The Tragedy of Death Outside the Kingdom

After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out, "Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for his judgments are true and just; for he has judged the great prostitute who corrupted the earth with her immorality, and has avenged on her the blood of his servants." - Revelation 19:1-2

Those who die outside of Christ will never experience the fellowship of God. The thought of this, knowing that friends and relatives are not in Christ, should cause us to constantly pray for their salvation.

“Certainly, from one perspective there is some degree of sadness whenever someone made in the image of God goes to death without having repented and trusted in Christ. We mourn the tragedy of death outside the kingdom, for the Lord’s image bearers were designed for eternal fellowship with Him and His people. Men and women who die outside of Christ will never experience fellowship with God or with His people. But the Lord is glorified in His justice just as He is glorified in His mercy. One theologian has said that Christian maturity involves being able to praise God not only for His love and mercy but also for His perfect justice. If we love God, we want Him to be magnified for who He is, including who He is as the Judge of all the earth who must do what is right. It is right to rejoice when Rome and other evil empires fall, as we see in today’s passage, for in these falls, God’s glory and truthfulness are made manifest.” - Tabletalk Magazine