On January 12, 1967, James Bedford died of cancer. His corpse was the first to be preserved in liquid nitrogen at -321 degrees Fahrenheit. Since then 290 people have been frozen in the United States, hoping to be brought back to life one day. Among those who have chosen this method are Hal Finney and baseball great Ted Williams. Besides cryonics, others have predicted that by the year 2030 a new form of artificial intelligence will preserve human consciousness in computer memory, In a sense, being simply uploaded “to the cloud,” you won’t need a body in order to exist. Through the Ages our fear of death has caused many people to create schemes to create a sense of immortality. The Egyptians created mummies, Arabs of the 12th Century would encase their loved ones in honey which turned the body into a sort of rock candy, the embalming of Vladimir Lenin in red Square (now 150 years dead), and even the current method of embalming which is common in our culture can be thought of as a way to preserve the body beyond the point of death.
Two facts come to mind here. All will be raised (without human technology) to receive their destiny (Daniel 12:2). Whatever you do with the body, God will raise it on that last day. Secondly, life is a gift from God (Acts 17:25). Though we can sustain it according to natural law, we will never be able to supersede God’s plan. This was the lesson to Nebuchadnezzar: “All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; he does according to his will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth. No one can restrain his hand or say to him, “What have you done?” Daniel 4:35
While much of mankind through the Ages has relied on their own wisdom and technology to face death, the Christian knows that God is in charge. There is coming a day when the graves will be opened and all will rise to meet the Lord. Are you ready for that day?
