We often grieve when faced with death, because we don't understand the true meaning of death. Of course we would be sad when our relatives leave us, for it is a natural reaction; we, however, should not lose hope, because we should be convinced that death doesn't mean an end. Paul has given a new explanation for death in this passage, as verse 14 refers to the dead as "those who have fallen asleep in him." This means life did not end for those who died, but rather just fallen asleep in Christ. When the Lord returns, they will be resurrected, and we will meet them once again, and that is the hope we have in Jesus Christ.
Years ago we attended a conference in Atlanta. During the second day of the conference, a group from Taiwan encountered a major accident, and one of my dear sisters passed away. We felt really sad and we prayed to God: "Lord, why?" Suddenly, God's Spirit reminded me: "Do you really think it's better to be on the earth than in heaven?" We would only ask why if we think they are going to a worse place, right? Therefore, God's Spirit was reminding me that I might be thinking it's better to be on earth than it is to be in heaven. After God opened by thoughts and mind, I fell before Him and said: "Lord, forgive my sin, because I thought it's better to be on earth than to be in heaven. It is wonderful for our sister to be brought to heaven and be close to you, and we ought to envy her!" That's why Paul said later that he'd rather leave the world to be with the Lord.
We often don't understand this truth, and thus we still feel miserable when confronted with death like the non-believers. May God help us to have a glorious hope in Christ. The greatest glory and hope that we have in our life is that one day when we leave the earth, we will get to stand face to face with the Lord, which is going to be a wonderful thing.
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