Only the Lord has conquered death

Q: No wonder Christmas is a more favored holiday than Easter. Christmas speaks of a new life [the infant Jesus] that brought joy. Easter brings thoughts of death [His gruesome death], yet there is the new life found in resurrection, which is curious. What does the Bible verse mean when it says that death is swallowed up in victory? - B.I.

A: Think about the holes children make when they dig in the sand on the seashore. When the waves come in, the holes are swallowed up by the ocean. Similarly, when we know Christ, our physical death is overwhelmed by the love and grace of God. Death is swallowed up in the victory of Christ. Death is an incident, not an end. It is a transition for a Christian, not a terminus.

In death, we are freed from all that burdens us here. We lay aside the outward "tent" of our body, and we inherit a building from God, "a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens" (2 Corinthians 5:1). Here our lives are filled with suffering and confusion. We experience pain and problems, and sometimes life seems to have no meaning or purpose. But the resurrection of Jesus Christ changed all that. It gives purpose and meaning to life, and life's greatest joy comes from discovering His will and fulfilling it. His resurrection also gives us hope -- hope right now, and hope beyond the grave.

Only the Lord has conquered death and made it a source of freedom where it once brought only fear. Because of Christ, we can approach life and death with hope, knowing that greater things await those who know Him as personal Lord and blessed Savior. The Bible says that if we seek Him, we will find Him. "You will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all of your heart" (Jeremiah 29:13).

(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)

(C)2023 Billy Graham Literary Trust. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.