We are grateful that from time to time writers allow us to add their work to our resources.
This piece by ALAN SMITH is a wonderful sermon illustration on the certainty of death and the wonderful hope of eternal life which is available to all who will put their trust in Jesus Christ.
Harry Houdini’s name is one that is recognized by almost everyone. His claim to fame was that he was a magician and an excellent escape artist.
He would free himself from handcuffs, chains, ropes and straitjackets, often while hanging from a rope or suspended in water. He escaped from coffins, riveted boilers and canvas bags. Houdini was even locked inside a high security prison but, of course, Houdini always got out.
The day Houdini failed to escape
But then, on 24 October 1926, death laid its hands on Harry Houdini and he would never escape.
Houdini had told his wife, Bess, prior to his death,
“If there is any way out, I will find it. If there is any way out, I will find you and I will make contact with you on the anniversary of my death.”
For ten years after Houdini’s death, his wife tried to make contact with him. Then she finally acknowledged the truth.
“Houdini did not come through. My last hope is gone. I do not believe that Houdini can come back to me, or to anyone…The Houdini Shrine has burned for ten years. I now, reverently… turn out the light. It is finished. Good night, Harry!”
Bess Houdini was so right, and yet she was so wrong.
She was right to admit what people have been forced to admit for centuries – we do not have the power to conquer death. Not even the famous Harry Houdini.
Eventually death will win the battle over each and every one of us, and there is no escape.
But Bess Houdini was oh so wrong when she said, “My last hope is gone.” For, while none of us can escape death, we can find our hope in the one who overcame death.
Only one man has come back from the grave alive. Only one man offers us hope of life beyond the grave. His name is Jesus. Here is what the Bible tells us:
The Hope of Eternal Life
(I Peter 1:3-4 NLT)
All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay.
Turn the light back on. It isn’t finished at all it’s only just beginning!
With thanks to Alan Smith, whose blog is entitled Thought for the Day.
Alan is a preacher and you can freely access the archive of his sermons, to read or watch.
PHOTOS: Both photos are used under Creative Commons license.