Freedom From Death
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Scripture Reading: 1 Cor. 15:12-22
Scripture Reading: 1 Cor. 15:12-22
1.) He does not knock.
He kicks down the door.
With hands like winter,
He steals what’s warm.
2.) From nursery to nursing home
Young or old, he doesn’t care
He touches who he wishes
He takes who he dares
3.) We try our best to stop him—
With doctors, drugs, and prayer.
We bargain, beg, and busy up,
Pretending he's not there.
4.) He never weeps.
He never waits.
He loves no one—
Just desecrates.
5.) He’s the stealer of our hope
The murderer of our joy
He takes the ones we love
He laughs as he destroys
6.) We call him Death,
The Pit, the Grave
Our greatest enemy
And we his slaves
It has become a popular Christian sentiment…
To think & talk about death…
As if it is a friend
I think it mostly stems from Paul’s language…
In his letters to the Philippians & Corinthians…
Where he seems to long for death
But it wasn’t actually death Paul was longing for…
But being with Jesus on the other side of death
Death is not my friend
I hate death with a burning passion
And I believe that’s how we as Christians…
Are supposed to feel
God did not create death in the beginning
Death was the original curse upon creation when humanity disobeyed
Throughout the OT, we see death…
And all the pain & sadness it brings
We see death take children from mothers & fathers
We see death at spouses from wives & husbands
We see death take siblings from brothers & sisters
We see death take beloved friends
We see David & other Psalmists plead with God to save them from death
We see the author of Psalm 116 tell us: (No Slide)
15 The Lord cares deeply when his loved ones die.
We see Jesus cry at the funeral of one of his friends…
Right before he snatches him out of death’s grip
We see Paul call death an enemy of God
An enemy that will one day be destroyed
Nowhere in the Scriptures do we get the idea…
That we are to think of death as an old friend
Death shows up in our lives…
Uninvited, unwelcome, & unwanted
We never know how or when
All we know is that it will come
As a wise character in a book series I recently read said:
"Death makes the whole world kin. There is no one who doesn't know loss, and this is our common bond."
It follows us everywhere
Within every joyful moment…
There’s a whisper, “This won’t last forever”
At the end of every wedding vow…
There’s a “Till death do us part”
In every family picture-book…
There are faces that were once laughing with us…
That have now been stolen away
Alongside the joy of watching our children grow up…
There’s the ever present shadow of knowing…
That death is stalking & will one day claim them too
Death takes & takes & is never satisfied
And we are completely powerless to stop it
Death is our enemy…
And death is the greatest tool in the hand of the devil…
That he uses to enslave us
I hate death
But I love God
And out of all the reasons why I love God…
And I put my faith, hope, & love in Jesus Christ…
The greatest reason is this:
He has promised to put death to death
And we can know that He is capable of doing it…
Because He has already defeated death once
And when He returns…
He’s going to defeat it once & for all
Freedom From Death
Freedom From Death
When Paul wrote 1 Corinthians…
He tells them that when Jesus returns…
He is going to put an end to all of his enemies…
26 And the last enemy to be destroyed is death.
I’m so ready for that day to come!
Obviously, it hasn’t come yet…
Because evil, sin, & death are still very present in our world
We’re still waiting for the consummation of these things
But, in another sense, death has already been dealt with
Notice what Paul says in…
10 This has now been made evident through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who has abolished death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.
The word for “abolished” is the same word he used in 1 Cor. 15
Jesus will abolish death
And Jesus has already abolished death
I’ve talked about it before, but it’s been a while
Here we see a Kingdom theme that is common in the NT
The already & not yet
Jesus has already abolished death in one sense
But He has not yet abolished death in another sense
I could spend all day talking about:
The “not yet” aspect of death’s defeat
Our future hope of resurrection
These are some of my favorite things to think/talk about
But we’re not going to do that today
Today, we’re looking at the Freedom From Death…
That we “already” have in Christ
And for that, we’re going to focus primarily on one passage:
In Hebrews 2, the author is focusing on the incarnation of Jesus:
How God became fully human
How He experienced every aspect of the human experience
How He suffered & died to bring us to the glory of God:
He brings us into the family of God as His little brothers & sisters
Then the author says:
14 Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, he likewise shared in their humanity, so that through death he could destroy the one who holds the power of death (that is, the devil), 15 and set free those who were held in slavery all their lives by their fear of death.
We as God’s children “share in flesh & blood”
“Flesh & blood” is a Hebrew idiom
It refers to human nature in its weakness & frail mortality
Jesus chose to join us in our weakness & frail mortality
Why would God choose to become weak & mortal?
Well, the author tells us:
So that He could die
Jesus chose to give up immortality & take on mortality…
So that He could enter into death Himself
Why did He need to go through death?
So He could destroy the one who holds the power of death:
The Devil
How does the Devil hold the power of death?
What did he do to bring death into a deathless creation?
