Why “Rest In Peace?”!

Daily Scripture Threshing for Friday, June 11, 2021

Today’s Text: Revelation 14:1-13

Key Verse: Revelation 14:13 (NIV): “And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.”

I went to bed yesterday with a heavy sense of loss to hear about the passing of Lanre Taiwo. I wake up to pen down my reflection when the news of the passing of Funke Fashola, an old schoolmate, also came. We don’t usually like meditating on the reality of death or the dead; but whenever death strikes in a family, church, or community, it always leaves its solemn, painful, and weighty marks. And we most times don’t have preparation or good reaction to it. While mourning our loss is an important part of healing, we are called upon not to mourn as people who have no hope. But our overall attitude during our loss shows that the body of Christ still has a lot of teachings to do to help us put faith into proper perspective.

Just as there is purpose in pain, the death of a loved one serves some purpose. It reminds us of the necessary end of man. It cautions us against sin. It reminds us of the counsel and comfort of scriptures in difficulty. And among all, it points us to duty. It redirects us back to our duty of really understanding the will of the Lord concerning those who are asleep in Christ. Our duties include praying for ourselves and not for the dead. There are two voices calling us to duty in today’s text: The one voice, which is the voice of God said, “Write," and the other voice which of the voice of the Spirit of obedience answered “Yea!” It is high time Christians live out what they believe and what the scripture says. It is high time we stop praying for the dead.

The words “May his/her soul rest in perfect peace” show ignorance of this scripture. It shows how much it is hard for us to discern heavenly revelations concerning those who sleep. What happens to our dead buddies from the moment they step out of time into eternity is determined by the works they have done in the body, which now follow them. At death, believers in Christ rest from the cares of life and all burdens. We need not pray them into rest. At death, unbelievers delve into a bottomless pit of agony, and there is no praying him out. Our duty, therefore, is to ourselves, who are alive: to strengthen and comfort one another in prayers, Psalms, hymns, and scriptures.

Quote for the Day: “The honor and respect which the living accord to the dead is good. Only they are more for us than for them as those have no impact or effect on eternal state and destiny of the dead." (Simon Olatunji)

Prayer: Dear Lord, please be merciful to us when in distress and our eyes grow weak with sorrow. Strengthen our broken, and exhausted hearts, in Jesus' name. Amen.

I dedicate today’s meditation to the memory of these two sisters. With all my love and prayers,

Rev Simon Wale Olatunji, Ph.D.

The Darling Bishop (DaBishop)

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