I just believe that this message
that I'm going to preach now on this broadcast will be a special,
unusual blessing to all of you, particularly to some of you who
are up in years. Now here's the title of the message,
The Fear of Death Removed. The Fear of Death Removed. Hebrews chapter 2, verse 14. Second chapter of Hebrews, verse
14. Now listen carefully as I read
the scriptures. For as much then as the children,
we're speaking here of the children of God, believers. God calls
them my little children. David said, my children, I teach
you the fear of the Lord. For as much then as the children
are partakers of flesh and blood, we have a thousand reminders
each day that we are flesh and blood, don't we? Our sinful natures. We think and say and do things
we regret. Things we do not approve of at
all. Paul said, what I would do, I do not. What I would not
do, I do. That's my sinful flesh. is not
I but sin that dwells in me. We're aware of our thirst, our
hunger, our pain, our weariness. All of these things remind us
that we are partakers flesh and blood. Our sicknesses and our
diseases and our old age, our tiredness, And finally, death. We are flesh and blood. Now notice the next line, verse
14. Here's good news. He also, himself,
likewise, took part of the same flesh and blood. He did who? Who you're talking about? He.
I'm talking about I am. That's who I'm talking about.
I'm talking about he who knew no sin was made sin. I'm talking
about the one who thought it not robbery to be equal with
God, but made himself of no reputation and took on himself the form
of a servant and was made in the likeness of sinful flesh. For as much then as the children
were partakers of flesh and blood, he also Just the same kind of
flesh also. He said to his disciples, touch
me, handle me. A ghost doesn't have flesh and
bones as you see me have. He also himself, himself, not
another, himself. He dwelt among us, himself. Likewise, even as we took part
of the same. You know what John said? In the
beginning was the Word, and the Word was made flesh. And the
Word was with God, and He dwelt among us. And the Word was God,
and we beheld His glory, the only begotten of the Father,
full of grace and truth. The Word of God was made flesh. Oh, without controversy, great
is the mystery of Godliness. God was manifest in the flesh. You see that? For as much then
as the children, you see, the children are partakers of flesh
and blood, and the captains of their salvation had to be partaker
of the same. For as much then as the children,
were partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took
part of the same." Listen to the next line now. That through
death, his death, through his death he might destroy him that
had the power of death, the devil. What is the power of death? When
you talk about Satan, the devil, having the power of death, what
is the power of death? Do you know? Well, the scripture
tells us the sting of death is sin. S-I-N. That's the force
and power of Satan's kingdom is sin. That's how he reigns. He introduced sin. And that's
the power and force that he has over people, the deceitfulness
of sin. And Christ came and was made
in the likeness of sinful flesh that he might destroy that force,
that power, sin, sting of death. That's what it says. By one man,
Adam, sin entered this world. Listen. And death by sin. Where'd death come from? Sin.
How'd death start? Sin. Why'd death pass on us? We're sinners. By one man sin
entered this world, and death by sin. So death passed upon
all men. And Christ was made in the likeness
of sinful flesh, that through his death he might destroy the
force and the power, the sting of sin that causes death. The soul that sinneth shall die. Sin, when it's finished, brings
forth death. The force and power of Satan's
kingdom of evil is sin. And when sin's power is broken,
when sin is destroyed, he has no more power. That's the reason
I don't understand preachers talking about the devil playing
a part in God's children's lives. He has no authority over God's
children. He has no power over God's children. Not unless God gives him permission.
He said to Peter, Satan hath desired thee that he may sift
this wheat. I may let him do that. Job. Satan couldn't touch Job without
God's permission. And Satan has no power over God's
children. Christ died and destroyed the
power of Satan. Sin. He destroyed the sting of
death, the power of death, the fear of death. He destroyed it.
The believer has no sin. In Christ there is no sin. How
can I be in Christ and be in the devil? I can't be in both.
The devil has no power over God's people. He can't touch them.
