“If a man dies, shall he live again?
(The prophet Job)
Job14:14 (KJV).
Image courtesy of https://unsplash.com/@arnosenoner
A friend of mine, who worked with a charity supporting refugees, once had a Chinese man visit his office. The man didn’t speak English, but with the help of a translator over video, they were able to understand his question. He asked, “Can you tell me what happens when we die?”
This question is not unique to him. It’s one we all ask at some point, and as we age, the question often surfaces more frequently. Why is there something rather than nothing? Why do we, with our brains—mere matter and electrical impulses—have the capacity to be aware of ourselves? What makes us so uniquely positioned to explore these mysteries?
Science, for all its remarkable advancements, doesn’t provide the answers to these ultimate questions. Despite the grand ambitions of certain theories, these are the boundaries science cannot cross.
Some might say, “There can’t be a God—there’s too much evil in the world.” But doesn’t the very recognition of evil prompt another question: why is there so much good? And where does this deep sense of morality, of right and wrong, come from? If we are just the product of blind chance, why do we seek justice? In a purely indifferent universe, justice shouldn’t matter. And yet, we feel it deeply. There’s a reason we strive for it.
Several years ago, I was visiting Krakow, Poland. One evening, I wandered through the old town and found myself near the old Jewish cemetery. I like visiting graveyards—they remind me of life’s fragility and the importance of how we live.
Standing outside the synagogue near the graveyard, I met a rabbi. “The cemetery is closed,” he told me, “but soon, they’ll be coming out.” His words caught my attention. I knew what he meant.
I replied, “Yes, Ecclesiastes 9:5, ‘For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing.’”
The dead are dead according to the Hebrew scripture. There’s no hellfire or heavenly calling for them, only silence. This might sound unsettling, but it’s not the end of the story.
There was no resurrection until Jesus came and offered himself as the bearer of humanity’s sins. His death opened the way for life beyond the grave. As the Gospel of John tells us, “Do not be amazed at this, for the hour is coming when all who are in their graves will hear His voice and come out—those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment” (John 5:28-29).
Isn’t that an incredible thought? Doesn’t it resonate with the depth of who we are? We aren’t merely physical beings bound to 70 or 80 years. We have the capacity for love, selflessness, and thoughts that stretch toward eternity. Life, as we know it, is only part of a much larger plan—a plan that makes sense of both the goodness we experience and the justice we seek.