Is it God’s will when someone dies?
Death is common to all men but it begs the question; is it God’s will for us to die? Some may argue that anyone who dies is God’s will. Others may argue that some types of death are not God’s will but others are His will.
Whatever it is you believe about God’s will on death, I am here to help you understand what is God’s will concerning death.
Is it God’s Will when Someone Dies?
When God created man, He intended to have fellowship with man. God had no intentions of putting man to death.
But then death already existed even before man was created. The devil was the first creature to experience death. Death is separation from God.
God is life and anything that is not in God is dead.
When the devil sinned, God drove him away from His presence. Sin is annoying to God. The death that the devil was subjected to is eternal; he will never be reconciled to God.
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When God created man, the devil was jealous. The devil came up with a plan to cause man to sin against God so that he too may be put to death.
The devil successfully managed to deceive man to sin against God but then God in His mercy came up with a plan to save man from eternal death.
Instead of subjecting man to the same death punishment that God had subjected the devil to, God transformed man into a temporary form.
The temporary form that God transformed man into was to give God sufficient time to reconcile man to Himself. The temporary form is what we are today.
The death we face in our mortal bodies is only temporal. After our temporal bodies die, we are judged by God. It is after the judgment that God decides if we deserve eternal death like the devil or eternal life.
It was never God’s will for us to die. Death of our mortal bodies came as a byproduct of God’s plan for our salvation.
God’s Appointed Day of Death for Everyone
Every child who is born has an appointed day set by God for the child to die. That may seem unfair but it is fair considering that Jesus too had an appointed day for Him to die.
But then the day God sets for a person to die is far enough to give the person sufficient time to complete the purpose for which God created him.
God set the day of death for Jesus after about thirty three years. It may seem that God set the day of the death of Jesus too early but God knew that thirty three years was sufficient for Jesus to complete the mission He was sent to do.
God gives each person time based on the person’s ability and the mission he has been sent to do.
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The following are the characteristics of the day of death that God sets for everyone:
1. You can know it
If you walk closely with God, you will know the day that He has set for you to die. God will make it clear to you what your assignment is. After you are done with your assignment, your day of death will come.
Jesus knew exactly when His death came. On the night He was arrested, He told His disciples ‘My hour has come’. A few days before His death, Jesus was wiped his feet by perfume and He said it was to prepare Him for death.
A few hours before He was arrested, He shared the last supper with His disciples.
All these events make it clear that Jesus knew exactly the time He was going to die.
When the time for Moses to die had come, God told Him to climb on mount Nebo so that He may see the land of Canaan after which He would die.
When the day for King Hezekiah to die drew near, God told him to put his house in order. King Hezekiah petitioned God to extend his time of death and God added him fifteen more years.
All these are examples of people who walked with God and God made know to them the day He had appointed for them to die.
Others like David knew they were about to die and they gave instructions on what was to be done after they are dead.
The day of your death is not a mystery; you can easily know it if you walk with God.
2. It comes after your Mission is Accomplished
Paul wrote the famous words “I have fought a good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith”. He knew he was done with His assignment.
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If you faithfully walk in God’s will, you will finish your assignment before your day of death comes. Anytime someone dies before finishing their assignment, we call it premature death.
A huge number of people die premature deaths. A premature death has more to do with purpose than with age.
When a child dies and we say it is a premature death, we are referring to the child’s incomplete mission and not his age.
Is it God’s will when Someone dies? Fools Die Before their Time
Anyone who dies before his appointed day is a fool according to the Bible. The Word of God makes it clear to us that wisdom has long life in her right hand and great wealth in her left hand.
Anyone who forsakes wisdom will die before his time.
The devil comes to steal, kill and destroy. It is only someone who has the wisdom of God who will escape the snares of the devil.
When someone is knocked down by a vehicle and he dies, his death is a result of foolishness; crossing the road takes wisdom.
A person who enters a bad business deal that leads to his death dies because of his foolishness. A wise man cannot enter a deal that will lead to his death.
Majority of the deaths we see nowadays are a result of people’s foolishness.
If a person used to eat junk food while he was young, when he becomes an adult, he will have health complications which will lead to his premature death. Such kind of a death is a result of foolishness.
I hope you now see why the Bible says fools die before their time. Foolishness has nothing to do with whether you are living a righteous life or not; there are righteous people who make foolish decisions.
Is it God’s Will when Someone Dies? Sin Kills
The wages of sin is death the Bible tells us. Sin accelerates death in our mortal bodies. Since we are created in God’s image, anything that is unlike God deteriorates our well-being.
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A person who walks in sin will die early. Take an example of a man who sleeps with another man’s wife. In the book of Proverbs we are told that such a man has no sense.
The day the husband of the woman he sleeps with finds him, he will easily put him to death.
A thief is at a higher risk of death because the day he is caught might be the last day of his life. God has no business protecting the life of a sinner. A man who sins puts his life in his own hands.
For everyone who endangers his life while obeying the Lord, God has a duty to protect him.
It is not God’s will for us to die in sin. That is why Jesus came to pay for our sin so that we would not perish.
Therefore, to live a long life on earth, keep the commandments of God.
When God causes Pre-mature Death
Is it God’s will when someone dies? God gives life and He takes it away too. We have many examples of people whose lives God took away.
These people were rebellious and annoying to God. But then God has also taken away righteous people before their time to prevent them from a given disaster as it is written in Isaiah chapter 57.
But the cases where God takes away a righteous person before his time are rare. Unfortunately, in majority of deaths it is assumed that God is the one who has taken away the deceased person.
The most common type of death is pre-mature death as a result of foolishness. Almost all people who die as a result of sickness are victims of foolishness and ignorance.
There is no way a person who has God’s wisdom will become sick to the point of death. In fact, anyone who knows God cannot become sick.
Therefore, understand that it is not God’s will for anyone to die before his time. When the time God appointed for someone to die comes, the person will peacefully go to be with the Lord.
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The kind of death that occurs as God’s will is peaceful.
I hope I have answered you well.
Until next time, goodbye!