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Chicago’s first African American mayor, Harold Washington, is buried in the city’s Oak Woods Cemetery; so are Jesse Owens and Enrico Fermi, the man who first split the atom. Famous people like these buried in Oak Woods Cemetery call to mind Eteau Wiser’s poem: “Today I took a little stroll, T’was a cemetery in our town, A garden of memory. As I turned to leave the place, A thought to me did rise, No matter who we are on earth, in death we are all one in size.” Those words echo the decree from God our Creator. “You were made from dust, and to dust you will return.” The Bible also warns us that each person is destined to die once, and afterward judgment comes. God repeatedly confirms the certainty of His Words all through the Bible. Once He said through the ancient prophet Amos (chapter 3), “The Sovereign Lord never does anything until he reveals his plans to his servants the prophets.” God goes on to say, “The Sovereign Lord has spoken—so who can refuse to proclaim his message?” Cemeteries are proof that God’s decree of death is in effect. Wise people accept the truth that judgment is certain to follow. So they accept God’s provision for salvation. They repent of their sins and accept the gift of eternal life that God offers through His Son, Jesus the Christ.
