But the message of Jesus is one of hope. God s plan, God s desire, and God s dreams for humanity are coming to be. J ohn plays a major role in the work of God even in his death. For death is the great enemy of everyone here. Death is inevitable.
Death is final.
The blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news preached to them. F or anyone sitting in prison, the prospect of dying puts an end to all dreams and plans. Just so we sit in our own prisons with our hopes and dreams shattered and waiting for a word of release. The worst thing that happens to us in bad times arises out of the mistake that we make in good times. It is the human tendency to associate feelings that we experience in good times as signs of the presence of God.