Life’s trials
Most of us avoid thinking about death until it comes close: a diagnosis, a funeral, a night when sleep will not come. The Bible does not avoid it. It tells us plainly why we die, why we fear it, and how that fear can be taken away.
“The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!” (1 Corinthians 15:56–57)
Why do I have to die?
God made a world that was very good, with no sickness in it and no death. Death came in when the first man disobeyed God: “sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin” (Romans 5:12). So death is not simply nature taking its course. The Bible calls it wages: “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). That is why every one of us dies. Every one of us has sinned.
Why do I dread dying so much?
Partly because death takes us from everyone and everything we love. But the Bible points to something deeper: “man is appointed to die once, and after that to face judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). Beyond death we must meet God, who is holy, and our conscience tells us that we are not ready.
That is what Paul means when he says, “The sting of death is sin”. A sting is what makes a creature dangerous. What makes death dreadful is the sin we carry to it. And God’s law, which shows us what we ought to be, shows us how guilty we are. That is why he adds that “the power of sin is the law”.
What comfort does the gospel give?
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, became a man so that He could die. He had no sin of His own. On the cross “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree” (1 Peter 2:24): He took the punishment that the sins of His people deserve. On the third day God raised Him from the dead, never to die again.
So for everyone who trusts in Him, the sting has been drawn. Their sin has already been punished in Christ. They still die, but death can no longer condemn them. It has become the way into Christ’s presence. He came to “free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death” (Hebrews 2:15). To a dying criminal who turned to Him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43).
Notice, too, that Paul thanks God, “who gives us the victory”. It is given. It is not earned.
What must I do to get this comfort?
You cannot earn it. You can only receive it. Admit to God that you have sinned against Him. Turn from living for yourself. Trust Christ, and what He did on the cross, as your only hope of being right with God.
Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me will live, even though he dies.” Then He asked, “Do you believe this?” (John 11:25–26). He asks you the same question.
If you belong to Christ
Christians feel the fear of death too, and they grieve when those they love are taken. Faith does not make us numb: Jesus Himself wept at the grave of His friend (John 11:35). But remember whose you are. Paul could say, “to live is Christ, and to die is gain”, because to die was to “be with Christ, which is far better indeed” (Philippians 1:21, 23). And until that day, you do not walk alone: “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me” (Psalm 23:4).
Scripture quotations are from the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), which is in the public domain. They keep its American spelling.