O Precious Death!

O Precious Death!

Psalm 116

“Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints.” (Psalm 116:15)

One of the school exercises used in school is to be given two words and to put them together in a simple sentence. But only God could put the words “precious” and “death” in the same sentence. What is so precious about death? We might say: “Precious in the sight of the LORD is the LIFE of His saints.” Or one might think: “Blessed in the sight of the LORD is the death of His enemies.” This is hard to put together in our head, especially when we are gathered here today to say farewell to a father, a husband, a friend, a fellow church member. We come here today to celebrate the life of our saint. So a statement like this has to make us pause and think: “What is the LORD saying to us?”

This verse occurs in the 116th Psalm, which was one of the seven psalms the Jews would recite on the road to Jerusalem at Passover time. This Psalm was also cited at the Passover meal. They are a collection of Psalms known as the “Hill-El” which is translated “Praise.” The writer of this psalm was deeply troubled about death. He seems as if he were at the gates of death. He was experiencing the pains of dying and was wondering if this was the end. He was concerned about what life was about. Where was the LORD in all of this? Was he alone in his pain?

The psalmist though about these things and came to the right conclusion. He remembered the LORD. He remembered that God had been merciful to Him. Mercy goes beyond what we deserve. That is why it is called mercy. Besides being merciful, He is gracious and righteous. It is important in our suffering to realize that the one we pray to today in our grief is all of these things, The departed we are remembering today struggled with these things and held on to his faith that all would be well. He had ceased from his trials. He has found rest for his soul. But his questions have been left behind for us to ponder. Why God did you take our loved one away? What is life about? Where do we go from here? We need to do as the departed did. We must think upon who our Lord and redeemer. For it is in Him we find the answer to our pain and suffering today.

It seems as though the LORD did indeed have mercy on the psalmist. He lived from his near death experience. He had a little more time to walk in the land of the living. But some day, like all of us who are here at this moment in this land the psalmist died. Likewise, the departed fought a long hard battle with cancer. He saw the jaws of death on several occasions. Though he fought valiantly, he lost his battle to remain in this life. But these experiences also reminded him that even though he knew he was going to lose the battle this time, the Lord whom he loved and who had brought him through many toils and snares would be with him in his final journey from this life in this world into the world to come. The psalmist who had been so greatly afflicted made public testimony of the LORD’s goodness to him. His fellow worshipers knew the pain he had suffered. And while he had life, he publicly praised the LORD. So when the doors of death came, he had confidence that he would be led through the shadow of death to a new land of the living, a place where God personally wipes away every tear.

When we consider that Jesus Himself sung this psalm as He ascended the hill up to Jerusalem at His final Passover as well as at the Last Supper, we see how this psalm applies to the suffering of Jesus. Jesus well knew what awaited Him on that final journey. He could already feel the stripes laid upon His back and the nails in His hands and feet. And thus, we are reminded of the great price that Jesus paid for us. For it is by His blood that our sins are washed away. He had been delivered from death when His own townspeople at Nazareth intended to throw Him off the bluff and then stone Him. But is wasn’t the proper time. He was again delivered by the angry leaders of Israel who picked up stones to kill Him because He claimed equality with the Father. He had been brought through many near-death episodes. Se suffered pain from hunger, thirst, and the arduous journeys. But this was now His time. He knew He would not walk away from this one. He was going to leave in the most horrible of deaths without a single friend to cling to.