You can’t die.
Does that sink into your soul like it does mine?
The Atonement of Jesus Christ has unconditionally guaranteed that every person who has been born on this earth will be resurrected after their death and will return to the presence of God for the purpose of judgment.
This led me to thinking about the story of Romeo and Juliet. After Romeo [I think, justifiably] kills Tybalt, he flees to his good friend the Friar. The scene I was thinking of is where Romeo learns that his punishment for killing Tybalt is going to be banishment from the city of Verona.
ROMEO Father, what news? What is the prince’s doom? What sorrow craves acquaintance at my hand, That I yet know not?
FRIAR LAURENCE Too familiar Is my dear son with such sour company: I bring thee tidings of the prince’s doom.
ROMEO What less than dooms-day is the prince’s doom?
FRIAR LAURENCE A gentler judgment vanish’d from his lips, Not body’s death, but body’s banishment.
ROMEO Ha, banishment! be merciful, say ‘death;’ For exile hath more terror in his look, Much more than death: do not say ‘banishment.’
FRIAR LAURENCE Hence from Verona art thou banished: Be patient, for the world is broad and wide.
ROMEO There is no world without Verona walls, But purgatory, torture, hell itself. Hence-banished is banish’d from the world, And world’s exile is death: then banished, Is death misterm’d: calling death banishment, Thou cutt’st my head off with a golden axe, And smilest upon the stroke that murders me.
FRIAR LAURENCE O deadly sin! O rude unthankfulness! Thy fault our law calls death; but the kind prince, Taking thy part, hath rush’d aside the law, And turn’d that black word death to banishment: This is dear mercy, and thou seest it not.
ROMEO ‘Tis torture, and not mercy: heaven is here, Where Juliet lives; and every cat and dog And little mouse, every unworthy thing, Live here in heaven and may look on her; But Romeo may not: more validity, More honourable state, more courtship lives In carrion-flies than Romeo: they my seize On the white wonder of dear Juliet’s hand And steal immortal blessing from her lips, Who even in pure and vestal modesty, Still blush, as thinking their own kisses sin; But Romeo may not; he is banished: Flies may do this, but I from this must fly: They are free men, but I am banished. And say’st thou yet that exile is not death? Hadst thou no poison mix’d, no sharp-ground knife, No sudden mean of death, though ne’er so mean, But ‘banished’ to kill me?–’banished’? O friar, the damned use that word in hell; Howlings attend it: how hast thou the heart, Being a divine, a ghostly confessor, A sin-absolver, and my friend profess’d, To mangle me with that word ‘banished’?
Our Good Prince has died and has been resurrected. He purchased power over death with His blood. The fault of sin, according to the law, calls for death. But the Kind Prince, Jesus Christ, has satisfied the law and has taken away the sting of death. This is a free gift given to everyone who has come to this earth regardless of choices made while here.
You can’t die, but you can be banished.
No unclean thing can dwell in the Kingdom of God. If a person is unclean, then for his or her own good, the Prince will, in His own dear mercy, banish that person forever from the Kingdom of God. The pain and suffering of those to whom this fate befalls is echoed in the words of Romeo as he considers life without his beloved.
That is why the scriptures say over and over again that we should not procrastinate the day of our repentance. There is a lot at stake here. Why would one trade a few short years here for a whole stretch of eternity hereafter?
You have to go on living. You will go on whether you are prepared for it or not. There is no point in living forever unless you have a reason to live forever.
Remember, God loves you enough to allow you not to choose Him.
7 Comments
17 November 2008 at 8:05 pm
~I LOVE THE NEWER VERSION OF THE MOVIE BETTER BUT I LIKE THE ENDING IN THE OLD VERSION BETTER~
SMILE GOD LOVES YOU
18 November 2008 at 12:25 am
The newer version was a cool idea, but I like the classics when I’m watching Shakespeare.
9 February 2009 at 7:29 pm
where do i find summaries of the play
10 February 2009 at 3:30 pm
If you are strapped for time, then I would suggest you use ask.com and search for “summaries of Romeo and Juliet”.
The best method, however, is to read the play and then summarize what you have read.
27 February 2009 at 4:41 pm
[...] I noticed that “Banished!!” is my most popular post, it reminded me of another rock in my [...]
15 April 2009 at 8:56 am
Hey, nice tips. I’ll buy a bottle of beer to that person from that chat who told me to visit your blog
3 May 2009 at 2:07 pm
drt