The apostle Paul says that Christ’s death and rising again must find its parallel in the life of believers: we must die to our old selves and rise to our new life in Christ (2 Tim. 2:11; Col. 3:1-5). He takes this one step further in 1 Corinthians 15:35-49, explaining that our very bodies are like seeds that must die and return to the earth before we can experience the resurrection of our new spiritual body. Spiritual truths suddenly become living (and dying) realities.

Here at Bethel, we deal with life and death on a continual basis. Grief is commonplace among God’s people. That means our worship must mirror both the joys and sorrows of life. Just as worship is based on both the dying and rising of Christ, the dying of our old selves and the rising of our new life in Christ, so also worship must reflect our grief at death while still pressing forward in faith to the final resurrection in Christ.