Chapter 41 Flashcards
How would you express your hopes in regarding your own death?
I hope that when I die, I have carried out the plans that God has for me here on Earth. However, I know now that I should not fear death because it is the final act to me becoming close to God. I will leave this earthly body and get to join Him and remain under His love without the worries and pain of this world.
Do you think that you would have the courage to refuse to sin even if it meant being thrown to the lions in a Roman coliseum, or burned at the stake during the reformation, or thrown in prison for years in some foreign country today? Do you think the Christian martyrs throughout history had thought that they would have enough courage when put to the test? What happened to them to equip them for this suffering (read 1 Cor. 10:13)?
I think that being faced with that decision would be very difficult and is definitely a test of true faith. I believe I would stand up for what I believe in, no matter the cost. I am sure that Christian martyrs probably questioned themselves in regards to their ability to avoid temptation. But, God has promised He will not tempt us beyond what we are able to resist and He will provide us with a way to escape our temptations.
Have you settled in your own mind that obedience to Christ is more important that preserving your own life? What would make you hesitant to believe this or act on this conviction?
I do believe obedience to Christ is the most important thing to me as a believer. I remember when the school shootings happened in Columbine, I wondered what I would do if I was faced with the question of my faith as they were. I knew that if I denied my faith and lived, I would always feel horrible about denying God. Now, the thing that would make me hesitant to act on my conviction would be my children. I think of them before I make any decision, and it would be very difficult to know I am leaving them without a mother. However, I know if God put me in that situation, He must have something great in store for them.
If death itself is viewed as part of the sanctification process, the how should we view the process of getting older and weaker? Is that the way the world views it? What about you?
We should view it as a kind of discipline that God leads us through to help us be more like Christ. It is hard to view death as a positive experience, especially if it happens unexpectedly or through a difficult illness. However, as believers we should still praise God and serve Him no matter what we go through, because He is ultimately preparing us to be with Him.
The teaching that after death unbelievers suffer the penalty of God’s wrath for a time, and then are “annihilated” or destroyed so that they no longer exist.
annihilation
A term in the apostle’s creed referring to the fellowship that believers on earth have with believers in heaven by virtue of a common worship.
communion of saints
The termination of life brought about by the entrance of sin into the world
death
According to a view common in Roman Catholic theology, the place where the souls of believers who died before Christ’s resurrection went to wait for His work of redemption to be complete
limbo
In Roman Catholic doctrine, the place where the souls of believers go to be further purified from sin until they are ready to be admitted into heaven.
purgatory
The doctrine that believers go into a state of unconscious existence when they die, and that they return to consciousness when Christ returns and raises them to eternal life
soul sleep
another word for limbo
limbus patrum
