The third basic fear is the fear of death.  And we deal with this last because it is the most obvious fear, and because in the Christian perspective it is obvious that we should not and need not be afraid of death.  To Christians there is a continuity of life on a straight horizontal line from this life on into the world to come.  The chasm is past at the new birth. Death is not the chasm; we already have passed from death to life.   

Jesus said ‘I tell you the truth, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life. John 5:24 NLT 

But now, let us regard the reality of what we are talking about.  The fear of death is a practical problem and a reality in our limited feelings and understanding.  It is not just a theoretical thing.  And we must say that sometimes the psychological upheaval we experience as we deal with the struggle and pain in living our lives that the truth and reality that we find in scripture can be difficult to apply.  But there is a rational framework within which we can work, think, and talk, and pray, and ‘that’ is altogether different from the situation of a man who is in rebellion against God.  What is needed in time of psychological disturbance, whether it is temporary or more prolonged, is that we should help each other to act upon the total unified Christian teaching that we ‘do have’ in scripture.  This is entirely different from trying to work by jumping into the dark without a rational framework.  The truths in scripture are a rational and truthful framework.  We must talk to each other, we must help each other to think in the light of the truth of the total unified Christian system.  In this we now have a point of conversation and a contact in the total framework that will not give way under our feet.  

As a Christian, you ‘have content and contact’.  You have content that is based on the authority of God himself, he has given you His written word ‘so that’ you will know the truth about life and living.  He is not a liar.  He is God, the Creator, and the author of life.  And you have Jesus Christ.  God placed you ‘in’ Christ when you put your faith in Christ as your Savior.  You have contact with God and Jesus because you are now in a relationship with them.  We help ourselves by reading and studying the Word of God and by praying to God.  Knowing what God says and what He promises strengthens our faith and understanding.  We help others by encouraging them from the truth of what God says in His word.  We help them by praying for them and with them.  This is our best source of encouragement and help, to love each other and support each other ‘so that’ we will grow in confidence for when the struggles and psychological challenges in life come.  And they do come to all of us.     

Jesus said ‘I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.’ John 16:33 NLT 

Thoughts developed or used directly from the work of Schaeffer, Francis. True Spirituality . Tyndale House Publishers, Inc