NO SECRETS IN DEATH

The media focus on the recent deaths of celebrities has been unrealistic. Steve McNair, a former NFL quarterback who was married and the father of four boys, was found shot to death alongside his girlfriend, according to the news media. His death is tragic in so many ways as were the two other cultural icons, Farah Fawcett and Michael Jackson. The message of the book of Ecclesiastes is stamped all over their lives; "Vanity of vanities…All is Vanity" (Ecclesiastes 1:2).

It is no secret that the lives of these icons (as well as many more before them) were characterized by lust. The exact cause(s) for the type of cancer Farah Fawcett contracted may be unknown to the public, but the risk factors for it are not. Michael Jackson clearly died from a drug induced heart-attack. McNair died at the hands of someone while he was with his mistress. A look at their bank accounts, fame and popularity reveal they "had it all." The reality is that "having it all" is no safeguard against death. Death is where you leave "it all" because you cannot take any of it with you.

Life does not have to be lived in vanity (meaninglessness) whether rich or poor. The fact is, life is only vanity if "having it all" means only living for this world. If all there is to our existence is this world, then life is meaningless. When people are consumed by their lust and addictions, clearly their world-view is strictly defined by the here-and-now. Consequently, drugs, violence and sexually transmitted diseases will be a major risk factors contributing to the deaths of people consumed by their lusts.

Think where each one of these individuals would be right now if they had been faithful Christians. It is true that being a Christian is no safe-guard against death but it does assure that when we die we can do so with dignity and not with shame. We die with dignity because we lived for a meaningful hope. Thus, the Christian's hope is better than anything this world can provide – even if one managed to "have it all" (Matthew 16:26). Someone has wisely said, "If you want to know how to live, then you need to know how to die." There are no secrets in death – much less in judgment. (Hebrews 9:27)