Church of Christ Sermons and Lessons for 2012
Speaker	Sermon/Lesson Title   (Right Click to Download)	Audio   Video  Text    Ipod MS Word	Category	Date Added	Lesson
Bobby Stafford	Fear of Death     (Download Audio)		Death	July 1, 2012	Sunday AM Sermon

The Fear of Death 

Introduction: 

I believe most people would like to face death unafraid.  Many over the years have said this was impossible.  Aristotle thought death was to be feared more than anything because “it appears to be the end of everything.”  Sartre claimed that death removed all meaning from life.  Shakespeare described the afterlife like this in a line from Hamlet:     “The dread of something after death, the undiscovered country from whose bourn no traveler returns.” 

Some in the Bible have expressed similar sentiments.  Bildad, one of Job’s friends, described death as “the king of terrors.”  (Job 18:14)         On two occasions, David remarked about the terrors of death.         (Psalms 55:4-5, Psalms 116:3)

 But God the Father doesn’t want his children to be terrified of death in the same way unbelievers are.  (Isaiah 26:19)  Note what the writer of Hebrews says is a result of Christ’s death on Calvary.  (Hebrews 2:14-15)

 Body: 

I.   What Causes Many to Fear Death? 

1. People often fear what they don’t know or understand.  None of us have experienced it so we do not know what it will be like.  We can’t go by so-called near-death experiences because they are completely unreliable.  Even those few who were raised from the dead in the New Testament times didn’t leave a record of it.  The unknown is often scary.
2. People do not want to leave this world.  They do not desire to give it up.  “All that a man has he will give for his life.”  (Job 2:4)  Many become comfortable in the world and enjoy its beauty.  Leaving it brings anxiety.
3. People fear death because they have such little control over it.  It cannot be resisted forever.  (Hebrews 9:27)  Paul says death is our enemy.  (I Corinthians 15:26)
4. Some people fear death because they believe that the grave is their final destination.  (Job 7:710)

II.   How Should Christians Face Death? 

• Remember Paul’s words in Philippians 1:23, “far better.”   The word far implies the highest superlative; an intense expression.   “Depart” means to loose up; the spirit being set free from the body to be in the presence of its Lord.   (I Corinthians 5:1, I Corinthians 6:5)
• We will not be alone in our passing.  We can apply Psalms 23:4.  Note also Luke 23:43.  Today you will be with me in Paradise.
• Death should be viewed as a transition from this physical world into the heavenly one.  Charles Lindbergh said, “Death is but a new adventure in existence.”  It is an exodus.  (II Peter 1:13-15)

The Other Side……

~D E A T H ~

WHAT A WONDERFUL WAY TO EXPLAIN IT 

A sick man turned to his doctor, as he was preparing to leave the

examination room and said, “Doctor, I am afraid to die.  Tell me what

lies on the other side.” 

Very quietly, the doctor said, “I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?  You, a Christian man, do not know what is on the other side?” 

The doctor was holding the handle of the door:  On the other side came a sound of scratching and whining, and as he opened the door, a dog sprang into the room and leaped on him with an eager gladness.

Turning to the patient, the doctor said, “Did you notice my dog?  He’s never been in this room before.  He didn’t know what was inside.  He knew nothing except that his master was here, and when the door opened, he sprang in without fear.  I know little of what is on the other side of death, but I do know one thing… I know my Master is there and that is enough.” 

Email:  Undisclosed Recipient 

• Death is not final.  (John 11:25)  Jesus proclaimed this in John 5:28-29.  Death will one day be destroyed. (I Corinthians 15:54-55)
• Death frees the faithful from physical pain as well as mental stress.  (Revelation 2:1-4)                                                              
• The faithful are also freed from a world of sin.  (Revelation 22:15)

Conclusion: 

While Christians may feel somewhat anxious at times about death, we need not be terrified like unbelievers.  As John puts it – “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord…”   (Revelation 14:13) 

Bobby Stafford

July 1, 2012