C.J. Mahaney, in his sermon “Death Swallowed Up in Victory,” quotes D. A. Carson on the nature of death. Carson notes, “death is God’s limit on creatures who want to be God…Death is God’s determination to limit our arrogance.” For the natural man, death is the cessation of life–and consequently the cessation of the enjoyment of God’s goodness unto all eternity. Death is God’s just response to our sin and rebellion in Adam. Adam acted in pride. God acted in ustice. But as a practical point, “death is God’s determination to limit our arrogance.”
I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naïve. (Romans 16:17-18)