Hope in Christ

How do we handle death and grief from a Christian perspective? The Bible has a lot to say

Grief is something every human faces at some point, says Major Martina Cornell, the administrator of The Salvation Army’s Ray & Joan Kroc Corps Community Center in Dayton, Ohio. Even Jesus mourned and openly wept at the tomb of Lazarus before raising him from the dead.

“That moment shows us that mourning is not only natural,” she says. “It’s human.”

Many Salvation Army pastors throughout the Eastern Territory say 1 Thessalonians 4:13 is a key verse when they teach about grief. They urge parishioners to grieve with hope of the eternal life to come in Heaven. They also frequently share Psalm 34:18, which says that God is close to the broken­hearted, and Matthew 5:4’s promise that God comforts those who mourn.

“Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.”

—1 Thessalonians 4:13

To comfort grievers, Cornell, too, often turns to 1 Thessalonians 4:13.

“We still grieve, but we don’t grieve as those who believe death is the end. Our sorrow is real, but it’s not without promise. Our hearts break, but not without comfort,” she says. “For believers, death isn’t the final chapter—it’s the doorway into eternal life with Christ. That truth doesn’t make our pain disappear, but it does change how we walk through it. While the world may see grief as a pit of darkness, for Christians, it’s a valley we pass through with the presence of God beside us.”

She’s also a believer in 2 Corinthians 1:4, which says as we receive comfort from God in our lowest moments, we’re called to extend that same comfort to others.

“This is part of the redemptive work of grief in the life of a believer,” she says. “Our sorrow doesn’t just draw us closer to the heart of God—it prepares us to minister to those who are walking through valleys of their own. Grief may visit us all, but it doesn’t define us. For those in Christ, grief is real. But it is never without hope.”

Coping during the holidays

Around the holidays, especially, many people feel pain from the loss of loved ones or from broken relationships and dreams. People often turn to drugs and alcohol to mask the heartbreak, or they may even think about suicide.*

When people lose a loved one or have their hopes and dreams dashed, says Captain Justin Barter, a Salvation Army pastor in Waltham, Mass., they may feel thrown out of balance. Some may try to cope in unhealthy ways, like using drugs and alcohol, which he calls “hopeless grief.”

“As believers we have another hope,” he says. “While eternity is important to focus on as believers who’ve experienced loss, we also must be focused on the healing of broken­ness and loss here.”

Barter points to C.S. Lewis, who in his 1961 book A Grief Observed paints a vivid picture of what loss can feel like. Lewis talks about the stages of grief he experienced after the death of his wife and how that can sometimes be a lifelong journey. Barter says Christians should “walk that hard road with one another” through the pain.

“It can be an easy thing to remind others or ourselves that we’ll see loved ones who are found in Christ again in eternity or surrender to God’s will when situations leave us disappointed. Yet, if we simply paint over it with a brushstroke, we may only fester a wound,” Barter says. “We must allow for pain to be present and then practice being the body of Christ. We must bear one another’s burdens. The very word compassion means we suffer with someone. It is in this entering into the sufferings of others that something takes place. Someone else truly can show us the love of Christ.”

The peace that passes all understanding

Major Stephanie Larrick, a Salvation Army officer in East Liverpool, Ohio, emphasizes to grieving families that love exists in both Heaven and earth.

“So, the departed loved one can’t take blankets I’ve made for them, or money they have saved up, but they can take suitcases and suitcases full of all the love we had for them,” Larrick says. “I think that perspective helps grieving families because I know it helps me.”

Captain John Esker of The Salvation Army in Warren, Ohio, says nothing else in this world can compare with the peace God offers (John 14:27). To him, trials are a testing of faith (James 1:3), and that includes the loss of people we love. “It is better to trust in the Lord than put confidence in anyone or anything else,” he says.

*If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988.