How Can We Make
Sense Out Of Tragedy?
It
is very hard from a human perspective to make sense out of a tragic loss of a
loved one. We
think to ourselves, why would God allow this to happen? Yet from an eternal
perspective only God knows why He does not protect everyone from the effects of
sin in this fallen world. Maybe the greater purpose in all tragedy reminds us
that our Creator is making light of the brokenness of this world. He is calling
us all to turn to Him for hope which He freely and graciously offers to all. No
one I know of is going to be able to escape physical death. Whether young or
old we have to face the fact that our bodies are infected with the disease of
sin and will either break down over time or be in the line of fire of accidents,
violence, natural disasters, or evil.
Yet
God has given us a purpose for life. It is not the amount of years that we are
given that matter but the amount of impact we can make by testifying to the
power and love of a gracious God. Those who receive the gift the faith are
transformed from death to life.
“Very
truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has
eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.” (John 5:24)
Those
who become followers of Jesus are no longer under the condemnation and wrath of
God. In fact, they have become a friend of God reconciled and righteous through
Jesus’ work on the cross. Each life that Jesus purchased with His life has a
God story to tell. This testimony of God Love mercy and grace reminds us that
without God intervening in our circumstances, we would remain separated from
Him for all eternity.
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this:
While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”(Romans 5:8)
God
created us with a purpose: To love Him and fellowship with Him through our reverence,
worship and praise for His extravagant mighty work of creation. To experience Him
and enjoy the gift and power of the Holy Spirit that indwells within each
believer. To serve God and others with the spiritual gifts and talents we have
been given. And when it is time to go home and be with God, He has plans for us
as well. Heaven will be a place of continual rejoicing.
It
is important to know that God has an even better home that He has prepared
specifically for us where there is no more death, pain disease, violence or suffering.
Yes, we have an eternity of an even better life than the one we have been given
here on earth. Praise God for that better place called heaven!
Jesus
spoke these words to his disciples in order to comfort them:
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You
believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that
were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for
you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to
be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where
I am going.”(John 14:1-4)
The hope
we have when we lose a loved one is that God has made great promises about what
awaits us all when our time comes.
The
passage below reminds me about how much God loves us and desires to reassure us
that even though our sin nature causes us to stumble at times, it does not
prevent us from the receiving the promises God made to those who have received
the gift of faith.
My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they
follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never
perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them
to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my
Father’s hand. (John 10:27-29)
This
means that we will never be separated from the love of God!
For I am
convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the
present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything
else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is
in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans
8:38-39)
Those
who have received the Holy Spirit through there confession of faith confirms
that they are God’s Children.
And you also
were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your
salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised
Holy Spirit, (Ephesians
1:13)
Now it is God
who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of
ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing
what is to come. (2 Corinthians 1:21-22)
Many
times I have seen the glow and joy of a new believer. God’s supernatural work
changes a person’s heart and it is quite evident that they are different and in
the process of transformation from the inside out. Their new identity is in Christ
and they begin to serve God out of love and not out of obligation to earn God’s
approval. God has already approved of them and their call to faith proves that
He does.
The
greatest achievement in this life is not status, wealth or worldly success. The
greater success story is to be known and loved by God. This is not done by our
work but by God’s supernatural work and intervention into our circumstances. We are given the gift of faith.
For it is by grace you have been saved,
through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not
by works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians
2:8-9)
Those
who have received the gift of faith will never die spiritually even though they
will die physically in this world’s timeline. This physical death brings sorrow
to us because of the temporary loss we experience while we are still awaiting our
turn to enter into that same physical state.
The joy we have
is twofold:
We
can celebrate the eternal life of the person who has passed knowing that we
will one day be reunited with them again in heaven.
We
can remember and celebrate the wonderful times and joy of having this person in
our lives. Memories of them will have a permanent place and impact on our
heart.
Still,
losing a friend or a family member is devastating. Yet, there is one important thing
I have witnessed about the family of God, we do not grieve alone. We are
surrounded by other believers who will offer comfort, prayer and counsel during
the difficult days of sorrow ahead. The acts of kindness and compassion remind
us that God has wired His people to be an extended family. We are truly
brothers and sisters in Christ. There
will always be moments of loss as we go through this life along with moments of
blessing due to God making sure we are cared for by His family.
There
are so many great promises God has made to His people that should encourage us as
we go through life in a broken and fallen world. Two passages have helped me
through the most difficult of days:
Proverbs 3:5-6 New
International Version (NIV)
Trust
in the Lord with all your heart and
lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge
him, and he will make your paths straight.
Jeremiah 29:11New
International Version (NIV)
For
I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord,
“plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
God
planned and then brought me to that moment of my salvation and that is the
greatest gift I will ever receive. Meanwhile if I trust Him to direct my everyday
He will lead me to life in abundance and show me how to appropriate His
blessings. I desire for Him to do a work
in me and through me. That is real evidence I look for in every believer. That
is really how I see the abundant life: The Holy Spirit at work in us and through
us. The depth of love a person has for God and for others. This is the legacy
we should all desire to leave. The reward we get is the privilege to glorify
God through our Christ-likeness. We must remember our purpose includes demonstrating
God’s love to the broken, the hurting, the poor, and the lost. This is
important because we will be most remembered by our character, our heart, and how
we lived, not just what we achieved. Our testimony will be powerful and
effective if it can be told as a God story. There is a reward for how we live
this life. We can be assured that those believers who have passed on will receive
that reward in heaven.
To
me, if a person’s life affects other people in a positive and loving way, God
will remember what they have done. If a person loves and serves God with
gratitude using the gifts and talents He gave them, He will surely remember
that as well.
Those
works are the ones God has prepared in advance for us to do. Our obedience to
God assures us of His love and God promises to reward the ones He loves.
Jesus replied,
“Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we
will come to them and make our home with them. (John 14:23)
But neither
exile nor homecoming is the main thing. Cheerfully pleasing God is the main
thing, and that’s what we aim to do, regardless of our conditions. Sooner or
later we’ll all have to face God, regardless of our conditions. We will appear before
Christ and take what’s coming to us as a result of our actions, either good or
bad. (2 Corinthians 5:10)
So
as we mourn the loss of our loved ones let’s always remember what God has done.
Jesus
rescued His followers from the sting of sin and death.
If you declare with
your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from
the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9)
Those who have
died in Christ will eternally remain in His love. They will also impact us as
we remember what God has done in them and through them.
Just Sayin…………….Dave
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