"Sam, Grannie just passed away. They couldn't get her heart beating again."

These were the words I heard on the phone Saturday night while standing on the stairs at my girlfriend's house. I just froze. This woman I had spent many hours with during the course of my life — a friend, a mentor, an example — had left. She was gone. I would never see her on this earth again as long as I lived. I thought of all the moments and the memories. I thought of all the times we had together, all the words of wisdom, and of all the kind deeds that I really didn't deserve — and yet she gave freely of herself anyway.

But that's not all I thought of; I thought of the way she lived her life. I thought of her insatiable love for Jesus, and her relentless pursuit of getting to know who he was and what he had in store for her life. Despite the polio virus that had stricken her at the very young age of 8, despite the fact that she spent her entire second grade year in the hospital lying in a bed, despite the inevitable feeling of hopelessness, she still put her hope in Jesus. When all was crumbling, she put her faith in One who never crumbles. And then, throughout her life, she showed exactly who Christ was to others: she took in those who were hurting from rough family situations; she cared for her kids with compassion and patience; she loved her grandsons more than we could ever repay. Love and quiet strength were the two things that defined her life. And if I'm not mistaken, that sounds a whole lot like what we saw in the person of Jesus Christ here on earth.

And then I thought, "Wow. My life in this world is nothing compared to the life she'll be living for the rest of time. She gets to meet the God that she has followed her whole life face to face." A death of a loved one, one you were so close to, leads you to think a whole lot more about eternity. Not only that, it leads you to think a whole lot more about one of the greatest paradoxes in the world: peace in death. Death is the end, isn't it? No. In fact, it's only the beginning of the greatest joy any human life could be lived for. Through reflections on the life of my grandmother, I have found just how great a sermon she preached on this subject.

So, here are a few thoughts about peace and hope in death, based on this life-sermon preached by Radene Fowler Christian.

First, we have to understand how such a hope is even possible in the first place. This hope is only possible through faith in a Savior, who is Jesus Christ (John 14:6). But this is not a simple hope. This is a hope that requires faith and trust as well as walking through difficulty in the Christian life. When we first make that confession that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior of our lives, we are saying that we commit our lives into his hands. Our life is not our own anymore. Our life is in the hands of another. As the apostle Paul says in Galatians 2:20: "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me, and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me." This is our understanding as Christians. Our true life and strength is found not in ourselves, nor in self-sufficiency, for we are sinners by nature, and have nothing good apart from God in Christ. Our true life can only be found in the Son of Man, the Savior, the Way: Jesus Christ. There will be temptation and trial along the way. There will be times where we might say: "Lord, is this really what you had in store for me?" or "I didn't really expect this to happen to me, where are you in this time?" But, this Christian faith is lived out under the foundational truth that God is sovereign over all things, and that his plan is perfect, and that through each event that plays out, there is a grace-filled, life-filled purpose behind it. All in all, the endurance through these trials that test our faith produces perseverance in the faith, and brings us closer, indeed, to God's intention for our lives: being holy and blameless (James 1:3-4).

Now, we should look at how this trust influences the way we live our lives. If we put our faith in Christ, we are then being made more whole through our relationship with him as Savior. Indeed, we are not just being made whole, but being made holy. This is another great paradox of Christianity: sinners being made holy. Here we find the result of a radical grace, a grace that looks past the dirt and grime of our sins, and a Grace that humbled himself "by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross" (Philippians 2). And this death on a cross was not just simply a historical event. It was the historical event, upon which the story of the world, and the very story of our lives depends. Without this death, this ultimate sacrifice, we would truly be spiritually dead in the mire and muck of sin. But we are not, as a result of the purest love the world has ever known: the love of Christ for us. And, through this radical love and grace, we have a chance to, yes indeed, become holy. This is a symbol of the power of Jesus Christ in us. Again, turning to the apostle Paul, we find these words concerning holiness as a part of God's plan for us as his Creation: "For those whom he foreknew, he also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son..." (Romans 8:29). As God's Creation, we have been made by God and for God, and our model for this intention is found in the person of Jesus. He was the image of God on earth, and modeled for us all how to live in a blameless and holy manner. By our compulsion to good deeds through faith in Christ, by the way we treat others, by the way we reflect Christ's love to those around us, we can get closer and closer to that holiness in a real and tangible way.

Here is where we make the leap. Here is where we begin to talk about those things eternal. And here is where we find the everlasting hope that is ours in Jesus Christ. Through a faithful life, following Jesus, living for his purposes on earth, we have the promise of eternal life forever in Christ. We quote John 3:16 so much, but this really is the simple explanation of the offer for us as Christians: "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him will have eternal life." This is the promise. If we sell out, if we take up our cross and follow Christ, if we live faithfully to and for him, we will be with him one day forever and ever.

So why do we fear death? Why should we fear death? We have absolutely no reason to do so. Of course, this will never take away the reality of the mortal pain of death. The pain is crippling, as I have recently experienced, don't get me wrong. But, the peace is also overwhelming. When you understand that the person who has died has put their hope in the Lord, and has lived for him and his purposes on earth, you can then understand this peace. This is the peace that comes from knowing that this person does indeed have Christ in them, who is their "hope of glory" (Colossians 1:27). When we put our hope in Christ we can sing "In Christ Alone" with confidence:

"No guilt in life, no fear in death

This is the power of Christ in me

From life's first cry to final breath

Jesus commands my destiny

No power of Hell, no scheme of man

Could ever pluck me from His hand

'Til He returns or calls me home

Here in the power of Christ I'll stand."

So, there is no need to be afraid of death when we are in Christ. Our confident assurance is that we will be on high with Christ at the right hand of God, enjoying him in eternity, forever and ever and ever (etc.). Let'a keep this beautiful, poetic prose of Paul in mind as we run the race that has been set before us in Christ:

"50 Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does [p]the perishable inherit [q]the imperishable. 51 Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised [r]imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For this [s]perishable must put on [t]the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54 But when this [u]perishable will have put on [v]the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, “Death is swallowed up in victory. 55 O death, where is your victory? O death, where 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. 58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord" (1 Corinthians 15:50-58).