heaven. But it still hurts.
And this leads to a second lesson we can learn from our Lord’s experience with His friends. The answer to the question, “How do you say good-bye to a friend?” is simply that you cannot. And we were never meant to. Understanding that His disciples would never fully appreciate the nature of His substitutionary death at Calvary until after the resurrection, Jesus said it the only way that made any sense at the time. It was not a good-bye at all. It was a “see you later.” “I go to prepare a place for you that where I am you may be also some day.” The oft-forgotten reality of life is that there are no good-byes for Christians, only temporary separations. The Apostle Paul said it this way: “To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:8). A few years later, when contemplating his own mortality near the end of his life, Paul added: “My desire is to depart and be with Christ but I also desire to stay here and dwell with you a little longer. I am torn between the two” (Philippians 1:23).
Yes, death is the golden key that unlocks the riches of eternity. But do not miss this next statement. The only way that the terror of death is tamed is by faith alone in Christ alone. Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live” (John 11:25). “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
Have you trusted in Jesus Christ as the only One who can forgive your sin and give you the free gift of eternal life?
Recent
Archive
2025
March
God, Satan, and Sandy Hook ElementaryIs Haiti a Harbinger?The Evil in the “Lesser of Two Evils”New BeginningsA Truly White ChristmasThe Counsel of God's WordAll is ForgivenIdentity CrisisThings that Matter… Things that Don'tTurn Down the Volume so You Can HearWILD BOARS LOOSE IN THE VINEYARDA Measure of AssuranceReign, Reign, Go AwaySpiritual SomnambulismYou Might Be a Fool If...Bright Lights and Other DistractionsLife Is Not a Game of Go FishThere is No ComparisonLeggo My EgoThe Insanity of IngratitudeThankful for the Little ThingsSurviving the Culture of NowA Forever SaviorSlow Down and Save TimeHope in ExileDon't Just Do Something, Stand ThereTrue LoveGod in the MidstOnly God Is GreatOne Nation Under GodGodly FearThe Amazing RaceNew Life in ChristFruit InspectorsThe Calcium of the SoulGood, Better, BestLord, Please Send More BearsElusive PeaceEasily AmazedIn a MomentWhat Goes Around Comes AroundThe Good, the Bad, and the UglyIndiscriminate GraceBackseat DriverThings Are Not Always As They AppearLook for the LightDoctrine Is DeadThe Golden KeyWarm On the InsideBelieve it or NotWhose Neighbor Are You?Planks, Specks, and Self-Righteous PrigsCloudy MedicineNever Look Back?Are Monsters Afraid of You?Old Habits Die HardContending with HorsesSeeing the InvisibleNever Underestimate the EnemyGod Can Tie His Own ShoesHe did itDo You Believe in Miracles?Storybook EndingGod's Return PolicyToo Good Not To Be TrueStand UpLife's PuzzlesThe Lord is my ShepherdBeside Still WatersThe Right PathValley of ShadowsDelivered from the EnemyWho You Are When No One Is LookingBig World, Big GodIt's Who You KnowSin, the Soil, and SalvationClark Kent ChristianityPrecious MemoriesWaiting and SoaringA Little Birdie Told MeOur God ReignsTrust in the LordGive Credit Where Credit Is Due
April
Thanks but No ThanksSin... Own ItWhat You See is What You GetWill You Be A Fool for Christ?Spilled MilkThe Tenderness of CompassionLife's Instruction ManualWhere Do You Live?Stop. Look. Listen. Think.At Your FingertipsHead for the Hills?Is it Time Yet?The Balm in GileadOwn ItThe Greatest ResetAbundant GracePaid in Full
No Comments