Death is a River

“Ah! thou wise man, full of worldly wisdom; thy wisdom will stand thee here, but what wilt thou do in the swellings of Jordan? Philosophy may do well for thee to lean upon whilst thou walkest through this world; but the river is deep, and thou wilt want something more than that. If thou hast not the arm of the Most High to hold thee up in the flood and cheer thee with promises, thou wilt sink, man; with all thy philosophy, thou wilt sink; with all thy learning, thou shalt sink, and be washed into that awful ocean of eternal torment, where thou shalt be forever.” – Charles Spurgeon, in his sermon Christ Crucified.

“Now I further saw that betwixt them and the Gate [of Heaven] was a River, but there was no bridge to go over; the River was very deep; at the sight therefore of this River, the pilgrims were much astounded…The pilgrims then began to inquire if there was no other way to the Gate…The pilgrims then, especially Christian, began to despond in his mind, and looked this way and that, but no way could be found by them by which they might escape the River…They then addressed themselves to the water; and entering, Christian began to sink, and crying out to his good friend Hopeful, he said, ‘I sink in deep waters, the billows go over my head, all his waves go over me’…Then said the other, ‘Be of good cheer, my brother, I feel the bottom, and it is good…Be of good cheer, Jesus Christ maketh thee whole.’ And with that, Christian brake out with a loud voice, ‘Oh I see him again! And he tells me, When though passest through the waters, I will be with thee, and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee.’ Then they both took courage, and the enemy was after that as still as a stone, until they were gone over. Christian therefore presently found ground to stand upon; and so it followed that the rest of the River was but shallow. Thus they got over.” – John Bunyan, The Pilgrim’s Progress

It is Jesus who gets us across this river – this river we will all face – not worldly wisdom, philosophy, or learning, lest we be washed into that awful ocean.

{emphasis mine}