21: Christ’s Finished Work - Redemption from Death

Because God's children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—Jesus also became flesh and blood by being born in human form. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the Devil, who had the power of death. ¹⁵ Only in this way could he deliver those who have lived all their lives as slaves to the fear of dying. Hebrews 2:14-15 (NLT)

The gift of eternal life means that in an ultimate and fundamental sense the power of death has been defeated.

Jesus told Martha: “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die like everyone else, will live again. ²⁶They are given eternal life for believing in me and will never perish. Do you believe this, Martha?” John 11:25-26 (NLT)

Jesus did not deliver us from experiencing a physical death, but He did liberate us from the second death, the one that lasts forever.

And death and the grave were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death—the lake of fire. ¹⁵And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire. Revelation 20:14-15 (NLT)

If we are born once, we die twice. If we are born twice, we die once.

That means that those who are born again by the Spirit through faith in Christ will never experience the second death. Those who are not born again will.

Fear of eternal separation from God after being found wanting at the judgment seat of Christ is what is behind the fear of death in many people.

By delivering us from the threat of eternal condemnation, Jesus also set us free from the bondage produced by the fear of death.

I assure you, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life. ²⁵"And I assure you that the time is coming, in fact it is here, when the dead will hear my voice—the voice of the Son of God. And those who listen will live. ²⁶The Father has life in himself, and he has granted his Son to have life in himself. ²⁷And he has given him authority to judge all mankind because he is the Son of Man. ²⁸Don't be so surprised! Indeed, the time is coming when all the dead in their graves will hear the voice of God's Son, ²⁹and they will rise again. Those who have done good will rise to eternal life, and those who have continued in evil will rise to judgment. John 5:24-29 (NLT)

After assuring his disciples that they would never be condemned, Jesus spoke of the coming judgment and resurrection from the dead. It is vital that we see the connection even as Jesus did.

Confidence at the judgment seat of Christ depends upon our conviction that we have been set free from the threat of the second death.

And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we are like Christ here in this world. ¹⁸Such love has no fear because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of judgment, and this shows that his love has not been perfected in us. 1 John 4:17-18 (NLT)

For believers, physical death will be an instant transition into God’s manifest presence where we will experience the extreme joy of being with God and the extended family of born-again believers.

So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. ⁷That is why we live by believing and not by seeing. ⁸Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord. ⁹So our aim is to please him always, whether we are here in this body or away from this body. ¹⁰For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in our bodies. 2 Corinthians 5:6-10 (NLT)

Once again we are encouraged to be confident when we stand complete in the righteousness of Christ before God at the judgment. We have nothing to fear. For believers, judgment will not determine heaven or hell. That has already been decided in Christ, since he took our condemnation and judgment upon himself.

For us who trust in and follow Christ, the judgment will be a place where God will reward our works of faith and love done in cooperation with God’s Holy Spirit.

It is extremely important that we do not allow Satan to rob us of our freedom from the fear of death by implanting his lie that God will ultimately reject us. We are accepted in the beloved, the eternal Son, Jesus Christ. Because He lives, we live. Death has been defeated through His resurrection!

For our perishable earthly bodies must be transformed into heavenly bodies that will never die. ⁵⁴When this happens—when our perishable earthly bodies have been transformed into heavenly bodies that will never die—then at last the Scriptures will come true: "Death is swallowed up in victory. ⁵⁵O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" 1 Corinthians 15:53-55 (NLT)