The Purpose of Untimely Death

UV 1247/10,000 The Purpose of Untimely Death
The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come.

Israel 57 v 1


Recently, an influential man of God perished in an air crash along with some members of his family and entourage off the Great Bahamas Island. People may question, “ Why did God allow it if he was truly a man of God?” The answer to this oft-asked question lies in this uni-verse. Even that teacher spoke prophetically about death just a week before that he had fulfilled all that God had set him to do and he would die a happy man anytime. He said that none of us should be surprised by death as it is written that our life is like grass and fading flower that is here today and gone tomorrow. Instead, we should only be concerned if our influence and legacy in different domains continue after our sojourn on earth.

We should only be sure that we are going back to God and not any place else. Only Jesus gives mankind that kind of assurance. For when we die with an active ongoing intimate relationship with God by faith in the words of Christ, though we perish we live forever. The other day the Lord gave us a remarkable insight into death. He said that when we leave our bodies at the time of death it is just like a snake casts off its old skin. Once it casts off its old skin, it does not remain at the same place but moves on to a new place. Death loses its ability to hurt us or it has lost its sting. Death is only a comma, not a full stop. Even the devout, the God-fearing and merciful may be recalled early to enjoy the rewards of a just life. When God decides that all the purpose that He wanted fulfilled in a person’s life, He might choose to call him or her. God is so compassionate that He cares for every sparrow. How much more would He care for His own children obtained by faith? We need to lay these things to our hearts or consider seriously and be constantly thankful and conscious of the grace of God that is with us as much in life as in death and beyond.

During the course of my life so far, I have been surprised by the untimely death of some faithful followers of Jesus. But when I considered it in my heart, the Lord revealed that He was taking them away to their home in “glory land” to preserve them from further troubles or evils to come. They enter into the peace of God and find their rest as they lie in death. As Jesus said, “ Do not weep for me. Rather, weep for yourselves” for the suffering that we need to continue to endure. When I did not perish in Sriperumbudur during the human bomb assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, I thought to myself that the Lord is adding each day as a bonus, an opportunity to know Him more and better and to make Him known.

Prateep V Philip