“Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.”
1 Thessalonians 4:13-15
The show The Good Place is one of my favorite series on Netflix. It follows the afterlife of four humans, showing how they navigate their new existence in what’s called “The Good Place.” The show did not talk about God or a savior, but it did dive into many thoughts about the afterlife. Where will you go? Who decides? What is the point of the afterlife? One of the first questions in the dialogue is, “So, who got it right?”
Our culture has many thoughts about the afterlife. The most prevalent is that people will probably be fine. People probably are in a better place. But without the knowledge of Jesus’ promise that he would give life everlasting, most people can only say of their loved ones, “I hope they are in a better place.” The hope that culture talks about is a weak hope. It is a hope that may or may not happen, like “I hope I pass the test I didn’t study for.”
Paul talks about a different kind of hope to the Thessalonians. Hope to Paul is firm, like an anchor (Hebrews 6:19). It can’t be moved or shaken. In fact, when things are unknown, this hope is the only thing that doesn’t move. The one thing we can be certain of in this world is that we will spend the rest of eternity in heaven with our Lord when we accept Jesus as our savior. Our hope is in God’s promise to us, and it’s a hope that is unwavering.
The Thessalonians had hope for their own future, but they were uncertain about the loved ones that they had lost. While they were mourning their loss, Paul assured them that there was hope that they would see their friends again (1 Thess. 4:13). As a Christian, we don’t have to say goodbye at a funeral. We can say, “see you later.”
Do you care about the eternal fate of your friends and families as much as the Thessalonians cared about their friends who had already died? It’s easy for Christians today to fall into the cultural idea that people will “probably be fine.” Sharing the gospel can be uncomfortable or awkward, but is that enough to stop us from caring for the eternal lives of our loved ones?
Pray that God will give you eagerness and boldness to share the true hope of Christ with those you love!