Our son, John learned a valuable lesson about death when he was a child. One day he took aim with his new BB gun at a little bird sitting on a limb near our back deck. He aimed and fired and hit his target and the bird collapsed to the ground. Dead. At first there was the excitement of being a good marksman, but then upon finding the bird, there was the shock of its results. I’ll never forget what John said: “Is he dead?” Yes…son. “Dad, bring him back.” Son, there’s nothing I can do.
Talking about a helpless moment! But at the same time, a teachable moment. So what did we do? The only thing a preacher knows to do. You have a funeral service and turn to the one who is our greatest help in our time of need. So we got a shoebox, dug a hole, had a little service and said a prayer.
You see…there is only one who has the answer to death. There is only one who has truly conquered death forever. There is only one who defeated death and gave us hope in our most difficult hour…and that’s our Savior Jesus!
That’s why Easter is such a glorious occasion! It is the celebration of Jesus’ defeat of our greatest enemy – death. Without Jesus, death is the end. Because of Jesus, death is merely a threshold, an entrance to a new life.