In a Washington Post article titled Tech Titans Latest Project: Defy Death, Ariana Cha wrote about the efforts of Peter Thiele and other tech moguls to extend human life indefinitely. Theyre prepared to spend billions on the project.
They are a little late. Death has already been defeated! Jesus said, I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die (John 11:2526). Jesus assures us that those who put their trust in Him will never, ever, under any circumstances whatever, die.
To be clear, our bodies will dieand there is nothing anyone can do to change that. But the thinking, reasoning, remembering, loving, adventuring part of us that we call me, myself, and I will never, ever die.
And heres the best part: Its a gift! All you have to do is receive the salvation Jesus offers. C. S. Lewis, musing on this notion, describes it as something like a chuckle in the darknessthe sense that something that simple is the answer.
Some say, Its too simple. Well, I say, if God loved you even before you were born and wants you to live with Him forever, why would He make it hard?
Often when confronted with death, we are tempted to either deny how painful it is or to live without hope, only seeing the grief. In this passage, Jesus holds together both the horror of death and the sure promise of life. Because death is a tragic distortion of Gods good creation, Jesus as the Resurrection and Life is all that is opposed to it. If we read the whole story of Lazaruss resurrection, we see a fuller picture of how Jesus responds to death and grief. He is deeply moved and troubled (John 11:33) and He weeps (v. 35). Seeing death in all its horror, He defiantly overcomes it and raises Lazarus to life. Jesuss shout, Lazarus, come out! (v. 43) points to the hope of our own bodily resurrection.