We look upon this earth as home. We conceive of a Christian who dies as leaving home, rather than going home. To the extent that we believe we have an abiding city, we cease to seek for one to come. We would be content to stop looking and settle down here. This false sense of values operates in many fields.
Religion begins to trust in the material for strength.
The whole theme of the speakers at his funeral was one of sorrow that he could not live to see the completion of this huge pile of brick and cement. These considerations combine to give a false sense to the value of human life at the expense of the soul. We cease to fear him who can destroy both body and soul, and become increasingly afraid of him who can only destroy the body. As faith in Christ goes up, a love for this present life goes down. There are many things worse than death, and violent death may be visualized as a much more terrible experience than it really is.