As we contemplate a new year why not pause a moment to ponder all the forever and ever years of eternity? Punch has some suggestions for a rarely considered Aussie ‘BBQ stopper’: “What do you think happens when we die?”
If life is like driving down a straight road, most people would consider death to be a sharp right-hand turn at the end of the road. Everyone goes around the corner eventually – but what is around that corner? Is it good news or bad news?
Sure, you can use your imagination and hope that there’s a Krispy Kreme store selling delicious jam-filled, dentist-delighting donuts, but that store won’t be there just because you want it to be. It’s either there, or it’s not. And so surely, before you come around the corner, you want to be sure of what will be there – so you can prepare yourself appropriately.
If it’s a donut store, you want to prepare yourself by not having lunch. If it’s a flooded roadway, you want to start slowing down. If it’s a cliff, you want to slam on the brakes. So the next question is – is it possible to know what is around that corner before we get there? . . .
The Christian message isn’t a new message, and I can anticipate many objections to what I believe and why. My point isn’t to convince you to believe what I believe, nor to defend the Christian gospel in a couple of paragraphs.
No, my purpose is to urge you to work out what you do believe, and to make sure you’ve got some evidence and ultimately some confidence, to back up whatever that might be. Don’t go round that last corner blind-folded. The consequences are simply too great to just cross your fingers and hope for the best.
Article [with thanks to Andrew Reid], What do you think happens when we die? and nearly 500 very varied comments when I last looked.
See, Mr Eternity – Book Review, here.
This issue is a difficult one. Is there any need to think about ‘after death’ at all since we enjoy the knowledge of salvation through Christ crucified.
Each Sunday we affirm our belief in the resurrection of the dead and life everlasting. Is that belief enough, to me it is and the responsibility I have is to walk in the way on earth and that is difficult enough.
I know others who see the next life a being something to worry about or conjecture over and respect them for their concern.
I just find it difficult to be concerned about the issue, I prefer to have faith in Christ and his message and rely on Him to care for me.
Andrew Reid commented, “I thought his emphasis on evidence and confidence was a good approach.”