The story is told of two brothers who were playing in the back yard on a beautiful Sunday morning. All of a sudden their dog, Matt, bounded into the bushes and came out shaking a black and white lop-eared rabbit. The two brothers were aghast because the rabbit belonged to their neighbor, Mrs. Clausen. How could they tell their neighbor their dog had killed her pet rabbit?

They decided to take their problem to their father since he always seemed to know just what to do. His suggestion, however, wasn't very wise. He told the boys to hose the little fellow off real well so he would look nice and clean. Then they should dry him off with a towel and stick him back in the cage. Mrs. Clausen was at church while all this took place. When she returned home, they thought she would discover her pet rabbit, but would determine that it died a natural death.

The boys did as their father had advised, then hid in the bushes to get a good vantage point to observe Mrs. Clausen when she discovered her dead rabbit. Sure enough, when she came home from church, Mrs. Clausen came out of the back door and headed for the rabbit cage. All of a sudden, the boys heard the worst screaming anyone has ever heard. Mrs. Clausen went on and on crying, shrieking, yelling, and asking God all kinds of questions. It was then that the mother and father of the boys came outside and approached their neighbor in her back yard, pleading with her to stop and tell them what had happened.

When they finally calmed Mrs. Clausen down a little, they asked her once again what was wrong. In between sniffs and sobs she finally got it out: "I buried that rabbit three days ago."

We do the best we can to mask the reality of death, but to no avail. Death is not our friend, no matter what the circumstances. The Word of God makes plain that physical death is the last enemy of God to be destroyed (1 Corinthians 15:20-26) and will be completed defeated when Jesus returns. In the meantime, however, we must live with death staring us in the face.

Jesus' resurrection has sealed the fate of death.
This does not mean that we should be afraid of death. Jesus' resurrection has sealed the fate of death. Death will be swallowed up in victory and so its most powerful sting has been removed through the victory of Jesus who insures that our lives will not be lived in vain. (1 Corinthians 15:54-55) Since Jesus holds the keys of Death and Hades (Revelation 1:18) and I belong to Him, then death will not have the last say in my life.

So the question we must all ask is this: "Do I belong to Him?"