1 Corinthians 15: 54-58

“Brothers and sisters:
When this which is corruptible clothes itself with incorruptibility
and this which is mortal clothes itself with immortality,
then the word that is written shall come about:
Death is swallowed up in victory.
Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?
The sting of death is sin,
and the power of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God who gives us the victory
through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my beloved brothers and sisters,
be firm, steadfast, always fully devoted to the work of the Lord,
knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”

Holiness of life neutralises death for the sting of death lies in the consequences of not living a good and holy sin, of allowing one’s life to be dominated by sin, and for not taking advantage of God’s infinite mercy and grace while living in the body. The sting lies in the regret of a life outside of God, outside of the light of divine glory for which we all yearn. It is the sting of separation from our creator, the pain of loneliness – for without God, we not just alone but lonely in the perpetual vale of tears.

Help us Lord to continually seek you with a sincere and contrite heart. Help us to always rise again and again each time we fall so that we might always live in the shadow of your presence. And in that state, the death of the body does no harm to our souls. It cannot not sting for we are grafted into you, our resurrection and life.