Mark 5:39 (KJV)
And when he was come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth.
Many years ago, while I was pastoring in Astoria, Oregon, there was a little girl who rode our church bus. She had trusted Christ as her Saviour and had been baptized. Her name, I believe, was Kirsten Thornton. She drowned in Coffenbury Lake at Fort Stevens.
I used this passage as the text for her funeral message.
"She is not dead, but sleepeth."
What Jesus promised, taught, and did for the damsel in this passage is exactly what He has promised and will do for Kirsten. And, by the way, it is what the Bible teaches He will do for every believer.
In this passage, Jesus did it in "real time" to demonstrate His power to keep His Word and to teach us the truth of His Word.
The first truth
For the believer, death is but sleep. We live forever. We do not fear sleep; we require it. I lie down to sleep every night expecting to get up in the morning. For the believer, the same is true of death. It is necessary. It is temporary. It is nothing to fear.
The second truth
There have always been those who do not believe. They laugh, they mock, they weep, and they mourn. That is the difference between the believer and the unbeliever. The believer has hope because of faith. The unbeliever lacks faith and, therefore, lacks hope.
The third truth
She was not only alive, but fully restored. Jesus commanded that they give her something to eat. Heaven is not a "sort of" life. It is abundant life. It is life fulfilled.
I believe those of us who one day awaken in heaven will be "astonished with great astonishment" at the wonders of life on that side of death. We will wonder why we ever hesitated.
Of course, God has a purpose for every day we live on this side of eternity. But when we reach the other side, death will have lost whatever sting it ever seemed to have.
"She is not dead, but sleepeth."
#SheIsNotDeadButSleepeth #HopeBeyondTheGrave #VictoryOverDeath #FaithInChristsPromise #KJVBibleTruth
Jesus Changed the Meaning of Death Forever: "She Is Not Dead, but Sleepeth"
What are your thoughts on Jesus' words, "She is not dead, but sleepeth"? Share your thoughts or testimony in the comments—I would love to hear from you.
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