Several years ago I received an urgent call to visit a dying man in the hospital. I didn’t know Ray well, but I knew him well enough to know that he paid a high price for his hard life. Although he made peace with God through Christ, his liver was in conflict with his body.
When his ex-wife called me, she was standing next to his bed. Ray, she explained, was knocking on death’s door. Even though I rushed, he got in there minutes before I arrived. The hospital room had a ‘coincidental’ feel to it. The ex-wife saw me come in and looked up. With eyes and words she explained, “He just left.”
Ray quietly slipped out. Left. Just a moment here. The next moment… where? He died, not gone, but further. But where to? And in what form? To which place? And what did he see once he got there? We really want to know.
Who in your life “just left?” What happened in that moment when your partner’s breathing stopped, the beating heart in your womb stopped, or the beep of your grandmother’s monitor became a flat tone?
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The question this Easter is: where do Christians go when they die? (iStock)
And what will happen to you in yours? Unless Christ returns, you will have one… a last breath, a last heartbeat. And… what then? What will we be after we die? What will happen? The answers vary.
Nothing, some people say. We will perish and/or disintegrate. Death is a dead end. Our works and reputation may survive, but we cannot.
Or we become part of the universe. Eternity absorbs us like a lake absorbs a raindrop. We return to what we were before we were what we are… we return to the cosmic consciousness of the universe.
Christianity, on the other hand, posits a new, surprising idea. “Death is swallowed up in victory” (1 Cor. 15:54 NIV). According to the promise of the empty tomb, my friend Ray woke up in a world so miraculously better than this one that it would take God himself to convince Ray to return to Earth.
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This is the Christian hope. This hope is confirmed by the Easter miracle, that wonderful moment that we celebrate as Easter. Do you know this miracle?
What happened to Christ?
It was Sunday morning after Friday’s execution. The sky was dark. The disciples were scattered. And the Roman executioner wondered what breakfast, his work or his next day off would be. But he did not wonder about the fellow he had nailed to a cross and pierced with a spear. Jesus was dead and buried. Yesterday’s news. Right?
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Wrong.
There was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, went to the tomb, rolled away the stone, and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they trembled and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. lie down.'” (Matt. 28:2-6 NIV)
The congregation recites the Lord’s Prayer as Cardinal Seán P. O’Malley celebrates the Solemn Mass on Easter Sunday, March 31, 2024, at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross. (Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
And out he marched, the carcass that had become king, with the mask of death in one hand and the keys of heaven in the other. He has risen!
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We know what happened to Christ when he died. What happens to those who believe him?
What happens to Christians?
Simple: because the tomb is empty, the promise of Christ is not. If you commit your life to Christ, He will take care of you in death.
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When you die, your spirit will immediately enter the presence of God. You will enjoy conscious fellowship with the heavenly Father and with those who have gone before you. Your body will come to you later. We believe this to be true because of scriptures like this: “We have confidence, I say, and would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord” (2 Cor. 5:8 NIV).
When Ray’s ex-wife asked me what happened to him, I could honestly say, “He is away from his body and home with the Lord.”
Have you made this the hope for your life? If not, doesn’t it make sense for you to do so? Doesn’t it make sense that you know your destination?
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Travelers do. I’ve had dozens of airplane conversations in my life. When I asked, “Where are you going?” people always have an answer.
This is the Christian hope. This hope is confirmed by the Easter miracle, that wonderful moment that we celebrate as Easter.
Any traveler worth an air mile knows that the purpose of the airplane is to get us from one place to another. Do you understand that the purpose of this life is to do the same? You were made for more than airplane peanuts and in-flight entertainment. You were forced to go home.
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Jesus Christ rose from the dead, not only to show you His power, but to reveal your path. Just as He did for my friend Ray, He will lead you through the valley of death. He will lead you home.
“Death is swallowed up in victory” (Corinthians 15:54).
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