Do you ever discover a song that you wouldn’t mind singing every Sunday? I’ve had a few of those along the way. Currently, Christ Our Hope in Life and Death has been that song for me. Written by Keith Getty, Matt Boswell, Jordan Kauflin, Matt Merker, and Matt Papa, the lyrics are filled with so much hope and matched with a melody that encourages the congregation to “sing hallelujah” and confess our hope in Christ – not just now, but for all eternity. I had a pastor in my early adult life who consistently encouraged our congregation to live “in light of eternity.” I think the text of this song encourages us to live that way:
What is our hope in life and death? Christ alone, Christ alone.
What is our only confidence? That our souls to Him belong.
Who holds our days within His hand? What comes, apart from His command?
And what will keep us to the end? The love of Christ, in which we stand.
O sing hallelujah! Our hope springs eternal.
O sing hallelujah! Now and ever we confess Christ our hope in life and death.
What truth can calm the troubled soul? God is good, God is good.
Where is His grace and goodness known? In our great Redeemer’s blood.
Who holds our faith when fears arise? Who stands above the stormy trial?
Who sends the waves that bring us nigh unto the shore, the rock of Christ?
Unto the grave, what shall we sing? “Christ, He lives; Christ, He lives!”
And what reward will heaven bring? Everlasting life with Him.
There we will rise to meet the Lord. Then sin and death will be destroyed.
And we will feast in endless joy when Christ is ours forevermore.
This song was inspired by the Heidelberg Catechism (1563). It was composed in the city of Heidelberg, Germany, at the request of Elector Frederick III, who ruled the Palatinate from 1559 to 1576. The new catechism was intended as a tool for teaching young people, a guide for preaching, and a shared confession among local congregations in a day when greater unity was desired among local congregations. The catechism is divided into fifty-two sections, so that one Lord’s Day could be explained in a worship service each Sunday of the year. For each day, several questions are asked and answered. Here are the first two questions and answers on Day 1:
Question 1: What is your only comfort in life and in death?
Answer: That I am not my own, but belong – body and soul, in life and in death – to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ. He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood, and has set me free from the tyranny of the devil. He also watches over me in such a way that not a hair can fall from my head without the will of my Father in heaven; in fact, all things must work together for my salvation.
Because I belong to him, Christ, by his Holy Spirit, assures me of eternal life and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready from now on to live for him.
Question 2: What must you know to live and die in the joy of this comfort?
Answer: Three things:
First, how great my sin and misery are.
Second, how I am set free from all my sins and misery.
Third, how I am to thank God for such deliverance.
What an encouraging word for every Christian, knowing that we are cared for at the highest level by the highest power, our perfect and holy God. Is there any greater comfort than being absolutely assured of eternal life? These promises offer us hope today and hope for all eternity. The Apostle Paul said it like this in Romans 14:7–8: “For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.”
April and I have been married for 23 years. Having met and married in college, at this point we’ve been a part of each other’s families longer than we haven’t. April’s father passed away on Thanksgiving Day in 2023. We were blessed to have him with us much longer than we initially thought after he went through lung cancer and the removal of a lung. He was with us over 10 more years and got to watch many more of his grandchildren grow up. With his precious wife and four children by his side, he left this earth and met his Savior face to face.
Since then, our two oldest children have graduated from high school; milestone ceremonies that my father-in-law would’ve joyfully attended had he still been with us. April and I were taking a walk the other night and started talking about how proud he would be of our daughter, who just graduated a few days ago. She’s a ton of fun, loves Jesus with all her heart, and feels called to serve in children’s ministry. As I started thinking about my father-in-law and imagining what he’s experiencing right now, I said to April, “Isn’t it amazing to think that, as much as your dad loved his grandchildren, that he wouldn’t come back now if he could after experiencing the glory of Heaven?”
Does that mean he didn’t love his grandchildren with all his heart? No. It means that he’s “feasting in endless joy” in the presence of Jesus… and nothing can compare or compete with that in this earthly life.
The hope of eternal life is not an uncertain hope. It is an absolute hope for every born-again believer. What is our hope in this life and the next? Christ alone!
