Preparing for death

By: Alistair Begg – September 18, 2026.

Key points

• Attorney General offers proposed uses for $188.9 million in Meta settlement funding.
• General Atomics confirmed second expansion this year, bringing 125 more jobs to Shannon.
• Alistair Begg has been in pastoral ministry since 1975.
• Mangold wants to be the voice of ag as Mississippi's next Agriculture Commissioner.
• C Spire expanding fiber network with new high-capacity corridor between Jackson and Olive Branch.

Martha remarked to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will offer you." Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." Martha said to him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day." Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die, whoever believes in me. Do you believe this?" – John 11: 21-26.

None of us know what a day will bring. Indeed, we all live with a measure of uncertainty; we cannot be prepared for every trial that comes our way. As plenty of have pointed out, the only certainty of life is that it will end, in fact. We live in a fallen world, and we know "the wages of sin is death" (Romans 6: 23). Dying, therefore, is one reality for which we must prepare.

Any consideration of death and dying that doesn't pay careful attention to Jesus' words is incomplete. A great place to start, then, is the solid instruction that Jesus provided just after his friend Lazarus died.

Understandably, Lazarus's mourning sisters were deeply concerned regarding what had happened to their brother. In response, Jesus remarked that Lazarus was going to rise again. Martha, not fully understanding this declaration, remarked, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day." At that point, Jesus took the conversation one step further, saying, " I am the resurrection and the life." And then came the challenge for Martha: "Do you believe this?"

Your answer to that question affects both how you live and how you accord with death. Jesus has not only conquered death but additionally produced a way for you to conquer death too. When you believe Jesus is the resurrection and the life, death simply becomes a transition, a passing from one realm of life into another, even though your physical frame will fail you.

One challenge which faces believers regarding death is not simply to prepare ourselves for its imminence but additionally to learn how to assist others face it. No matter the situation, though, Jesus' words provide the foundation for loving counsel. We are to speak both biblically and honestly, explaining the reality of eternity and the hope that is discovered in Him. Our words, echoing Christ's own, should not be abrupt or unfeeling but filled with wisdom and grace.

You cannot know how to live until you've settled the question of how to die. Tomorrow is not promised to any of us, but eternity is guaranteed to every follower of the one who is the resurrection and the life. You can prepare yourself-and your friends and loved ones-to meet the day of death with calm and confidence rather than with fear and uncertainty by holding these precious words close: "I am the resurrection and the life. Though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die." Yes, we believe this, whoever believes in me.

Regarding the Author(s).

Alistair Begg has been in pastoral ministry since 1975. After graduation from The London School of Theology, he served eight years in Scotland at both Charlotte Chapel in Edinburgh and Hamilton Baptist Church. In 1983, he became the senior pastor at Parkside Church near Cleveland, Ohio. He has written a number of books and is heard daily and weekly on the radio program, Truth For Life. His Daily Devotionals are presented here via a syndication agreement. Faith Alistair Begg September 15, 2026.

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Taken together, the developments around preparing for death point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.