Palm Springs Drive Church of Christ by Palm Springs Drive church of Christ Altamonte Springs Florida

December 07, 2025 The Christian's Perspective on Death and Dying

Series: N/A

Service: Praise and Preaching Service

Type: Sermon

Speaker: Dwayne Gandy

Death Is Swallowed Up in Victory: A Christian’s Perspective on Death and Dying

Praise God for life, and praise God for the hope of eternal life. That hope is a lot better than just the hope of life that we have right now.

The subject of death and dying is one of the most complicated and challenging topics a Christian can face. There are so many issues and angles to consider that no single lesson could address every situation or help every person in every circumstance. It would take many lessons to do a truly all-inclusive study from the Bible on what God thinks we should think about death and dying. But there are some encouraging verses in Scripture that deal with how a Christian should view death, and there is real hope for believers when they or their loved ones face that final hour.

This is a topic that touches every one of us. Our parents are going to die. Our grandparents are going to die. Everybody we know is going to die, and many of them will die before us. How we deal with that and process it is an important aspect of being a Christian.

Every family will have to deal with the death of loved ones in the way that best meets their needs, with Scripture as the foundation. Sometimes we do everything we can to preserve life; other times a doctor tells us treatment will not help, and the family simply enjoys the time that remains. It is a complicated, challenging issue.

The first passage to consider is 1 Corinthians 15, where Paul lays out a sweeping case that the resurrection changes everything. If Jesus had not been raised, Christians would be the most pitiable people in the world. But because Jesus was raised as the firstfruits of our resurrection, and because God had the power to raise Jesus from the dead and has promised to raise us as well, we can have every confidence that after we die in the Lord, we will be raised to be with Jesus forever. At the end of that great chapter, Paul writes: “For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory’” (1 Corinthians 15:53–54).

That phrase comes from Isaiah 25:8, and it can be translated two ways, both of which are correct and both of which bring a different level of hope. Death is swallowed up “in victory”—swallowed up in the victory of the cross and the resurrection. And death is swallowed up “forever”—one day death will be abolished, and we will be in a place where we never have to worry about death or separation or bodies breaking down again. Paul then asks, “O death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” and answers, “Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:55, 57).

This victory is through Jesus Christ, and we can never forget that. And perhaps death can be—and even should be—an occasion for giving thanks to God. As a practical exercise, consider making a mental list of everyone significant in your life who died in the Lord, and then thank God for fulfilling His promise to take care of them. That puts things in a different perspective. We can let God know that we are thankful that through His Son He conquered death, thankful that we do not have to fear death, and thankful that our loved ones are exactly where we believe them to be.

Hebrews 2:14–15 is another encouraging passage. Because Jesus took on flesh, died sinlessly, offered Himself on our behalf, and rose from the dead, He destroyed the one who had the power of death—the devil—and released all believers from the fear of dying and death. That said, freedom from fear does not mean living recklessly. We use common sense. We are not hastening the day of our death. God is in charge of our days, and we do not mess with that.

Paul writes in 2 Timothy 1:10 that Jesus “has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.” He swallowed it, conquered it, abolished it, and removed its power over believers. Yet in that same passage, Paul speaks of suffering. The death of Jesus did not abolish all suffering. As Christians, we do not see death as an escape hatch from trials, persecution, or suffering. The Bible tells us that trials build our character, and there is benefit to enduring hardship for Christ. The apostles took their suffering for Jesus not as a reason to wish for an early exit, but as a badge of honor. We do not view death as a shortcut away from the suffering that honors God.

Death is, in fact, the doorway through which God grants us our immortal body. Paul makes this clear in 2 Corinthians 5:1–8, writing that while we are at home in this body, we are absent from the Lord, and that we would prefer to be absent from the body and present with the Lord. For a believer who dies in the Lord, that is better—a better place, a better body, a better relationship with Jesus. In Philippians 1:21–26, Paul wrestles openly with this tension: “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” He is hard-pressed between the two, desiring to depart and be with Christ, which is far better, but recognizing that remaining in the flesh is more needful for those he serves.

The takeaway from Paul’s struggle is this: while we have breath and any kind of ability, we should be doing whatever we can to honor and glorify God. If God is allowing us to live, we have a purpose, and we need to find that purpose and influence as many people as we can. Christians do not hasten death or long for it in an improper way. While we are alive, we have a job to do. By the time Paul wrote 2 Timothy, near the end of his life, he could say with confidence, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness” (2 Timothy 4:7–8). He was not afraid. He was ready.

Another important point is that Christians grieve differently than those without hope. First Thessalonians 4:13–18 tells us not to sorrow as others who have no hope. If we believe Jesus died and rose again, God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. The lens through which Christians view death is a lens of hope—not defeat, but victory. When we die in the Lord, the clock reads all zeros, and we have won. We are getting the crown. We are going to be with Jesus.

But faith and grief coexist. You can believe completely in the resurrection and still cry. Joy and sorrow mix. You can be glad that a loved one is with Jesus and sad that they are not with you. Tears do not equal doubt—they equal love and loss. Missing someone honors them. Joseph and his family grieved for their father for at least seventy-seven days. God does not say “don’t grieve.” God says “grieve.” Do not let anyone tell you how to grieve—turn to God’s Word for that.

There is also a harder reality. Not everyone we love will die in the Lord. That grief is heavier and more painful, and all of us have experienced it or will. When it comes, we cannot change what has already happened. But we can pivot and take more seriously the work of talking to the people who are still alive about Jesus. That is really all we can do.

As a practical application, make a list of people who were influential in your life and who died in the Lord, and thank God for them. As long as you are alive, keep serving God and teaching as many people as possible about Jesus. Live without fearing death, but do not be reckless or hasten the day. Comfort those around you and give them hope—talk about heaven, about seeing God, about being united with Jesus. Know that it is okay to pray for longer life, as Hezekiah did. That does not show a lack of faith; it shows you believe you still have work to do.

Most importantly, get right with God yourself. We are not guaranteed another day. God wants you in heaven, and He sent His Son to make that possible. You owe it to God, to your family, and to yourself. If you are not right with God, there is no reason to walk out the door not knowing where you stand. Every sin can be washed away, and every wandering heart can come home.