Though death is genuine, Christ, by His death and resurrection, claimed victory over it. We who love and cherish Him need have no fear of those who kill the body (Matthew 10:28). In that very moment of earthly death, we will forever be with Christ, basking in His glory and enjoying His love, with the complete knowledge we are finally home.
An oft-reported truth is that people fear one thing most of all—death. Why? To the world, death is an unknown. Fear comes to an unsaved person when they consider what comes next. Will I have to answer for what I’ve done? What I’ve not done? Will I burn in hell forever, or will I reach a state of eternal bliss? And don’t be misled, hell is real.
Various secular experts have deduced different ideas about what death is. Some say it’s simply a cessation of life, with no more bodily functions (including brain functions). Others proclaim an afterlife based on a particular religion. The process of dying adds to the “package” of fearing it. No one desires pain for themselves or others or to or linger past the point of usefulness.
Death, whether one fears it or not, changes peoples’ lives. Losing a loved one to death brings grief that some feel is unable to be assuaged. And along with the grief is the preponderance of legal responsibilities which add to the anxiety and sadness.
But Jesus Christ has the keys of death and Hades. Until His kingdom is manifest in the new heavens and earth, biological death is here to stay.
Where in the Bible Does It Say Jesus Has the Keys of Death and Hades?
In the Bible’s book of Revelation, chapter one shows us an encounter between John the apostle and the Lord Jesus. John falls at Jesus’ feet as though dead, and Jesus exclaims, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades” (Revelation 1:17b-18).
The communication between Jesus and His apostle John is the last personal meeting with Jesus recorded in the Bible. John was so overcome by the vision the Lord Jesus showed him he “fell at His feet as though dead” (Revelation 1:17). And displaying His compassion as He allayed John’s fears, Jesus laid His right hand on him and told him to “Fear not” (Revelation 1:17).
What Is the Context of This Verse?
John the apostle, we learn in Revelation 1:9, is on the island of Patmos, exiled there because of his faithfulness to the Gospel. Verse 1 states this is the revelation of Jesus Christ shown to John, and the rest of the book is John’s witness of what he was shown.
Revelation 1:4 reveals the recipients of this letter — the churches in Asia. Revelation 1:4b-5 says the revelation is from the Godhead, “Him who is and who was and who is to come [God the Father], and from the seven spirits who are before his throne [The Holy Spirit], and from Jesus Christ [The Son] the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth.”
Verses 1-8 serve as an introduction to John of the Provider of his vision. We are also given the superlative proof of authorship when the Lord God states He is the “Alpha and the Omega,” plus a reiteration of His eternal being. He is The First and the Last. He is non-pareil.
In verses 5b-7, we see the glory and dominion forever and ever is to Jesus Christ. He is the One who, with His blood, saved us from our sins. A promise is made in verse 7 that Jesus is “coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced (killed) Him.” A great wailing will then take place on account of His return.
John is then told to write what he is shown (was, is, and is to come) and send it to the seven churches (Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea). The vison John sees causes him great fear; seven golden lampstands, One like a Son of Man, clothed with a long robe and golden sash, with white hair and eyes “like a flame of fire,” feet like “burnished bronze,” and His voice like “the roar of many waters.”
The vision was of Jesus holding seven stars in His right hand and a two-edged sword coming out of His mouth, and a radiant face (Revelation 1:12-16). The stars were stated to be the angels of the seven churches and the lampstands are the seven churches.
Why Does Jesus Hold the Keys of Death and Hades?
Death and Hades were not present in the beginning of the heavens and the earth, because everything God made was good. Death (and therefore Hades, which is another word for Hell) came about only because of sin (Genesis 3), and because God did not institute sin, Death is not good. As a result of Adam’s sinful action, his sin has been inherited by all of mankind (Romans 3:23). Thank God for the truth of Romans 6:23, which says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Because Jesus is the One who has control over the beginning and conclusion of human history, He controls every aspect and action of the happenings in the heavens and the earth.
He is alive forevermore, having ransomed us by His death, which nullified any claim death has on humans. Jesus is now in heaven and, as Peter tells us in 1 Peter 3:22, He sits at the right hand of the Father. As Priest, sitting signifies His work is done. That He sits at God’s right hand means He reigns as King. His kingdom includes every abode of every creature for all time and forevermore, including death, which will cease (Revelation 21:4).
