Daily Devotional

“So, Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord” (Deuteronomy 34:5). 

He is widely regarded as the most influential person in British his- tory. Best known as being Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945, Sir Winston Churchill was a statesman, officer in the British Army, historian, writer, and artist. His famous speeches and radio broadcasts inspired British resistance to German hostilities at the outbreak of World War II, especially from 1940 to 1941, when Great Britain stood alone in opposition to the Nazi regime. 

When Churchill died in 1965 at the age of 90, his state funeral was the largest in world history up to that time. More than a million mourners lined the streets of London. Representatives from 112 nations attended the service. His body lay in state in Westminster Hall for three days and was followed by a service in St. Paul’s Cathedral. A total of 321,360 filed past his coffin to pay their last respects. Over 350 million Europeans watched the service on television. 

One of the greatest Bible characters, widely regarded as one of the most influential persons in Old Testament history, had the smallest of all funerals. Moses also was a statesman, a military officer, a historian, and a writer. But when Moses died on Mount Nebo at the age of 120, no human was around to comfort him in those final hours. 

Yet, he was not alone. God was with Moses when he died, and the Lord buried him (see Deuteronomy 34:6). The Bible later tells us that Christ rebuked Satan when the devil tried to keep this faithful warrior in the grave (see Jude 9). Moses was the first human raised from the dead. He even appeared on the mount of transfiguration with Elijah and Jesus (see Matthew 17:2, 3). 

“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints” (Psalm 116:15). The graves of God’s devoted ones are never forgotten. 

“The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms” (Deuteronomy 33:27).