Because his power's been broken. He's been destroyed. His power's
destroyed. Totally destroyed. Now look at
this scripture again. Now listen to it. For as much
as his children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also Likewise,
himself took part of the same, that by his death he might destroy
him who had the power of death. And that's his force and power
of his kingdom is sin. If you're still in sin, you're
under his dominion. If you're still in sin, you're
under his control. If you're still without God and
without Christ and you're without hope, Satan has all control over
you. Christ said to those Pharisees,
he said, you're of your father the devil. And his works you'll
do. God's not your father, but if
God's your father, and you're in Christ, and he died for you,
he defeated Satan, he destroyed the sting of death. But wait
a minute, there's more. Listen. For as much then as the
children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise
took part of the same, that through his death he might destroy him
that had the power over them. the devil. Now listen, and deliver
them from the fear of death. And deliver them from the fear
of death. He has removed us from the fear
of death and the fear of death from us. The fear of death once
held us in bondage, but no more. We don't fear death anymore.
We don't fear death because Christ has removed the fear of death. He has delivered them from the
fear of death. Don't be afraid to die. Paul
said, to me, to live is Christ, to die is gain. I'm not afraid
to die. Paul said, I have a desire to
depart and to be with Christ, which is far better. Old Simeon,
when he saw the Lord Jesus, he said, now, Father, Let thy servant
depart in peace according to your word because I've seen your
salvation. Let me die. How did our Lord
deliver us from the fear of death? Let me give you five things.
Five things. Now let these stay with you.
He took part of the same, flesh and blood, that through his death
he might destroy the power, the sting of death, sin, the force,
the power of Satan's kingdom and deliver you from fear of
death. I'll tell you how he removed
us from the fear of death and the fear of death from us, by
dying himself. He also took part of the same
and died. When you were children, when
you were children, attempting some difficult thing. Did you
ever say to a friend or companion, when you were attempting something
difficult, did you ever say to a friend, you go first? You go
first. You know, like maybe walking
across the creek on a log. You go first. Or maybe at the
swimming hole, jumping off of that rock just a little higher
than where we've been jumping. And we all go up there and everybody's
afraid to jump. And somebody says, you go first.
And the first fellow jumped and here we all go. Makes it easier
after somebody goes first. Or maybe going in a cave. We
used to have a cave up behind our house and I always wanted
to go in it. I was afraid to. And I was up there with a daring
friend of mine and I said, you go first. Down he went. And I
came behind him. But we made the mistake of building
a fire down there in the cave. And we are smoked out. By God's
grace, we're not still in that cave. But you go first! That's
what we say. And that makes it easy. The fear
is gone. The fear is gone. Well, I tell
you this thing about death. He went first. That's right. This is what our Lord has done.
He died. And He was buried. And He's the
first begotten from the grave. I told you last week, His footprints
go into that tomb. But that's not the end. They
come out. And there's no trial and there's no suffering and
there's no temptation that you and I are called upon to endure
in which He didn't go first. He's the first begotten from
the dead. Don't be afraid to die. He died. Our Lord died first. All right, secondly, He removed
the fear of death. when he removed the sting of
death. See? I tell the story about a little
boy who came in the house just crying and holding his hand and
his mother wanted to know what was wrong with him. He said,
old bee stung me. And the mother got the tweezers
and she found the stinger and she pulled it out and put a little
alcohol or turpentine or something on it and she said, now go on
out and play. Oh, he said, I'm afraid to. I'm afraid that old
bee might still be out there." She said, Honey, that old bee
can never hurt you again. He's lost his stinger. And I'll
tell you this, sin, the sting of death, is sin. And my Lord
was made sin for me. And He died. And He took all
the poison, and all the power, and all the force that sin could
lay upon Him. And paid for it. And I don't
have to be afraid. He took... Is this not true?
Three things. Listen. Did He take our sins
in His body on the tree? Did He? Well, certainly He did. That's what God said. He took
our sins in His body on the tree. Did He die for them? That's what
the Scripture said. He died for our sins. According
to the Scriptures. He died. By His stripes we're
healed. Is that what it said? Christ appeared to put away sin
by the sacrifice of himself. Is that what it says? Yes, the
preacher, that's what it says. To do what? He appeared, he died,
he suffered to put away sin. Well, did he put it away? The
scripture says that he put it away and God said, I'll remember
their sins no more. He said, I'll separate their
sins from them as far as the east is from the west. He said,
I cast them into the depths of the sin. Now, I don't understand
this, but God said, they're sins. I'll cast them behind my back.