Let’s look more at how Jesus earlier identified Himself to John. The “First and Last” is a divine title (Revelation 5:9: Hebrews 2:9; Philippians 2:9).
Death is an enemy. 1 Corinthians 15:26 states, “The last enemy to be destroyed is death.” For a season as allowed by God, the devil had the power of death (Hebrews 2:14), yet Jesus obliterated death and the devil on the cross (Philippians 2:8). In Jesus’ apparent defeat on the cross, He was humiliated, but He “endured the cross and despised the shame” (Hebrews 12:2), and He abolished death (2 Timothy 1:10).
Though death is genuine, Christ, by His death and resurrection, claimed victory over it. We who love and cherish Him need have no fear of those who kill the body (Matthew 10:28). In that very moment of earthly death, we will forever be with Christ, basking in His glory and enjoying His love, with the complete knowledge we are finally home (2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:21, 23). Until His glorious appearing (Titus 2:13) when He will raise our bodies and change them to be like His, we will face death, yet death is like closing our eyes to sleep one moment and opening them to His revealed glory.
To gain a godly perspective on death, meditate on the following passages: 1 Corinthians 15:55-57; Hebrews 2:14-15; Psalm 73: 24-26; John 17:24; Psalm 63:1,3; Philippians 1:21,23; 2 Corinthians 5:6, 8; Matthew 10:28; Romans 8:11; Philippians 3:21; Romans 8:21; Psalm 16:11.
What Does This Mean for Us in Our Faith?
Consider where we find this verse, in the last book of the Bible. We saw that Jesus called Himself “the Alpha and the Omega.” From beginning to the end, He is Lord of all, including death and Hades.
Think of death as a door—a huge door, locked and sealed. It’s impervious to us. No matter how much we exercise or eat a healthy diet, death lurks. No matter what potions we swallow or oils we diffuse, death will come.
But Jesus is the only One who can unlock that scary door and invite us into a glorious life in His kingdom. Once we admit and confess our sins and acknowledge Jesus’ death on the cross and His resurrection, we surrender our lives to Him, and we are part of the “already-not-yet.” His kingdom is here in us, His church, alive and active. But our full consummation into glory won’t be until He returns for His church or takes us home through death.
Our hope is sure with Jesus at the center of everything. A wonderful, joy-filled song which points to Jesus is titled Jesus at the Center. May it help center you on Him.
Death didn’t snatch Jesus, as if He were surprised it happened. His death was planned in eternity past and He it was who snatched death! Death served His plans, and He destroyed death by intervening upon it and assassinating it from its interior. And on the third day He walked out of the tomb in victory (John 2:19; 10:17-18; 20).
Jesus chose when to die (Luke 13:32) and He chose His Resurrection day (Mark 10:34). The world sees something different because it is veiled to the truth (1 Corinthians 2:8). But we keep our hope in Jesus, the very Founder and Perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2).
What Does This Mean for the World as a Whole?
Many of us, at Christmastime, read the book or watch various productions of “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens. In the early scene depicting Scrooge and Jacob Marley, Marley tells Scrooge about the fetters he wore, “I wear the chain I forged in life,” replied the ghost. “I made it link by link and yard by yard; I girded it on of my own free will, and of my own free will I wore it.” When further questioned, Marley told Scrooge, “Or would you know the weight and length of the strong coil you bear yourself? It was full as heavy and as long as this seven Christmas Eve’s ago…It is a ponderous chain.”
The world (of non-Christians) bears a weighty chain full of the acts stated in Galatians 5:19-21. A person cannot cut the chain and unburden himself from his sins. Only Christ can free a person to live a life in submission and joy to Him. There is a book of life of the Lamb who was slain (Revelation 13:8).
There is no “plan B.” What God wills, God does. No one and nothing thwarts His plans throughout eternity past, present, and future. And Jesus is preparing a place for us believers (John 14:2).
He does, however, also have a place for those who are not His, those who choose to follow the prince of the power of the air (Matthew 24:51; Galatians 5:19-21; Ephesians 2:2). The place is one of outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 25:30; Revelation 20:11-15). These truths should cause fear and trembling in those who have not surrendered to Jesus as King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 6:16).
Christians, however, walk in a victorious procession, following Christ. Read 2 Corinthians 2:14-17, “But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God’s word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ.”
It is my fervent prayer for you, that you walk worthy as a Christ-follower, and I pray your fragrance is indeed life to life as you pray for your beloved, unsaved family and friends.
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/BrianAJackson
