Condolence
Comfort in death of a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ:
1 Thessalonians 4:13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words. (KJV)
Questions: What if a friend of yours dies? What are some spiritual things that would help relieve his family and friends? One thing is not to let minor disagreements of ethics or even discernment cause you to not be forgiving. We succeed when we do God's will for us. Jesus succeeded when he died on the cross to pay for our sins.
How to know you are saved:
1 John 5:10 He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. 11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. 13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.
Romans 10.9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
So if the person was living an honorable life, believed and was baptized in the name of Jesus, it would not matter too much: You could expect the person to go to Heaven and not really have to be sad. But what if the person was recently or continuously backsliding and died? Or on a more positive aspect of hypothetical circumstances, what if he repented of his backsliding immediately before his death? People have to live with questions sometimes.
Visit the Christian Recovery Center