Harsh but vital comfort - Isaiah 57:1-2

 Isaiah 57:1-2

The righteous perish,
    and no one takes it to heart;
the devout are taken away,
    and no one understands
that the righteous are taken away
    to be spared from evil.  

 Those who walk uprightly
    enter into peace;
    they find rest as they lie in death.

These verses may be upsetting … and I am sorry if they cause you hurt. But they are important because they were written as a comfort and a challenge.

Firstly we need to know that they do not apply to all who have died. We die because of the fallen state we are born into - “as in Adam all die” (1 Cor 15:52). Death is a fact of life for all because we are fallen and sinful from birth.

But, there is a comfort these verses that applies to all who die in Christ, and there is a comfort for some of them in particular.

For all who die in Christ the wonderful comfort we who are left behind need to know is simply this: “Those who walk uprightly enter into peace. They find rest as they lie in death.” This life is only a small entry in the eternity we have promised to us in Jesus! There is eternity with Him to come, a new creation to enjoy, resting in Him and with Him. The Bible described this as “present with the Lord which is better by far”. All tears wiped away. All things made new. No more crying or hurt. We truly ‘enter our rest’. And so we live in the light of this great and certain promise now, and rest in the truth of it for those who have gone before us and in our final hours. This truth makes all the difference now.

But, also, there is an additional comfort. It is true in some measure for all believers, but it has particular truth for a number. There are some who God takes early because He is preserving them from the pain of this world - the pain of seeing evil prosper, of seeing loved ones reject the Lord and His way, or the pain of seeing nations who once loved the Lord turn from Him. Because Heaven is our home, they are not ‘missing out’ when they die, but gaining everything. And the Lord in His kindness is preserving them from the agony of seeing people turn from His gracious call. Death is not a punishment for any of God’s people because we go to be with the Lord; but it is even more of a blessing for some because God is actively preserving them from evil.

So, there is comfort. But there is also a challenge.

In our finite view we do not know God’s purpose in the death of those He loves, beyond His delight in bringing them to be with Him eternally (Jn 14:1-6). But when we see Godly people taken from us - those used greatly by the Lord, those who particularly walk close to Him and are so Christ-like - we need to also know that their departing may also be a sign to us who are left. We are to ‘understand’ the times, to realise that we do not follow God as they did. Their departure is a sign from God to us of their love for Him and our world’s rejection of Him. The challenge is there so that we turn all the more in love to Him and bold witness of Him. We are to weep not only for them but for our evil society and our fallen world. We are to plead for God’s work of grace to continue in our generation. The challenge is this: They are a sign to us from our loving Father of what it is like to walk with Him, they are a call to us to ourselves walk with Him too, and plead with Him for the evil world we live in.

Comfort and Challenge - these are important verses for us to take to heart.