Why do we say someone has gone to be with the Lord
Share
Dear Pastor Chris, why do Christians say that a believer who has died has "gone to be with the Lord"? Where exactly are they?
The language of the Scriptures about a believer's passing is deliberate, and it is full of hope.
Absent from the body, present with the Lord
Paul writes that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. The believer does not cease to exist and does not sleep in unconsciousness — he changes address.
Why the words matter
We do not grieve as those who have no hope. Saying a saint has "gone to be with the Lord" is not a soft way of avoiding the word death; it is an accurate description of what happened.
And there is a reunion
Those who sleep in Jesus will God bring with Him. This is why the Christian funeral, for all its tears, is not a farewell without an appointment.
