A Good Day to Die

A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one's birth. Ecclesiastes 7:1

I was recently walking through a cemetery near my home. It was early evening on a cool summer day. It was pleasant to commune with God in that place. As I looked at the various tomb stones I began to pray that our generation would begin to reflect on its mortality. Mosses said of life in Psalm 90, “Each of us lives for 70 years- or even 80 if we are in good health. But the best of them [bring] trouble and misery. Indeed, they are soon gone, and we fly away.” Most of the stones in the cemetery were from the 18th century. There is no a single person on the planet alive that was born prior to 1890. 100% of the generation has been judged. They have received a grace that set them to eternity with God or a judgment that has separated them from God.

They are receiving the natural consequences of the desire to know and love God or they are eternally and without repentance separated from him. This truth of the lack of repentance is demonstrated in Revelations 6: 15-17 “Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and everyone else, both slave and free, hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can withstand it?” You will notice a desire to be free from pain but no sorrow for the sin that lead the ‘wrath of the Lamb.

Consider Luke chapter 16: 22-24 “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’ Please notice that the rich man is also only seeking relief from his pain and has no agony in his soul for the injustices that lead to the riches he received in life. He is in fact trying to treat Lazarus who is in heaven as his servant. He is completely without repentance. Also note that the rich man is unnamed. Lazarus has a name written that will never fade away because it is recorded in the scriptures. The rich man will be anonymous for eternity.

Well you might ask did that rich man have the opportunity to understand the nature of his eternal state. Did the message come to him? We are privileged to hear a conversation between him and Abraham, who he calls father. ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’ ‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’ Luke 16

These truths are equally applicable for Abraham, Lazarus, the 18th century and our own generation. We have Mosses and the prophets and one who was raised from the dead. We know his name. Acts 4 says of that name “It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. Jesus is ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’ Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

Our name represents our life. The living is in the dash in between the dates set forth on the stone that makes our grave. In that living we set ourselves up for eternity. 1 Corinthians 3 is very clear on this matter. It is a passage intended for those who trusted in the name of Jesus to save them. “If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.”

So why then is the day of death better than the day of birth. A good name is earned when it is written into the Lambs book of life. It is a book that is exclusively for those who loved and feared God. Please do not soften this word fear. Romans 11:22 reads “Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.”

Let us continue in that goodness. 1Timothy 3 tells us that we must even have a good reputation among those outside the church. However we must remember that we must have a good reputation with God first, Peter and John were ‘commanded not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. But they answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye.” Acts 4

Peter and John names are also recorded in eternity. There days were numbered they served their God and they were received into glory upon their death. I pray that you to will number your days and remember they are but a few. I pray that your name is recorded in the Book of Life and that you see your death as better than your birth because you have completed your days on Earth and have been called to a better place.