He tempted Adam & Eve to disobey God
He wields the power of death the same way today
He tempts us to sin & break God’s laws
And the wages of sin is death
Sin deserves death & leads to death
But, as we’ve seen from the past 2 weeks…
Jesus gives us freedom from law & sin
And because Jesus has freed us from enslavement to law & sin…
The Devil & his weapon of death…
No longer have power of us
Notice how Paul puts it in:
55 “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!
Death is no longer victorious over us
Death no longer carries a sting
Why?
The rest of the text in Hebrews tells us:
16 For surely his concern is not for angels, but he is concerned for Abraham’s descendants. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers and sisters in every respect, so that he could become a merciful and faithful high priest in things relating to God, to make atonement for the sins of the people. 18 For since he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted.
Death is no longer victorious & no longer stings…
Because our sins were atoned for through Jesus’ death
We are no longer under law but under grace
And that grace covers over our sins
And where there are no sins, death has no lasting power
15 Disarming the rulers and authorities, he has made a public disgrace of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
The Devil’s greatest weapon is death
But Jesus disarmed him through death
It’s a paradox
Jesus abolished death by dying
Jesus used the enemy’s own weapon against him
But let’s go back up to verse Hebrews 2:15
This is the main part of the text I want us to look at
15 and set free those who were held in slavery all their lives by their fear of death.
We know one day we will be completely free from death
Death will be thrown into the fire & destroyed
Eternal resurrection life will be our future
And right now, we already feel a piece of that freedom from death
We understand that we are not under law but under grace
Our sins are forgiven & covered…
And we are righteous, holy, & saved in Jesus
We are currently free from death…
In the sense that we know it can’t/won’t hold us forever
Resurrection is our future
And that knowledge of our future…
Gives us freedom from the fear of death
The fear of death enslaves us
And most people live their entire lives in this slavery
A Jewish philosopher named Philo Judaeus of Alexandria…
Who lived during the days of Jesus & the early church…
Wrote this concerning the fear of death:
“nothing is so calculated to enslave the mind as a fear of death, arising from an excessive desire of living.”
How does a fear of death enslave us?
Fear controls the way we think & live
Fear of death leads to a need for self-preservation
And a need for self-preservation…
Leads to selfishness & even sin
We cling to those things that falsely promise to save us:
We hoard our money & belongings instead of choosing generosity
We choose our own comfort over risk for the comfort of others
We choose to join the crowd over associating with the humble
We choose immediate pleasures over self-control
We choose to save our life over giving our life
This is foolish because self-preservation is not the true path to life
It is the path that leads to the very thing we fear:
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to become my follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
As followers of Jesus, we aren’t meant to obsess over self-preservation
We have been freed from the fear of death
We know that it isn’t the end of our existence
And because we know that…
We have the freedom to live for something bigger than ourselves
When we’re not afraid of death…
We’re free to live boldly & faithfully:
We can risk rejection over sharing the message of Jesus
We can endure persecution for doing what’s right…
Without compromise or despair
We can sacrifice our own comforts to love & serve others
We can resist temptation…
Because we know true pleasures are awaiting us
Why do you think it is…
That the apostles & early Christians were so willing…
To give up the things that we so desperately cling to?
They joyfully:
Received beatings
Had their belongings confiscated
Were slandered, mocked, & humiliated
Even went to death
What gave them such boldness & joy?
They fully believed that Jesus overcame death
And that death would one day be defeated for all who trust in Him
They weren’t afraid of death anymore
And when you are free from the fear of death:
Your values change
Your priorities realign
Your courage grows
You stop living like this life is the only one you’ve got
When you’re no longer afraid to die…
You are finally free to live
You’re free to live that abundant life Jesus talked about
You’re free to live faithfully as a disciple of Jesus…
Because, come what may, death has no lasting hold on you
You’re free to live for more than just yourself
You’re free to live in service to others
You’re free to love, give, & sacrifice
Being a follower of Jesus…
Means being freed from the fear of death
1.) He does not knock.
He kicks down the door.
With hands like winter,
He steals what’s warm.
2.) From nursery to nursing home
Young or old, he doesn’t care
He touches who he wishes
He takes who he dares
3.) We try our best to stop him—
With doctors, drugs, and prayer.
We bargain, beg, and busy up,
Pretending he's not there.
4.) He never weeps.
He never waits.
He loves no one—
Just desecrates.
5.) He’s the stealer of our hope
The murderer of our joy
He takes the ones we love
He laughs as he destroys
6.) We call him Death,
The Pit, the Grave
Our greatest enemy
And we his slaves
7.) But then came One
Whose voice Death feared,
Whose touch reversed
What we once sneered.
8.) He clothed Himself
In flesh and bone,
And entered in
To Death’s dark home.
9.) He took the sting.
He bore the curse.
He broke the chains—
And emptied the hearse.
10.) The grave he robbed,
The stone he rolled,
He silenced lies
That Death had told.
11.) Now Christ stands risen—
Strong and free—
The first to rise,
The last we shall be.
12.) So we who weep
Still weep with hope.
Our tears will dry.
We rise. We cope.
13.) No longer slaves
To fear or night—
We live and die
In fearless light.
14.) So death may strike,
But it won’t stay.
The tomb is torn.
He’s lost his prey.
