O Death, Where Is Your Sting?
by Seneca Moraleda-Puguan
Death.
According to Wikipedia, death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. In other words, it’s the end of life. It’s the inevitable event that everyone, whether we like it or not, will have to ultimately face.
Every single day, countless people die due to disease, disaster, or tragedy.
Just a year ago, hundreds of young people lost their lives while celebrating Halloween or the Day of the Dead due to a deadly crowd crush in Itaewon, South Korea. Even now, the tragedy is still very fresh in the minds of the Korean people that the country is refraining from Halloween celebrations.
And at this time, thousands of lives have been wasted because of the conflict between Israel and Palestine. Civilians–young and old, women and children are all collateral damage of the war between the Hamas Islamist Movement and the Israeli soldiers. The war is far from over. Lives are wasting away every day because of division and selfish gains.
Around the world, wars going on, senseless crimes happening, and bodies are giving in to cancer and deadly diseases.
We can’t do anything, do we?
Death is part of life. It is something we all face. It is something we have to accept. Our life is but a breath. Our days are just borrowed. The Bible even describes us as vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away.
But what happens after death? Is death the end of everything? If it is so, then what is there to hope for? If death is the ultimate end, what’s the point of living? Maybe you have asked these questions, too.
I used to dread the idea of death. It is a very uncomfortable subject to even think of or talk about. Until I came to know and trust the One who has defeated it, the One who has overcome the grave. I came to realize that death is not to be feared but to be embraced because there is hope for something better.
One of the most quoted Bible verses declares:
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him” (John 3:16-17)
To those whose hope is in the Lord, death is not the end. Eternal life awaits. I hold on to the promise in Revelation that there will come a time when He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.
Life may be difficult at the moment or you feel like there’s no more reason to live, but there is hope. Hope has a name. His name is Jesus. In Him and through Him, we can live our short life to the fullest. Hang in there!
“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” 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 15:55-57)
