WHEN IS IT SAFE TO DIE?

Lord, now let your servant depart in peace, according to your word:

For my eyes have seen your salvation" (Luke 2:29-30, King James 2000 Version). 

There are a number of things said about the man Simeon in our passage for today. But the one that interests me most is Simeon's request to depart which literally means to die. How could a man opt to die when he is not frustrated nor tired of life? How could someone who did not have any problem whatsoever tell God, "Now, permit me to die?" I have never seen or heard of any man so joyfully asking for death like Simeon did. This dimension to Simeon's story raised a question in my heart which I want us to consider. The question is, "When is it safe to die?" When is it really okay to depart this world? Here are three answers we can get from Simeon. 

First, it is safe to die when you have seen the Lord. The Bible says it had been revealed unto Simeon by the Holy Ghost, "that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ" (Luke 2:26). Now, observe that we are not told the age of Simeon. The point therefore is that whatever your age, it is not okay for you to depart until you have encountered the Lord Jesus Christ. This is not my personal thoughts. It was the Holy Ghost who said it to Simeon, and by implication, to all who dwell on the earth. Simply put, it is not safe to die until you are saved. Simeon told the Lord he was ready to die because "mine eyes have seen thy salvation". May you not see death until you have seen the Lord. 

Secondly, you are ready to go when you are done with living here on earth. And when are you done with living here on earth? It is when you have seen all that the Lord has told you of. Simeon said he was ready to depart because his eyes have seen all that the Lord had told him of. Has the word of the Lord been fully fulfilled in your life? If the answer is "No", then you still have more time to spend here. Even if death comes, you can say "No" to death because you have not finished your course. And I say unto you, in the name of Jesus, that you are going nowhere until you have finished your race. No power shall be able to take you away or cut short your life until you have finished your assignment here in the name of Jesus. May the sustaining grace of God ever keep you safe from all harm. 

The third answer we can draw from Simeon is that it is okay to die when you have lived a full life. Simeon said he was going to depart according to the word of God, or we might say, the will or the plan of God. Only those who have lived according to the word of God can legitimately express desire to depart according to the word of God. From this, we can infer that living a full life is living by the word of God or living in the will or plan of God. Those who have lived in the will or plan of God are never afraid to die. Living a full life has nothing to do with chronological age or human achievements. Jesus died at the age of thirty-three. He had no spouse, no children, built no house and left no bank account behind. Yet, He lived a full life, the fullest life anyone has lived in this world because He lived fully in the will or plan of God for Him. 

Friends, please know that you are not ready to die, neither is okay for you to die until you have lived in the will or plan of God for your life. I want you to know that just as all your members are written in His book (Psalms 139:16), so also are all your appointed days on earth written by God (Job 14:5). God has a plan for your everyday life. Until you have discovered God's plan and lived it out to the best of your ability, it is not okay for you to die. Jesus discovered His own in "the volume of the book", the holy Scriptures, and He committed Himself to doing what was written of Him (Hebrews 10:7). It is also written of you somewhere in the holy Scriptures. Search it out and live it out to the fullest. Then if death comes, you can say with excitement like Simeon, "Yes, I'm ready to go!"