A Second Death

In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ (Acts 20:35)

I came across an Ernest Hemingway quote that rattled my inner cage. “Every man has two deaths, when he is buried in the ground and the last time someone says his name.” I had a friend, several years ago, who had substantial money and was planning for his death. There was a local cemetery with pristine grounds because they only allowed in-ground markers. My friend said he could never be buried there because he planned to have the largest monument in the city.

After asking a few questions, I realized he believed his burial monument would keep him from experiencing the second death. What seemed to bother him more than death was the idea that the future would forget him. Last week I was driving between Des Moines and Panora on Hwy. 6, and I saw tiny King Cemetery, established in 1881. White tombstones were going back to the late 1800s. Over the many decades, weather wore the stone down to an unreadable point. Several of the more recent stones had flowers in front of them. The old stones did not have flowers.

Unless you are William Shakespeare, the Apostle Paul, or Jim Morrison, in time, others will forget you. Writing a best-selling novel will help you be remembered longer than someone who offers sermons every week, but only for a few more decades longer. Even being President of the United States, the most powerful person in the world, does not guarantee the world will remember him. Rutherford B. Hayes was one of our presidents. Could you describe his looks? What state was he from? Was he a Democrat or Republican? Can you name his famous friend?

If most do not remember much about a former President, what makes us think we will avoid the second death? The answer is not to focus on being remembered but to lay a foundation for something life-transforming and worthy of remembrance. It doesn’t matter if we are remembered because God remembers us and will not forget to bring us home. Our calling is to make Christ the one who is remembered. In heaven, we will not care who remembers us two hundred years from now when we are one with our God.