Job 14:10 But man dies, and wastes away: yes, man gives up the ghost, and where is he? This interrogatory has Sounded down all the centuries, and thrills today every thoughtful heart. Hence, if Job uttered these words in a moment of doubt, it was because he sat in the twilight hour of revelation. Hence, also, we must seek our answer to the question from Jesus, rather than from Job, from the full and final revelation of the New Testament, rather than from the types and shadows of the Old. I. HE IS SOMEWHERE. Death is not annihilation. 1. Jesus taught man's existence after death so often and in such emphatic terms that it became an essential in Christian doctrine. In His words to the Sadducees, in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, when speaking to Mary and Martha, when comforting His disciples who were mourning His near departure, in His last prayer with and for them — everywhere He clearly implied that man continues to exist somewhere after death. 2. To this revelation of life and immortality our hearts gladly assent. 3. Reason, likewise, adds its sanction. Thus we believe the dead are somewhere, they have not ceased to be. II. BUT WHERE? This is the emphatic word. 1. Where surroundings correspond with character. In this life man finds the earth prepared for his occupancy, as a house that has been erected, furnished, heated, lighted. Believing in the universality and continuity of law, we expect the same provision and adaptation hereafter. It is the "law of environment" of the scientist, the "Divine providence" of the Christian. Revelation makes this expectation a certainty, The righteous enter a kingdom "prepared for them from the foundation of the world"; the wicked depart to a place "prepared for the devil and his angels." 2. Where the law of spiritual gravitation carries him. In the United States Mint are scales constructed with an ingenuity and delicacy that are wonderful. In them all coins are finally tested. Each one is weighed by itself. From the balance every coin glides into one of several openings, according to its weight; if it is too light, into this one; if too heavy, into that; if it is right, into the third. III. WHERE JUSTICE AND MERCY UNITE TO PLACE HIM. Justice and mercy unite to determine the destinies of both wicked and righteous. Redemption manifests both; so does retribution. Conclusion — It is not so much "where," as "what"; for the "what" determines the "where." We are ourselves determining the "what," in our acceptance or rejection of Christ. (Byron A. Woods.) Parallel Verses KJV: But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he?WEB: But man dies, and is laid low. Yes, man gives up the spirit, and where is he? |
    |