"And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death.
And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake.
But there shall not an hair of your head perish.
In your patience possess ye your souls."
Luke 21:16-19
God explains here that some people will die, but that not a hair will perish, so in terms of what is lost, I think that God is telling us here that even if we are killed, we will be restored whole in the resurrection. It reminds me of another verse: "Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul" (Matthew 10:14). The physical things that we lose at death aren't things that can actually be taken from us permanently, because God ensures that we will all rise again in immortality.
Now, of course, there is more going on with death than just a physical loss, but Christ's atonement covers everything else as well. All will be restored, every wrong made right, every pain swallowed up in the joy of the Lord. Not immediately, but something that will definitely happen, that we can have faith in. I think that looking forward to that certain promise of restoration is likely why God further asks us to possess our souls in patience. God is playing the long game. Just like a good novel, some of the short term plots might end up with bad guys winning or even the main characters being killed, but God, as the author, knows that even death can't keep them from triumph. As long as we don't choose to give up or, worse, become the bad guys, we're okay. God's path leads inevitably to triumph and everything good, as long as we keep walking it and stick with the plot. :)
Today, let's possess our souls in patience, following God's plan and enduring temporary setbacks, even if in mortality they don't seem so temporary. Let's keep believing in God's happy ending, no matter what chapter we are living through just now.
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