The idea of death, until forced upon us, is an idea that we try to avoid. Death seems so cruel, so harsh, and so… final.

I’m sure that’s what the disciples were feeling when they saw their Lord, whom they had left everything to follow, hanging on the cross. They were devastated. Death had crushed them. Pastor Greg Laurie says, “…but if they would have gone back in their memories, they would have recalled an important event and statement Jesus had made.”

“They would have remembered Jesus standing, and weeping, at the tomb of His close friend Lazarus. But standing there at Lazarus’ tomb, Jesus also delivered these hope-filled words: “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live” (John 11:25 NKJV). Death is not the end. And the Resurrection of Jesus Christ proves it.”

If you have put your faith in Christ, then His victory over death means that you will live forever in the presence of God.

Maybe you’ve been devastated by the death of someone so important to you. Maybe it’s your own passing that lurks in the dark edges of your mind. Jesus has given us the thing we all desperately need. He’s given us the hope of an everlasting peace in His presence!