What If?

“Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’”

– Mark 16:6-7

Several years ago, a well-known insurance company ran a series of TV commercials that asked viewers to ponder a simple — yet profound — question: What if?

• What if you get sick and can't work?
• What if you get married and have triplets?
• What if you die and your family can't live without your lost income?

These commercials were effective reminders that real-life issues have real-life implications. And if you're not prepared (such as with the right insurance coverage), you might have something to fear. After all, millions of people each year really do suffer costly illnesses, injuries, and other setbacks.

Here's another consideration: Unless Jesus returns during our lifetimes, we’re all guaranteed a date with death because the mortality rate is 100%. And if we check the news headlines, we'll encounter another unpleasant reality: Society is plagued by violence, disease, and injustice. But while Believers like you and me aren't immune from these issues, we do have an answer to the uncertainties that grip so many who don't know Jesus as their Savior. It's his supernatural peace that defies all human understanding:

"I give you peace, the kind of peace that only I can give," Christ assures us in John 14:27. "It isn't like the peace that this world can give. So don't be worried or afraid."  

Those insurance commercials make a valid point: We do indeed live in a world of what-ifs. But Christ-followers have nothing to fear because God is — and always has been — in control in every situation. Even death has lost its sting because Jesus willfully died on the cross to pay the penalty for our many sins and failures. And because of his resurrection from the grave, he also fulfilled centuries-old Bible prophecies to prove his claims as being the Son of God. His triumph over death, which we celebrate each year on Easter, means that we have eternal hope. And it's through our simple faith in him that the what-ifs of life become fear-nots:

“He who believes in me will live, even though he dies.” Jesus tells us through John’s gospel. “And whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"