Honest question

huntingirl89 · 03-20-2009, 05:09 PM

Do you want to die? I hear people saying how they can't wait for the rapture or the end of days so they can go be closer to God, but do you honestly want to die?

I'll admit I'm a very selfish person. I want my family and loved one around me at all times and I don't want them to go anywhere. In fact, most times I want time to stand still so my parents don't age and leave me some day. I don't want to die, and I don't want my family to die. I've already taken such a huge impact by other loved ones passing that I can't stand the thought of losing anyone else, and since I am unsure of heaven, I am not comforted by a belief that they are in a better place. Rather I just feel very alone. I'm so afraid of death and dying that I come to near breakdowns over it at some points. I guess this was more of a vent than anything, so I apologize if I got too personal, but I just wonder that if you were faced with your mortality this very instant, would you be willing?

Kosherboy · 03-20-2009, 05:34 PM

The Word Says;
To Me Living is Christ and death is a gain"
"Absent in the body , Present in The Lord"; who wouldn't want that ?.

I don't fear death , I've being there and back twice, nothing to fear and passing is not death but continuing to live ,but in God's presence:
Death is being alive on this earth without knowing God.
Shalom

LBR · 03-20-2009, 08:39 PM

I don't want to die--it's not natural for anyone to want to die. The part I dread is how I'll die--hopefully it will be peacefully in my sleep--but I don't fear or dread death itself.

Believe it or not, I can relate to how you feel. The only way to overcome the fear is accept Christ and understand that death isn't the end, it's just the beginning. Without that understanding, I can see how death is a very scary thing. There's no way toavoid it, so it's best to understand it.

Chad

country1 · 03-20-2009, 10:07 PM

hg89, you asked a very good question; and it isone I am glad to answer. I need to take care of my physicalbody the best that I know how for my physicalhealth. It is God's desire that we take care of our physical bodies. In no way am Idoing things to intentionallyshorten my life, nor do I have a desire to end my life. However, I do long for Christ to return and pray for it quite often. Isodesireto be with God - to bein His presence surroundedby His perfect love - a place of indescribable beautywhere there is no more sin,death,sadness or pain. Then I look around and see all of those who are not Christians and hope that God will wait a little longer.

I have several siblings and we are scattered throughout the country. Ihavea sister whofought very hard against a terminal illnessfor years. She was hoping to live long enough to see her girls graduate from high school, then college and and to behere for their weddings and the futuregrandchildren. It did not turn out as she and the rest of us hadhoped and prayed.My sister passed away shortly before Christmasleaving behinda husband and three girls. She fought the illness very hard and lived a lot longer than the doctors predicted. It has been three months, and my sister's passing has not been easy on any of us including our parents.We allmiss my sister dearly, and I really feel for her girls. However, I don't wish that she was back. My sister is no longer in pain and is in the pesence of God. When a Christian dies they do go to Heaven where there is no more sin, no more death, no more pain andno more sadness. However, the best thing about Heaven is being in God's presence and being surrounded by His perfect love. Imagine the best day in your entirelife or even your best dreamand multiply it by a million times. Now try to comprehend that you will not miss one part of it because you will never sleep; the love and joy will never diminish; you will be free of sin and have no regrets;and it will lastfor eternity.

When I was growing up, my parents would talk how they wished Christ would return. I remember being about jr. high age and hoping that Christ did not return soon as there was so much I want to do in life. The closer I have becomewith God, the more I am able tosee how this world is so sinful and wicked, the more I desire to be with God in Heaven - free from sin and in the presence of His perfect love. Yes, I will be able to see my sister, other relatives who are Christians and Christians mentioned in the Bible; but again the greatest thing about Heaven will be the presence of God everywhere and being surrounded by His perfect love.

The Bible is clear that Heaven is real and does exist. The Bible is also clear that Hell is real and also exists. Take your worse day ever or nightmareand multiply it by a million times. Now try to comprehend that it can only get worse; it will never get better; and you will never be able tosleep so you will notbe able to escapeone part of it. Instead of being surrounded by God's perfect love found in Heaven, you are surrounded by indescribable pain, thirst, heat,hatred, sorrow and evil. Instead of being in the presence of God, you will be in the presence of Satan and his demons, being tormented by themfor all eternity - knowing that it is just that you are in hell as you rejected the salvation plan offered to you by God.

