Rest In Peace?

 When I was reading Flipboard obituaries the other day (the older I get, the more I pay attention to death notices), one article about a famous person made one of those statements that always makes me pause. 

"He(or she) is now free of their pain". Or: "They are at peace now." Or: "They are with the angels now".

These all are touching and probably a comfort to those left in mourning. 

But...

As a Christian, I always wonder why we just assume that everyone who dies goes on to "rest in peace" or "dance with the angels" or that they are "out of their pain". What if they rejected the love of God? What if they denied His being? What if they just never even gave Him more than a passing thought?

Are those people resting in peace? I don't think so. I actually know that they are not because the Bible tells us so.

I recently lost someone I was once very close to. When I knew them, this person was ambivalent about God and, sometimes, even irritated by the thought of there being a God. When I heard that this person had died, I hoped that they had perhaps cried out to God for mercy. I pray that for everyone who disbelieves. I even hope that for the worse persons I can think of. After all, I could have died in my ignorance and complacency.

So, while I never say to anyone in mourning that their loved one is not "resting peacefully" or ballroom dancing with angels, I do have to almost gnaw off my tongue. What would be the point? The dead are past finding the salvation they ignored while living. What I try sometimes to do is remind the grief-stricken that this might be a chance to consider their own mortality.

In my shame, I have to admit that I don't always point this out when I have the chance. 

Pay attention to death, people. Our death will have more impact on us than any part of our life ever could. 

I wish I could say about every person I know that when they die, they are at peace. I wish I could say that we will all be in Heaven. But we can't wish for someone what they don't want for themselves.

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. John 3:36

Notice that the verse mentions belief and obedience. So, those professing belief need to learn about obedience.

That's it for this post but in my next one, I want to talk about why I don't understand Atheism or Agnosticism. I've heard some of them claim that if God is so loving, He would not send people to Hell. I wonder if they ever realize that God doesn't send them to Hell but they go with their unbelief?

Peace

--Free