Rest In Peace

It was a shock to read of Ms. Lo Hwei Yen's death over the weekend. Perhaps it was also because of her age - she's just one year older than me. And also because she was from the same city as me. In a sense then, the spectre of terrorism has become more palpable to us Singaporeans today.

Perhaps it's the suddenness of death - especially when you didn't expect it, being on a normal work trip - that makes you realise how brief and mortal life is. And the anger and sorrow when you read of the successful rampages of the terrorists, and the helplessness that you feel. And the poignant sense of injustice that wells up within you.

And all we can do is to murmur quietly, "Oh God, please stop this horror." But the scores of dead bodies make one wonder if someone up there heard - or even if he heard, cared. One of my MSN contacts plaintively posted in his nickname, "where is celestial being when you need him?"

Think it was so shocking, because of the way the killers met eye to eye with their victims, and yet laughing and smiling while killing. Such evil, such wickedness, such injustice is real, and it's true that the human heart is capable of almost unlimited wickedness. The wicked laugh, and even to their deaths, they still die laughing.

But the Bible does tell us that God is indeed here with us in this time of sorrow. Yes, evil is very real, and very powerful, but God has promised that one day he will destroy death forever.

And the Father of compassion, the God of all comfort - He will wipe away every tear from the eyes of the innocent.

He is besides us in our sorrow.

He understands what it is like to lose a loved one - because he also endured the agony of seeing his one and only son die an excruciating death.

He is with us in our anguish.

But not only that. He will literally have the last laugh. The Bible tells us that he will return one day to judge the wicked and ungodly. He will judge the murderers, the exploiters, the unjust, the perverts... He will mock them for the way they have mocked the pure of heart. He will condemn them for the way they have condemned the innocent. He will punish them for the way they have punished the righteous. He will destroy them for the way they have destroyed the helpless.

He is for us in our misery.

Right now, the Bible tells us that what we have seen last week is not the worst yet.

But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power.

And Jesus himself is warning us to be ready for even more horrible things to come:

"Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death... For if men do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?"

We already read about fathers who deliberately commit incest with their daughters. We already read about mothers throwing their babies into the garbage. If men do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?

And yet, there is still hope for you and me.

The Bible tells us that though even though your father and mother may forsake you, the Lord will receive you. He is for you, not against you. He will heal your heart and make you strong. He will restore your soul and right every wrong. And though terrible times come, he wants to encourage you not to fear those who can destroy the body, because they cannot destroy your soul.

Jesus said, "I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him. Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows."

Never will the Lord leave you, never will he forsake you.

However, we are also equally capable of waging war like the terrorists did. We backstab people in the office. We disregard the cries of the poor on the streets. We lash back at our parents. We betray the trust of others. What the terrorists did on the outside, we are equally capable of doing from the inside. There is no difference, for you and I have sinned and fall short of God's perfect standard of love.

Our hearts are greviously sick and beyond all cure. They desperately need the unconditional love and forgiveness that only God can give.

And the good news is, he has given it through his one and only Son, Jesus Christ. Even naked criminals on death row can receive his complete forgiveness.

One of the criminals who hung there [on his cross] hurled insults at [Jesus dying on the cross]: "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!"

But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong."

Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."

Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise."

Perhaps the criminal was a terrorist too - one who may have attacked Roman soldiers or citizens. But even as he hung there dying, he looked to Jesus, and received forgiveness and eternal life.

One soul died in peace - and died into eternal life. You too will die one day - be it of old age, or cancer, or accidents or even at the hands of terrorists. But the Bible promises that you can have a joy and peace that not even the most wicked of men can ever take away. A peace that outlasts the fury of a thermonuclear war. A joy that outshines the horrors of a death camp. A love that endures longer than any hatred or indifference.

So how about you too, dear friend? Are you ready to receive the peace of God into your heart today?