Two thieves were crucified along with Jesus (one one the left and one on the right). Both thieves initallymocked Jesus. Matthew 27:38-44. However, oneof the thieves had a change of heart.Luke 23:39-46.Thethief who was savedadmitted he was a sinner in need the Saviour, submitted to the authority of God and repented - he came to God asking for salvationon God's terms. This thief did not go through any particular ritual or ceremony like baptism or communion. Christ did not say to this thief 'Say this prayer after me'. What saved this thief was his change of heart and faith in God- coming to God on God's terms.

When all the bodies are resurcted during the final judgement, those in Heaven will get their glorified body that will be made for the joys of Heaven. Those in hell will receive a body that will endure all that hell has to offer for eternity.

The Bible is also clear that a lot of people who believe they will be in Heaven will find themselves in Hell.

Matthew 7:21-27(New American Standard Bible)

21"(A)Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.
22"(B)Many will say to Me on (C)that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?'
23"And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; (D)DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'
24"Therefore (E)everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock.
25"And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock.
26"Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.
27"The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell--and great was its fall."

Having a knowlege of God does not save you. Thedemons know God exits, but they will not be in Heaven. Being religions does not save you. Doing good works does not save save you, but a Christian will have works (fruit) that shows their faith is real. We need to be careful it is not false fruit.

James 2:14-26(New American Standard Bible)

Faith and Works14(A)What use is it, (B)my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him?
15(C)If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food,
16and one of you says to them, "(D)Go in peace, be warmed and be filled," and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?
17Even so (E)faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.
18(F)But someone may well say, "You have faith and I have works; show me your (G)faith without the works, and I will (H)show you my faith (I)by my works."
19You believe that [a](J)God is one (K)You do well; (L)the demons also believe, and shudder.
20But are you willing to recognize, (M)you foolish fellow, that (N)faith without works is useless?
21(O)Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar?
22You see that (P)faith was working with his works, and as a result of the (Q)works, faith was perfected;
23and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "(R)AND ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS," and he was called (S)the friend of God.
24You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone.
25In the same way, was not (T)Rahab the harlot also justified by works (U)when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?
26For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also (V)faith without works is dead.
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Chuck7 · 03-21-2009, 12:08 AM

Good Morning,

Smart people fear death..{And do something about it}the simple see the distruction and continue on.A huge part of Christianity is about preparing for death. The Word says we can be delievered from the "Fear of death." Christ's ressurection defeated death and all those who truly believe { Greek word meaning to abide, cling and continue]" shall never die. " oh yes our outward man may perish but the soul goes on to "Be with the Lord."

Overcoming the fear of death . Through the Word I only see one thing that is stronger than death and King Solomon says,"Only love is stronger than death." 1 John 4 says Perfect love casteth out all fear." So the fear of anything can be extinguished by God's love.

This love is wrought by a continual relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ..there are many verses..let me get my Bible and find a couple real fast .

These are for you huntngirl89

1John 4: 16-19
And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in Him. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgement : because as He is so are we in this world.There is NO fear in love ; BUT perfect love love casteth OUT FEAR : because fear hath torment. he that feareth is not made oerfect in love.

On a practical note Huntgirl89...we die to self now..and strive to obey the Lord in our hearts.and in that daily self denial we taste a little of heaven and it's blessings..However;when we hold on to this present life...we are really holding on to death...Real life is in Jesus ..present and future..
God bless,
chuck7