Never think of them again. They're gone. They're gone. My Lord Jesus took the sting
out of death, which is sin. And if you don't have any sin,
You don't have any reason to fear death. I didn't say we didn't
sin. I didn't say we're not sinners.
I said in Christ we have no sin. He paid them all. They're put
away. They're paid for. There's nothing
on the books against any child of God. Nothing. Nil. Zero. Blank. Right. Alright, thirdly, how did Christ
remove the fear of death? He removed the fear of death
by changing the character of death. Now please listen to me. People who are not believers
have a right to fear death. I understand. It's appointed
unto men who wants to die and after this. That's what they
fear. It's not just death, it's after
this. It's appointed unto men who wants to die and after this.
What after this? Judgment. Now that's something
to be concerned about. John said, I saw the dead stand
before God. Small and great, rich and poor.
I saw them stand before God. Stand in their guilt, stand in
their sin, stand in their rebellion, stand in their filth. That's
something to fear. But not the believer. Because
he's changed the character of death when he removed the judgment.
And removed the sin. It says in Romans 8, 1, There
is therefore now no judgment. to the believer. So it's appointed
unto the believer once to die after this glory, coronation,
promotion. If my sin is gone and I have
a perfect righteousness, there's no cause for judgment. What are
they going to judge? You see, Christ has already been
judged. He died the just for the unjust
to bring us to God. They brought Him before judgment.
He was led before the judgment. He opened not his mouth. Who
shall declare his generation? Death for the believer is not
a curse, it's a blessing. It's no longer a curse because
Christ delivered us, redeemed us from the curse of the law,
being made a curse for us. Death is not a loss, it's a gain. Death is not a penalty. It's
a promotion. Death is not the end. It's the
beginning. It's to live. Somebody, there
was an old believer, years ago had reached the end of his life.
God was about to call him home. And one of his well-meaning friends
came to see him in his last hours. And he put his hand on his shoulder
and he said, my dear brother, he said, you're about to leave
the land of the living, aren't you? And that old man was aware
enough and alert enough to reply, no sir, no sir, no sir, I'm not
leaving the land of the living. I'm leaving the land of the dead
and dying. I'm going to the land of the
living. Living is my next step. Death takes me to life, eternal,
unending, enjoyable life. When we've been there 10,000
years, bright shining as the sun, we've no less days to sing
God's praise than if we'd just begun. It's not death to die, to leave
this weary road, and with my friends on high, be at home with
God? Is not death to close these eyes
long filled with tears and wake in glorious youth to spend eternal
years? Is not death to fling aside this
sinful dust and rise with eternal wings to live among the just?
Jesus Christ, our Prince of Life, Thy chosen cannot die. Like thee,
they conquered on the cross and are seated with thee on high. Yes, sir. He removed the fear
of death. How? By dying himself. Secondly, by taking the sting
out of death, which is sin. There's no more sting. There's
no more sin. No more judgment. By changing
the character of death, it is not death, it is sleep. Our Lord
didn't call it death. He called it sleep. He said,
Lazarus is asleep. The disciples didn't understand
what he was saying. They said, well if he's sleeping,
he's doing well. Christ said, for your sake, he's
dead. But he's asleep. He that liveth
and believeth on me will never die. Never. Death hath no dominion
over him. Here's the fourth thing now.
He removed the fear of death by, now listen, by assuring us
that immediately, immediately upon dying here on this earth,
sleeping, leaving this body, we go into his presence. Immediately. Now listen to me. Sometimes,
sometimes people are afraid to die. because of all this foolish
talk and bad preaching that's been going on talking about soul
sleep, sleeping for thousands of years, sleeping, or purgatory. You've heard people talk about
Us dying here and going down to a place of punishment until
somebody here on earth either pays enough or prays enough to
get us out of purgatory and get us on probation or parole or
something from purgatory. That's foolishness, not the Scripture. Our sins were purged at Calvary
once and for all. And then they talk about Hades,
two compartments, you know, in one compartment the unbeliever
and another compartment the believer waiting for the second coming
when Hades will empty all of his people, a waiting place,
a halfway house, nonsense! A pack of foolishness. Listen
to the Lord who said to the thief who died with him on a cross,
who believed On him, he said, today, today, shalt thou be with
me in paradise. That's the home of God. That's
heaven. When? Today. You'll be with me. Where did Christ go? He went
back to the Father. Where did the thief go? Back
to the Father. The thief who believed. Today.
