December 4, 2006
Scared To Death
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Our Savior Jesus Christ . . . abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. —2 Timothy 1:10
The opening line of a country song, “Sarabeth is scared to death . . . ,” leads the listener into the fearful heart of a teenage girl who is diagnosed with cancer. The lyrics of “Skin (Sarabeth)” expose the struggles she faces, not only with the disease and its treatment but also with the obvious evidence of her struggle—the loss of her hair (hence, the title). It is a touching song of triumph in the midst of tragedy, as Sarabeth deals with the understandable life-and-death fears that cancer brings.
The specter of death is faced by every human being. Yet, whether we face that reality with fear or with confidence is not dependent on having a good outlook or a positive attitude. The way we face death depends completely on whether or not we have a personal relationship with Jesus, who gave Himself to die so that death itself could be abolished.
Paul wrote to Timothy that our Savior was the One who “abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel” (2 Tim. 1:10). The result is that even in the most disturbing times of life, we never need to be scared to death.
We can live confidently and filled with hope, because Jesus conquered death.
To conquer death and win;
You sent Your only Son to die
To rescue us from sin. —M. Gustafson