January 30

Asleep in Jesus

Sovereign Lord, as You have promised, You now dismiss Your servant in peace. — Luke 2:29 BSB

No one is truly ready to die in peace until they have seen Christ. But once they have seen Him, no other preparation is necessary. They may never have seen the wonders of this world or achieved great accomplishments, but the one essential thing is to have seen Jesus. Once we have encountered Him, death has no more terror, for He has removed its sting and robbed the grave of its victory.

For the Christian, death is like lying down on a soft pillow of peace. Christ has lifted the curse of sin from us, and death is no longer something to be feared—it’s simply the gateway to eternal life. Jesus Himself tasted death for us, but now, for those who believe in Him, death is not the end. Jesus told Martha by her brother’s grave, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.” This means that for those who are saved by Christ, death is not something to dread but merely a passage into everlasting life.

The word "lettest" in today’s Scripture means to set free. “Set your servant free to depart,” implying that what we call life is like a confinement, and what we call death, after seeing Christ, is a glorious release. What a beautiful thought of dying! On the gravestone of a little child were written the words, “Out of the darkness into the marvelous light.” All we need is to truly see Christ before we die. When He lifts away the curse of sin and places His life within us, we are already close to heaven while we live on earth. Dying will simply be the moment we step into His presence to see Him face to face forever.