“37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:37-39)
In this passage, the Apostle describes some terrifying realities that confront us in our lives. These realities are the fear of death, invisible forces, present difficulties, and unpredictable future, amongst other fears. It is noteworthy that the Apostle begins this list with “death”. Death is one of the most terrifying realities for many of us. All of us one day must face it. There is no escape from it. People fear death because it is concealed in a haze of mystery. No one knows exactly how and when death will happen, or what will happen to us after death.
In the Apostle’s enumeration, death is the first and then comes life. This may confuse us, however, as we reflect on the list above, we see that, with the exception of death, all the other fears are met in this life. The Apostle could have enumerated many other things which bring forth fear in this life, and in all of those other circumstances he could have also said, “these will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Indeed, if we belong to Jesus Christ, we know for sure that God is with us always, with His unconditional love. By holding our hands, He leads us through all of our fears, difficulties, and trials, and nothing in this life or the life to come can separate God’s children from His love.
Therefore, in all the difficulties, struggles, trials, and fears in our lives cling firmly to these words. We ought to walk in confidence, knowing this truth: that our heavenly Father, who is perfect in His love, loves us with eternal love. His love is far greater than any of our fears. And know in confidence that nothing in this universe can separate us from this love.
