GOD’S WORD FOR YOU
PSALM 4:8
A Word of Comfort for a Dying Woman
Who May Not Know Christ
I will lie down and sleep in peace,
for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.
(Psalm 4:8)
Dear Uncle D.,
I’m so sorry to hear about your friend. I appreciate your desire to share certain Psalms for her comfort. I will send along some suggestions. But before we get to planting those fast-growing seeds, we must prepare the soil for those seeds, or they will only sit there useless as if you had sewn them onto desert sand.
Her condition is dire and serious. Her cancer, you say, is in stage 4. We have no time to dance around the issue. Her eternal soul is in danger of pain, suffering, and loss far worse than the grief and despair she is feeling right now. Let’s get right to the facts.
1, Every human being is created by God for one purpose, to come to faith in order to enter into paradise and life with God forever in heaven. “He chose us,” the Bible says, “before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight” (Ephesians 1:4).
2, Our original ancestors, our very first parents, fell into sin and condemned us all to be born into that same sinful status. The price we are paid for our sinfulness is death (Romans 6:23). More than that, in the Bible God declares that death is not the end for the sinner. The soul that sins will die (Ezekiel 18:4), but the soul does not cease to exist. The human soul, with all of the memories, personality, and consciousness of the living body, will go to hell because of that person’s sins. “Fear him,” God says, “who, after the killing of the body, has the power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him” (Luke 12:5). Even after much suffering here on earth, human beings who reject God, guilty of their sins, will be damned to suffer in hell.
But there is still hope. God demands that we should be sinless, but we just can’t do it. The more we learn about God’s law and God’s commandments, the more each one of us understands how sinful we are. Yet I’ll say it again: There is still hope.
That hope comes from outside us, not inside of us. This isn’t something that “pull myself up by my own bootstraps” Americans like to hear. But it’s exactly what every parent has to tell every child. You will need help in this life. And God is the one, the only one, who offers help when it comes to the condition of our soul.
3, God himself entered into our world to save us. The Son of God, Jesus Christ, became a human being like we are, but without sin. He took up the guilt of our sin as his very own, even though he was sinless. This is the story of Jesus. The things he did– miracles he performed, parables he preached– those things only illustrate this point. He took up our sinful state. One of the ancient prophets predicted this: “Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows” (Isaiah 53:4).
4, Then, still carrying the guilt of mankind on his record, he was executed by the Roman governor of Judea. This, too, was predicted by the prophets: “He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities (sins), the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5).
This is clear and simple: The punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. The crucifixion of Jesus, nailing him to a cross until he died after about six hours of agony, paid the price for our sins.
5, His human nature allowed him to pay the penalty for human sin under the law of God. By being human, Jesus was able to bear our blame, suffer, and die. But because he was also the Son of God, which is recognized in the Bible again and again (Matthew 14:13; Matthew 16:16; Matthew 27:54), his death had the value of everything God does. His death had infinite value. His blood covered over all of my sins and all of yours. It paid the terrible price for all sins of all mankind forever. As the Bible says, “We have been made holy (acceptable to God) through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Hebrews 10:10).
6, Being right with God is the beginning. But there is more. The Bible also promises that we will rise from the dead. That means that our bodies will be raised from the dead and will be rejoined with our souls. The body that rises will never again be prone to disease, cancer, sorrow, mistakes, sins, or even temptations to sin. The body that rises, the Bible says, will be changed. “The perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable” (1 Corinthians 15:53).
7, Having risen from the dead, forgiven by Jesus, we will no longer be condemned for our sins. They will be forgotten by God for Jesus’ sake. “The past troubles will be forgotten and hidden from my eyes,” God says (Isaiah 65:16). We will be united with God. He will answer any questions we might have, forever. We will be united with our family and friends who are in heaven, and with ancestors we never knew. We will experience everlasting joy and bliss.
We might ask, how can I know that I have what it takes to get to heaven? If it were up to us, we would never be able to answer that. But the Bible assures us: It isn’t up to us. The Bible assures us and calms our worries: “It is by grace you have been saved, through faith– and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God. It is not by works (the things we say or do), so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Grace is God’s love for us, love we don’t deserve. But God chose to love us, and to rescue us. Put your faith in God, in Jesus who bore the burden of your sins, and who rose from the dead after he paid the ultimate price. He was seen by more than five hundred eyewitnesses after he rose, and the writers of the Bible invited their readers to go and ask those eyewitnesses about it (1 Corinthians 15:3-8). “Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures, and he was raised on the third day” (1 Corinthians 3:3-4). He suffered the agony of hell, so that we won’t have to. This is God’s love. Trust in Jesus, and you will have everlasting life.
This is the message for your friend. You are the best friend she could have to share this with her. Let me know how she responds. I will be happy to make other suggestions, and we can walk through the short Gospel, Mark, especially certain chapters, with her. Mark is wonderful for this because it’s written for those who don’t know anything about the Old Testament.
Ephesians is also a short letter of great comfort but full of the right sort of doctrine for someone just coming to faith. We pray that she will come to faith. I will add three prayers for her. Share them; two by Luther and one by Jesus:
MORNING PRAYER
In the name of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen. I thank you, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, your dear Son, that you have kept me this night from all harm and danger. Keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please you. Into your hands I commend my body and soul and all things. Let your holy angel be with me, that the wicked foe may have no power over me. Amen.
EVENING PRAYER
In the name of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen. I thank you, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, your dear Son, that you have graciously kept me this day. Forgive me all my sins, and graciously keep me this night. Into your hands I commend my body and soul and all things. Let your holy angel be with me, that the wicked foe may have no power over me. Amen.
THE LORD’S PRAYER (for someone unacquainted with it):
Our Father in heaven, Your name is always holy. May your kingdom come, and may your desire, Father, always be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us the things that we need for today. Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. Do not lead us into temptation, but rescue us from all evil and from the Evil One. For yours is the Kingdom and the Power and the Glory, now and forever. Amen.
God bless you, Uncle, today and always
You loving nephew
Tim