God's Perspective on Death
by Abraham Wright
Every morning my wife and I try to have a quiet time. Recently, God really spoke to my wife as she read God’s words to Moses before he died. This is what God told Moses:
“There on the mountain that you have climbed you will die and be gathered to your people, just as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people” (Deuteronomy 32:50).
God told Moses he would be “gathered to his people.” God could have told Moses, “When you die, you will be with Me.” (This is enough, by the way! I can’t wait to be with God!) But God also created us for other relationships. For example, when God created Adam and there was no sin, and Adam had an amazing relationship with him, God still said:
“The Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him’” (Genesis 2:18).
Even though Adam had an amazing relationship with God, and there was no sin in the world, God still saw fit to create another human being to whom Adam could relate. This shows that in the very core of our being, God created us to be in relationships with other human beings. Why would this be any different in the next life?
God’s perspective on death also includes us being reunited with our loved ones who are Christians. Therefore, don’t feel bad if you are longing to see loved ones who have passed on. God created you with this longing, and God mentions being gathered with our people many times in the Bible: Genesis 25:8, 17, 35:29, 49:33, Numbers 20:24, 26, 31:2, etc.
The reason this Scripture spoke so deeply to my wife is because of the pain of her mother passing away last September. This has been very difficult on our family, especially my wife. And God reminded her, when she read that Scripture, that one day she would be reunited with her mom. As my wife cried that morning after reading this, we all prayed and thanked God for that sweet reminder.
As Mother’s Day approaches, it will no doubt be a tough day for my wife, but our grief is not without hope (1 Thessalonians 4:13). May God give us all the faith to believe that this life is not the end. For those of us who trust in Jesus, we will one day be with God and be reunited with other Christian loved ones.
Author Bio
Abraham Wright is a teaching pastor at Council Road and leads the Spiritual Formation Team. He has a master’s degree in Apologetics and is married to Marjorie. They have three children: Trinity, Bailey and Isaac.