God created us for eternal life. This was his desire for us. But ever since sin brought death, people have been obsessed with getting eternal life back. The ancient Egyptians were preoccupied with death and the afterlife. They strove to please the gods in the hope that they would in turn bless them with a wonderful afterlife. This can be seen so clearly in the vastness of size and quantity of tombs and temples in Egypt; in the symbols of the ancient scriptures that remain on the walls of all the tombs and temples; and in the way that bodies were embalmed after death.
One ancient symbol is the key of life, which seems always present in the ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs. The gods were almost always depicted as having a key of life in their hands, and life was given after death in the symbolism of a god putting the key of life into the deceased person's mouth.
Another important symbol is found in every tomb. It is from the “Book of the Dead,” and is of a human heart on a scale being weighed against the weight of a feather or feathers. If the deceased persons heart was found to be heavier (or also could be translated "harder") than the feather(s), then he would be condemned and kept from eternal life; but if his heart was found to be lighter than the feather(s), he would in fact receive eternal life.
Think of this as you read the 10 instances recorded in the Bible where God hardened Pharaoh’s heart, or more fascinating yet, Pharaoh hardened his own heart. Could it be that Pharaoh was willing to forfeit his own eternal life rather than to let the Israelites go?
In complete contrast to this preoccupation with death in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics, the Old Testament does not speak of eternal life or seem that preoccupied with what happens after death. However, there are three very important “eternals” in the Old Testament: Eternal God, Eternal Covenant, and Eternal Kingdom. It as if God is screaming to his people, “I got this death thing covered, you should just be preoccupied with life and not death.” Ezekiel gives us God’s very words about this, “I will remove from you your heart of stone (heavy heart) and give you a heart of flesh.” God does not want us to be preoccupied with death, but with life!
We life in a culture where a new paganism is in vogue -- though nobody would want to call it that. However, something inherent in paganism is a preoccupation with death. And this we see all around us as evidenced in the emphasis on “dead heads,” zombies, TV programs that trivialize death and the deceased, and senseless killings. What we really need are armies of God-followers who are preoccupied with life and living well. When God takes care of the death thing, we can live the wonderful, abundant life that pleases him.
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