Today. Listen to Paul. To be absent
from the body is to be present with the Lord. That doesn't sound
like spending 10,000 years in purgatory, does it? That doesn't
sound like going to some kind of halfway house and living in
some compartment for all those centuries. That doesn't sound
like soul sleep. To be absent from the body is
to be present immediately with the Lord. Paul said this, and
we know this. He said, we know that if this
earthly tabernacle If our earthly house, this tent, that's what
he called this earthly house, a tent, a tabernacle, it's frail
like a tent. It's going to be blown down someday
like a tent. It's going to be folded up and
put away like a tent. If this house, this tabernacle,
this tabernacle of our flesh be dissolved, we have a house,
not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. wherein we shall
be clothed upon, awaiting the resurrection of the body. Yes,
sir. Yes, sir. So I know there's sometimes people
afraid to die because of bad preaching. Just plain bad preaching,
talking about soul sleep and purgatory and Hades and compartments
and waiting places and all these different things. But I tell
you this, the scripture tells us clearly and plainly that when
this spirit leaves this body when God calls a believer home.
If it happens, if I'm standing here preaching to you, and I
don't finish this sentence, and this body crumbles down when
the Spirit leaves, you know one thing, this believer opens his
eyes upon Christ. My last sight was that camera.
My next sight will be my Lord's face. That's right. Now that,
He removed the fear of death by assuring us that to know Him
is life eternal. Nothing can be added. You can't
add anything to me in a compartment or in purgatory. Christ is enough. He's made us sufficient, sufficient
to inherit that glorious paradise with the saints, complete in
Him. Alright, last of all. He removed
the fear of death by assuring us of the resurrection of our
bodies. That's right. You know, when Abraham was called
upon God to sacrifice his son Isaac, he didn't hesitate because
he knew this. This is what scripture said.
He knew that if he sacrificed Isaac, that God would raise him
from the dead. Those Old Testament saints believed
in a resurrection. All of them did. They believed,
David said, thou will not leave my body in the grave. They believed
the resurrection. And our Lord Jesus said this,
all that my father giveth me shall come to me. And him that
cometh to me I'll in no wise cast out. For I came down from
heaven not to do my will, but the will of him that sent me.
And this is the will of him that sent me, that of all which is
given me I'll lose nothing but raise it up again at the last
day. And this is the will of him that
sent me, that every one that seeth the Son, and believeth
on him, may have everlasting life. And I'll raise him up at
the last day. That's right. No man can come
to me except my Father which sent me. Draw him. And I'll raise
him up at the last day. All that my Father gave me, and
all that see the Son and believe on him, and all that come to
me, By my Father's grace, I'll raise them up again at the last
day." I tell you, Job gave a beautiful testimony. Job said this, Oh,
that my words were written in a book. They were. Job 19, verse 25, Oh, that my
words were written in a book. Oh, that they were engraven in
the rock, in my tombstone forever. Here's the words, I know my Redeemer
liveth, my Redeemer, and that he shall stand in the latter
day on this earth. And though worms destroy this
body, not my soul, not my spirit, this body, yet in my flesh I
will see God. And not another, I myself, am
going to see Him. That's the promise. Oh yeah,
He removed the fear of death by dying Himself. By destroying
the sting of death, which is sin. By assuring us not to leave
this body to be in His presence. By changing the character of
death and by guaranteeing us that one day even this body shall
rise from the tomb. And he has the power to change
our vile bodies and make even them like his glorious body. What a wonderful experience is
the death of a believer. God said precious in the sight
of the Lord is the death of his saints. Why should we be afraid?