Freedom From the Fear of Death

“It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment” (Hebrews 9:27).

Some try to set aside the fear of death by concluding that after death there is neither a Heaven to seek nor a Hell to shun. Others simply try to avoid thinking about death and its consequences. Still others try to convince themselves that they certainly would not be condemned to Hell. Unfortunately, none of these solutions to the dilemma of death is adequate. We must take heed to these warnings:

“Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart” (Proverbs 21:2).

“There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death” (Proverbs 14:12).

These texts warn us against seeking to find our own way, to trust our own ability to deliver ourselves from the fear of death. It was Jesus Christ who brought the solution to sin and death. Jesus Christ was the Son of God, without sin. When He died, He died for our sins, not His own. He suffered the wrath of God, the punishment which our sins deserved and demanded.

When He rose from the dead it proved that God was satisfied with the sacrifice of His Son. When we acknowledge our sin and trust in the death and resurrection of Christ in our place then we are freed from the dread of sin and death, and enter into the assurance of forgiveness and eternal life.

How, then, can death be a source of fear for those who have trusted in Jesus Christ? The devil no longer has a death grip on us, one which makes us slaves of the fear of death. We now have the sure hope of eternal life.

“‘O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?’ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:55-57).

The Christian does not cling to this earthly life, as though this was all that there is, but longs for Heaven. Death is the doorway to Heaven, and thus it holds no fear or dread for all who are in Christ, by faith in Him.

—Condensed, with permission from Bible.org ©2025, https://bible.org/seriespage/message-hope-hebrews-214-15