When we buried my father ten years ago (2000), my mother had him buried in his bathrobe and pajamas. She wanted to communicate the truth that the Christian’s body is only asleep at death, that one day his body will awake, and there will be a resurrection! The bathrobe and pajamas were a beautiful illustration of that wonderful truth.
Now, if my dad had known what my mom did, he would have rolled over in his casket. He was a “proper English gentleman,” and the thought of anyone being buried in their pajamas… Well, it just wasn’t proper.
But guess what? He did not roll over in his casket. He didn’t even twitch. He just lay there like nothing was going on. The pajamas had no effect on him. We could have kicked and screamed and yelled and still he would have lain there with his eyes closed, looking perfectly content.
When you’re dead, you’re separated from all that is going on in the world. In fact, that’s what death means in the Bible. It means separation. Physical death is the separation of the soul from the body. Spiritual death is the separation of the soul from God. And death to sin is the separation of the soul from sin. Sin can kick and scream and yell all it wants, but if you’re dead, it doesn’t need to affect you; it doesn’t need to bother you; & it most certainly cannot master you.