January 29

Are We Ready

The Holy Spirit had revealed to him that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. — Luke 2:26 BSB

It’s a fearful thing to face death without having seen Christ. Death is a terrifying reality—it’s a valley of shadows that leads to God’s judgment. What if we’ve never encountered Christ? It doesn’t matter how many great people we’ve met, how many accomplishments we’ve achieved, or how much honor we’ve gained. If we haven’t seen Christ, we’re not ready to die. Even those who have rejected Christ throughout their lives often want to see Him before they die. They may live without Him, but they don’t want to die without Him.

There’s a story of an infidel whose wife was a devout Christian. Their daughter, a lovely young girl, was dying. Throughout her life, her father had ridiculed Christianity in front of her. Near death, she asked him whether he wanted her to die in his belief or her mother’s belief—as an infidel or a Christian. With deep emotion, he replied, “Mary, I want you to die in your mother’s faith.” Even though he had rejected Christ all his life, he wasn’t content for his child to face death without Christ.

Death is the ultimate test of all beliefs. If a belief isn’t good enough to die with, it’s not worth living by. No one has ever regretted trusting Christ as they approached death. When we have truly seen Christ, we are always ready for death. We have already passed from death to life, and we have nothing to fear in the act of dying. It’s merely a transition from darkness to light.