English Standard Version
I probably think about death too often. I don't know that I've had any more deaths around me than others, but there have been too many unexpected deaths, catching people too young, reminding me of the fragility of life. Like so many others, I have spent too much time mourning, thinking of what might have been, in somber funeral homes where words seem to fall short and tears often fill the gap. Standing in a cemetery on a summer day, feeling a chill that comes from the inside, leaves one with a lot of questions.
When I read words like these in Micah 7, I think of death, that enemy that seeks to rejoice over us, to grasp us in icy fingers and drag us to the dark depths. Micah tells us that when we fall, we will rise, that when we find ourselves in darkness, the Lord will bring light. Micah does not hide the reality of sin, but notes that the Lord will execute judgment, and in this there is hope, there is vindication. Earlier, we might have feared judgment, but knowing the Gospel teaches us that Christ takes our judgment upon himself, therefore enabling us to dwell in the light rather than darkness, granting us victory over death, that old foe. Death will be trampled down like the mire of the streets, hands reaching but failing to grasp, for we are held by a stronger champion, and God shall not let us go.
I believe it was George Herbert who noted that death used to be an executioner, but the Gospel has made death into a gardener, planting souls only to see them spring up to new life.
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