PastorJim08 · 03-21-2009, 01:52 AM

HG89,

For the most part, I don't think Christians long to die, unless they have some sort of terminal illness that just makes living to painful. Rather, it is the assurance that Jesus has overcome the grave and we don't need to fear the unknown because Jesus, our big brother, has already been there. You stated that you are selfish and enjoy having your family around you. In the first place I don't think that makes you selfish, you just love and care about them to the point that you never want them to leave you. It is the same way for God. He loves and cares so much for us that He made a way for us to be with Him. This was accomplished through the death, burial, and resurection of Jesus. As Christians, we are in love with The Heavenly Father, so while we may not long for death, we do want to be with our heavenly family. That'sone reasonwe want to see as many of our loved ones get saved as possible. The Bible declares; "Death has been swallowed up in victory. Grave, where is your victory, death, where is your sting?" Alyssa, we have this assurance because of our belief and acceptance of Jesus. You tooAlyssa,can have this same assurance if you will begin a relationship with Him today by confessing with your mouth that "Jesus is Lord"and believing in your heartthat God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. Then you will no longer have to fear death because you will have the assurance that Jesus has overcome (defeated) death, hell, and the grave.

Blessings.....Pastorjim

sachiko · 03-21-2009, 04:59 AM

Quote:

ORIGINAL: huntingirl89

Do you want to die? I hear people saying how they can't wait for the rapture or the end of days so they can go be closer to God, but do you honestly want to die?

I'll admit I'm a very selfish person. I want my family and loved one around me at all times and I don't want them to go anywhere. In fact, most times I want time to stand still so my parents don't age and leave me some day. I don't want to die, and I don't want my family to die. I've already taken such a huge impact by other loved ones passing that I can't stand the thought of losing anyone else, and since I am unsure of heaven, I am not comforted by a belief that they are in a better place. Rather I just feel very alone. I'm so afraid of death and dying that I come to near breakdowns over it at some points. I guess this was more of a vent than anything, so I apologize if I got too personal, but I just wonder that if you were faced with your mortality this very instant, would you be willing?

It"™s not a question to which I can give you a smooth answer. I"™m not looking forward to death. I drive very carefully because I know that, being one of those small people, a minor accident could result in me being killed by the airbag. I know my husband will, in all likelihood, leave me alone for quite a while. It will be hard for me. It will be hard for me when my mother is gone.

But I don"™t think they will really be gone and I rely on that very strongly. When I kill an animal while hunting, I always thank its spirit for giving me its life. My husband shares this with me. It gave me a strong attraction to him when we first met and I realized that we shared a respect for the spiritual world. Although people used to believe that there was a heaven up above the clouds, we know now that it"™s not like that. But there is a spiritual world that we can only touch briefly sometimes when we have the right attitude.

I admire the kamikaze pilots in the war who gave their lives honorably and their spirits live on. You can see this respect for the honor of life in the character Butterfly in the opera who, having been dishonored, reclaims her honor by committing harakiri. I have to confess that, I suppose there may be an element of Shinto in our belief systems. I know that when my husband dies, he won"™t really leave us and if I die first, I will always be with him and our child (children?). I know that, eventually, my mother's parents will see that they were wrong and will be happy in their new lives, that they were not successful in ending the life of their granddaughter.

One of the elements that attracted me to the Catholic faith was the acknowledgment that one can pray for, and to, the dead. When you die you don"™t really pass over into a void but your spirit lives on just like that of the deer you kill. So I"™m not welcoming death. It seems a bit scary all in all, but so would a move to Cleveland, kind of like a normal fear of the unknown. We practice Soto Zen (my husband taught me) and when we do this, you become aware of all that is not within your sense perceptions.

May The Sheep Be With You

Snooky · 03-21-2009, 05:23 AM

Here we are again, torn between excepting what God has said about the future, and what our carnal mind questions and doubts. The question of can we trust Gods wordsas absolute, or has God really said?
No man having drank of the old wine straight way desireth the new for saith he, the old is better.

stealthycat II · 03-21-2009, 06:20 AM

honestly no, I want to cling to this life as long as I can

not a very a very "Christian" core feeling but this world is here for a reason, a purpose, and to want to live it is probably not a bad thing ...........

we should also all be excited that the world is going downhill fast, so that Christ can return .... right?

country1 · 03-21-2009, 06:37 AM

Quote:

ORIGINAL: stealthycat II

we should also all be excited that the world is going downhill fast, so that Christ can return .... right?

It is sad to see so many people on the road to hell. It is sad to see the decline of our country and the world. Seeing the reslut of sin andrejection of Godis not pleasant. Knowing that we are one day closer to the return of Christ gives me joy.