Anything Good About Death?

You don't have to look far to find bad things about death. A mere drive by a cemetery may remind you that there is a 100 percent mortality rate just because you're human. A quick scan through a historical almanac shows you that even the greatest, richest and most beautiful will breathe a final breath. Mention of the Twin Towers or a roadside bomb in Iraq can fill you with sobering thoughts of the fearsome side of death. Somehow, death goes against the very fiber of your being.

So, is there anything good about death? How does God want us to view this inevitable attack?
Receive
To look intelligently at death's good side requires you to believe what the Bible says about death, and that you know the Savior who died to free you from its grasp. Death, for an unbeliever, may free him or her from the pain of the moment--but it leads only to an eternity of further suffering, loss and remorse.
Jesus never skirted the subject of death or its consequences, and He made some personal promises that are backed up by His deity.
In John 11:25-26 (ESV) you can read: "Jesus said to her, 'I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?'"
Reflect
Wouldn't you like to know some of the "good side of death"? Here are some Bible references. Find each of them and look for the corresponding promise below in the bulleted statements. (They are not in the same order.)
Luke 20:36
Romans 6:5
1 Corinthians 15:26
1 Corinthians 15:54-55
Philippians 1:21
Revelation 2:11
Revelation 21:4
Revelation 20:6
Psalm 73:24
Psalm 116:8-9
Psalm 116:15
Romans 8:38-39
Philippians 3:20-21
2 Corinthians 5:8

When you, as a Christian, die:

• You cannot die again and will be resurrected.
• Your death will bring gain.
• You will not be hurt by the second death.
• You will be imperishable, immortal and victorious.
• You will be united with Jesus in a resurrection like His.
• Your tears will be wiped away and there will be no mourning or crying or pain anymore.
• You will walk before the Lord in the land of the living.
• Your death will be precious in God's sight.
• You will be at home with the Lord.
• You will have seen the last enemy, death, destroyed.
• You will share in the first resurrection.
• Nothing whatever can separate you from the love of God including death.
• Your body will be transformed into a body like His glorious body.
• God will receive you to glory.

Respond
Prepare for your next Bible Minute lesson by reading all of John 11. Write down the things you learn about death from that chapter. If you're a believer, thank the Lord for the sure promises He has given you. If you have not yet trusted Christ and wonder how to know Him, go to the "Meet Jesus" page, and ask the Lord to show you how to be a partaker in the good side of death.