Articles
Precious is the death...
When the Psalmist prayed for deliverance from persecution in Psalm 116, he described God’s overall attitude toward the passing of His loyal followers. “Precious in the sight of YHWH/ Is the death of His godly ones.” (Psalm 116:15) This may seem a bit contrary to our line of thinking, because we so often see death as a tragedy. God, however, views death as a reality, but it is still a worthy and valuable thing when it is the passing of one of His faithful.
Those of us who are members of the body of Christ are often reminded that we do “not grieve as do the rest who have no hope,” (I Thessalonians 4:13) but that is not to mean that death has no impact on our lives at all. It is important to understand death as having value when it is a faithful saint. However, we must do so in accordance with scripture.
When we read about the death of Stephen at the hand of violent and rebellious Jews, it was the beginning of a persecution against the church. (Acts 7:51-60) Additionally, this stoning emboldened Saul of Tarsus to begin his campaign of threat and murder against those who were of “the Way.” (Acts 8:1, 3; 9:1-2) However, Stephen’s death made an impact on several of the “devout (εὐλαβής - eulabēs #2126)” Jews who loved God’s values of justice and righteousness. (Acts 8:2) Not only did these men bury his body out of respect, but they also mourned his death in a very public manner. When the faithful die in service to God, it makes an impact on others who observe it.
When Paul came to Joppa, from where Cornelius summoned him by direction of God’s messenger, it was following the death of a beloved believer. Tabitha, or Dorcas, had passed away, much to the sorrow of the local believers and people she had served. (Acts 9:36-43) Peter was surrounded by the people who had been impacted by the life of this faithful woman, as “all the widows stood beside him, weeping and showing all the tunics and garments that Dorcas used to make.” Peter responded by raising Tabitha from the dead, an act which brought faith to many, but it was her death that started the series of events, as well as the impact it had on believers.
Paul the apostle spoke of the kind of dedication he and the other apostles had in taking the word to the world, and he even addressed the possibility of their death in the mission. To him, it was possible to please Christ in how he lived, and even how he died. First of all death was a benefit, because they would “rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.” However, the end goal wasn’t to please themselves, because they were serving Christ with everything. “Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him.” (II Corinthians 5:6-9) The same apostle in another place talked about how that same kind of service would impact others, which is it would give them courage. (Philippians 1:12-26)
There will be a time when we will leave this life. Will we be faithful until that time? What will our death mean to believers and unbelievers alike?
