Understanding Death

UV 1214/10,000 Understanding Death

O that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end!

Deuteronomy 32 v 29


It is necessary to understand death and come to terms with it in order to live well. When we are in the prime of life, health, position, possessions and power, we need to consider our “latter end” or how we would end our lives, of how none of these things will accompany us. But if we wait till we are in the prime, we may never get to understand death as we will be under an illusion that what we are enjoying will continue forever. If we understand death we will realize that the purpose of life and all our striving is none of these but the life within, above and eternal. The things we see and experience now are only foreshadows of the things to come in the Kingdom of God. It will teach us how brief is our lives. It will make us wise in all our thoughts, decisions, relations and reactions. It will make us wise towards God, our Creator and Redeemer. It will enable us to develop a perspective and a sense of proportion and priorities in life.


When I was but a youth, I once walked over to the nearby graveyard and sat among the gravestones and considered my latter end. The thoughts that passed through my mind did not make me give up all my ambition or aspirations in life but taught me not to hold on too tight to whatever God let into my hands for the time being. It did not stop me from working hard to achieve those goals but it enabled me to trust God for the results. If it was success, I understood that it was by God’s grace and that it was not my ability that caused it to happen. If it was failure, I learnt that there was a lesson or two the Lord wanted to impart through the failure. I began to literally number my days so that knowing the count of days would teach me to overcome the baser impulses of the flesh and strive for the higher goals of the spirit: love, joy, peace and hope.

Then the Lord led me to synchronise my days with the 10,000 precepts and promises in His Word as I was told that there are 10,000 unique promises of God to man in scripture. Hence for an average lifetime of 30,000 days or 82 years, a human being has three days to appropriate the promise, to practice a precept and enjoy the blessing. Our lives brief as it is are long enough for each of us to test and taste the truth, the power and the grace in each promise and precept of God. In actual reality, a person spends forty years or half a lifetime meandering around in the deserts of life without understanding or claiming or applying the promises of God. He gave me the concept of uni-verse in which He taught me that each verse in scripture is unique and divinely inspired. Each word and phrase in each verse had a hidden truth and spiritual treasure in it. These verses contain the seed of Abraham, the concepts of faith that have life transforming power. Uncovering that treasure day by day would bring me strength for the day and encourage hundreds of people around the globe who are bravely facing up to their own struggles and challenges. The Word of God contains the idea for right living of God. When we study the idea of God and apply it to our everyday real life familial or work situation, it becomes a concept or a complete seed. Uncovering that treasure day by day brings me strength for the day and encourages hundreds of people around the globe who are bravely facing up to their own struggles and challenges.

Prateep V Philip