Jesus’ Power over Death

Jesus’ Power over Death

This Sunday, we were privileged at CDC to have our own Elder and Chairman Quah Poh Keat give us the message on “Jesus’ Power over Death”, based on the famous account of the resurrection of Jairus’ daughter from the dead.

Elder Quah summarized today’s sermon in four D’s. It all starts with the first D, a Dilemma. Jairus was the leader of a local synagogue in Capernaum. He was rich, influential and respected but he had a major dilemma – his daughter was at the point of death. In those days, the scribes and teachers of the law despised Jesus. It demanded great desperation and humility for Jairus to bow down before Jesus, the wandering teacher. Perhaps he wondered if Jesus would reject him for his peers had all rejected Jesus. However, he would take the risk of his own humiliation because he loved his daughter. Elder Quah drew a comparison here to the men of Spartacus who were willing to give their lives for their leader and the Christians arrested during Operation Lalang who were willing to be imprisoned for their faith. Dilemmas bring out the need to make a choice and it is not always easy to do the right thing.

The second D stands for Delay. Jairus waited desperately at shore for Jesus to come back. Once Jesus came and agreed to go to his daughter, the woman with the issue of blood touched Jesus and He took the time to heal her and speak with her. Jairus must have wondered if Jesus understood the severity of the situation. And then people came to tell him that his daughter had already died… Sometimes we may be drowned with anxiety because of the problems we may face. However, sometimes Delay is part of God’s plan. King Saul could not wait and lost his kingdom. Delay sometimes teaches us, preparing us for our next level of service. We need to continue trusting God’s timing is perfect. The delay was necessary for Jairus. Perhaps the miracle with the woman had actually increased his faith that all things are possible with God!

The third D stands for Death. Many times in life, dreams die. Joni Eareckson, a young talented diver became paralyzed from the neck down in a diving accident. She thought her life was over but a friend encouraged her, telling her that Jesus too could not move when He was pinned to the cross. Jesus understood her suffering. She decided to trust God and amazingly became a world renown speaker and author. In the end she even married her physical instructor. A close friend of elder Quah, Siew Hoon was a courageous mother who refused to have an abortion even though the doctors told her she would most likely lose her sight. She is always bubbly and caring, chopping vegetables and ironing clothes, sacrificial and kind even though she cannot see physically. After a major mining accident, a young clergy sought to help the poor people of a town, selling all he owned to meet their basic needs. In his poverty, he ended up walking around in torn clothes and when his superiors came to see him, they were ashamed of him, removing him from the clergy. In his sorrow, he still did what he could to help and started sketching pictures. His name is Van Gogh, and he became one of the world’s most renown artists of all time. It is always darkest before the dawn. There is always hope for tomorrow for a Christian. Elder Quah became acquainted with death personally when the first of his classmates passed away. In the end, we all have to face death, the only question is when? However, if we stay true to God, we are secure for precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of his saints. We have great hope indeed for a bright and eternal future. Jesus raised the daughter of Jairus back to life and one day, He will also raise us to life!

Finally, the fourth D is Destiny. In the end, our deeds will follow us, and all that we did and thought and spoke will be made known. Life is only a testing ground for eternity. In closing, Elder Quah encouraged us to seriously ask ourselves “Do I invest my time for eternity? And “Do I follow the Lord wholeheartedly?”

May we prove to hold true to Jesus to the end and fulfill our destiny to be God’s children in the end.

God bless,

Jason