I hate death. It leaves in its wake heartache, loneliness and despair. If there is one enemy we have in common around the world, it is death. 

There was no death until sin entered the world. The first death was that of the animal sacrificed by God to make clothes for a naked and shamed Adam and Eve. (Genesis 3:21) I would not be surprised to learn when I get to heaven that it was a lamb.

Since that day, grief entered the world. All of creation has suffered from the curse of sin. Most of the things we question are a result of a broken world.  Most of the hurt we experience is a result of the consequences of what sin caused. That’s the bad news. 

I have good news for you today, however. 

My cousin Phil introduced me to Science Fiction movies. I have great memories from my childhood of spending the day with him and experiencing all types of fascinating things. I learned magic tricks, read comic books, built models with airplane glue and watched excerpts from classic horror and science fiction movies that were shown on an 8mm home projector. One movie we watched was the classic science fiction movie, “The Day the Earth Stood Still” (the 1951 black and white version). I didn’t know it at the time, but the movie is filled with metaphors that point to Christ, including the main character rising from the dead at the end of the movie.  

I couldn’t help but remember that movie when I read the Bible this morning and ran across this passage in Matthew 27:51:“The earth shook.” At the very moment that Jesus died on the cross, the earth shook. 

I'm spending a few days in the North Georgia Mountains this week during spring break. Right now I'm looking at some of those beautiful mountains. Oddly enough, it brings to mind my hospital visits. If you are ever in a room on the third through sixth floors of the north tower of Northeast Georgia Medical Center, then I always stop at one of the windows that look out to the mountains and say a prayer for you. I really do. I pray for all others in need too, but there is a special place where I stop and pray when I am visiting in that part of the hospital. No one is ever around. There are no distractions. It's a good place to pray.

Every time I stop at this special place with a beautiful view of the mountains, I say to myself this verse from Psalm 121:1-2

"I will lift up my eyes to the mountains - 

where does my help come from?

My help comes from the Lord,

the Maker of heaven and earth."

The Bible tells us that this is a song of ascents. These are the psalms from Psalm 120 to Psalm 134. They have a particular connection to temple worship.