The Sting of Death

Hundreds of years before Jesus lived and died, the prophet Hosea realized that all humanity lived in the shadow of death. Because it was inevitable, death created a sense of hopelessness. Its impact had a “sting” that no one could escape. Yet Hosea foretold that a time would come when death and the grave would be defeated.

Paul quoted Hosea when he wrote, “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” He reminded us that “the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.”

In our physical lives, we still are plagued by this “sting.” We see and feel its impact through sin in our lives whenever we say and do the wrong thing, or think the wrong thoughts. As long as we have to deal with sin, we will experience the “sting of death.”

It will prick us just like a bee sting. This is a real, “deadly weapon.” And we experience this sting every day through things like disease and pain. Anger and aging. Fear and worry. Doubt and conflict. Words we wish we hadn’t spoken.

But, as Paul wrote, Jesus changed everything: “Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:55-57).

Jesus came to free us from this sting. And the only way we can be free is to believe in Him. Thank Him for dying for our sins. Let Him be the Lord of our lives.

Today, you can celebrate! Jesus died, for you! And He rose again! Through Him, you are free from the sting of death! Through Him, you can live in victory!