Dying to Live with God
The Truth About Death
by
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From the very moment we are born, the process of dying begins. Death is certain! It is the final frontier…the ultimate tragedy…the last act of life. Death represents the utmost fear for most people. Death is unexplored… unknown… and life's greatest mystery; and yet the chances of dying currently fall in the range of about one hundred percent. Death seems to be unavoidable. So, how do we deal with death? What can we really know about it? Is it even knowable?
If death is knowable, it seems that it could only be fully known by the very Creator of life and death. All worldviews have their ideas about what death is, but how do we know which view is true? If the Christian worldview is true, then it follows that the God of Christianity would hold the ultimate meaning to both life and death. After all, it is the Creator who establishes the purpose, meaning, and the very standard for that which it creates, and death is a part of His creation.
The Bible says that God has established two final destinations to receive the souls of those whose bodies have died and returned to the dust of the earth; it states unequivocally that these destinations are separated by a Great Gulf. On one side of this gulf is a place for those who will live eternally separated from God - this is the place of real death. On the other side is the place for those who will live eternally with no more crying, no more pain, no more mourning, and no more sadness - this is the place of real life.
The Scriptures speak clearly of these two realms: "These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life" (Mt 25:46). Yet, it is valid to wonder how all this works. Moreover, throughout Scripture we find God ordering the death sentence upon many individuals, and even whole nations of people. How can the Christian reconcile these judgments of death, handed out by the Creator of life with such seeming impassiveness? Is God ambivalent to life and death? Is death just an amusing game to God? How does the Christian answer these questions?
If God holds the very meaning of death, is it possible to know what death really means to Him? Is it possible to know God's perspective on death? The intent of this book is to provide a correct understanding of death as it can only be truly known - from God's perspective.
If you fear death, or if death has taken a loved one from you, leaving you to feel as if you cannot cope with life any longer, there is a way through the hollowness and darkness that you face. The way out of your "valley of the shadow of death" is by understanding the truth about death; and the truth about death can only come from the One who created life and death. We have to start looking at death through the eyes of God and not through the eyes of the world if we are to ever be freed from the fear and bondage of death.
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About the Book
In Memory of Rebecca Ann Leighow
2/18/1951 - 10/17/2007
OVERVIEW
Two of the most profound uncertainties that man can ponder are: what is the meaning of life, and what is the meaning of death? Many would say that the answers to these questions are unknowable and too mysterious to be comprehended. Reverend Thomas Leighow believes however, that God has given us these answers, contained within the pages of the Bible.
The only way we can live in peace and harmony with death, is by having a true and correct perspective of what death actually is. Death can only be properly understood when it is viewed through the eyes of the very Creator of life and death – the God of the Bible.
In Dying to Live With God, Rev. Leighow opens the doors to understanding life and death as it should be understood - from God’s eternal perspective. The reality of death, and the meaning of death, can only truly come from the mind of the One who set death in place. Death is not just a by-product of life, rather, death is a necessary component of the divine plan of a sovereign God who holds the power over life and death.
For those who live in fear of death, or for those who have not recovered after the loss of a loved one, this book will give you an understanding of death that will provide you with a blessed assurance and comfort to face your own “valley of the shadow of death.”
About the Author
Rev. Thomas Michael Leighow is a graduate of Southern Evangelical Seminary & Bible College as well as Charlotte Bible College & Seminary and holds a Master’s Degree in Christian Ministry. He is an ordained pastor and serves as a professor at Charlotte Bible College & Seminary in the Monroe, North Carolina, campus; Tom is lead teacher for African Children’s Mission in the Bible Training Center for Pastors; and is founder of the RAISE UP for Christ Resource Center in Uganda, Africa. Additionally, Rev. Leighow is a past member of the Board of Directors for African Children’s Mission. He has a special interest in the subjects of Theodicy; Christian Apologetics; Bible Doctrines; Old Testament; and World Religions. Reverend Leighow currently teaches these subjects at his home church in Monroe, North Carolina. Tom is also the author of: A Paradigm of Death: Understanding Death from God’s Perspective, which is a more comprehensive study on the subject of death. This book was published in 2013 and can be found in most bookstores through their Internet distribution.