THE STRUGGLE OF LIFE

 “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread…” Gen 3:19

We are now ready to examine the last element of the statement by Job’s wife—“and die.” As we have mentioned before, there may have been many influences that caused her to make such a statement. For her it meant that Job might find a respite from his sufferings and be at rest. We might also say that Satan may have been an influence to encourage her husband to commit suicide or just give up trying to live. Accomplishing this, Satan would have some kind of temporal victory against God’s will and purpose for Job. God had already established that the Devil could not take Job’s life, but what if Job himself could somehow be persuaded to bring this about by some means of his own? Satan cannot always be blamed directly for the troubles we have in our lives, but he often influences us to self-inflict our own wounds. He can never step outside the bounds that God has set for him; but he is always seeking to outwit God and bring about his own ends and ultimate victory. Many times we are our own worst enemy and often play into the devils hand.

Job 2:9 Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die.

2 Cor 2:11 Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.

The ultimate source however, which we shall now put forth, in spite of these other influences, is that God was the true author and inspiration of her words. She may have been speaking in terms of the natural realm and physical death, but if we attribute her statement as being influenced by the Almighty, God was speaking to Job, and to us, in the spiritual realm.

 2 Pet 1:21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

John 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

In ascribing this part of her statement to God Himself, what would be the actual intent of these two words? If we have put our faith in the Creator God, we should know that He is a Being that does not change His mind; and He has already expressed that Job’s life is not to be taken from him at this time. He also is not manipulated by Satan’s devices; nor will He go against His expressed will by anything we may do or say. Job eventually died, but not for many more years; and not because of the result of this trial and the awful disease he was afflicted with. Our times are in God’s hands; and no devil or man, including ourselves, can either end our life or extend it beyond that boundary to which He has ordained it to last.

Job 2:6 And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thine hand; but save his life.

Mal 3:6 For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.

Heb 13:8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.

Psa 31:15 My times are in thy hand: deliver me from the hand of mine enemies, and from them that persecute me.

But, one may argue, what if we are murdered, or we are driven to insanity by some devil and we commit suicide; do not these events circumvent the will of God? Emphatically, we say no. God is sovereign, and even these horrible events are entirely under His control; and they cannot happen unless He allows them to. But what about the advances of science and medicine that have surely added to the years of men’s lives; can we not say that man has extended his own life by these miracles of modern medicine? Again we would answer no. Who is the Creator of true science and medicine? Who created the plants with all of their medicinal properties? Who gave man all of the knowledge that we now use to extend life? Certainly it is God. Where have all of these advances taken place, and where do men enjoy longer lives? Is it in Africa or India or some other heathen land where false gods are worshipped? The majority of these discoveries have been in the lands where Jehovah God is worshipped, where the Gospel of Jesus Christ has been proclaimed, and where men follow the teachings of the Bible. It has been for the benefit and blessing of God’s people that these advances have been discovered; and God has used believing scientists, as well as the unbelieving, to bring them about. God is the Creator of all life. He loves life, and He wants man to live and enjoy life in eternal union with Him. The Tree of Life was in the Garden for man’s benefit, that man might partake of its healing knowledge and live forever. However, Adam’s own disobedience brought death into the world by disregarding God’s irrefutable warning. Therefore, reluctantly, it was also in God’s plan and purpose to allow man to die when he ate the forbidden fruit, and to keep him from the Tree of Life. What we are saying in all of this is—that man has a will, and the decisions we make do have an impact upon our lives; but God has a will also, and by His sovereign power, it is His will that “will be done” in every person’s life and death.

Gen 3:22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:

Heb 9:27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:

Ezek 33:11 Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?

Gal 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.

Dan 4:35 And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?

To fully understand what spiritual import the statement “and die” may have, one must first have a concept of what it means to live in this world. First of all, because of sin and the curse that God placed upon man and the earth, life has become a struggle. Everything is winding down, dying, and decaying. Even the universe is said to be slowing down. Our sun would eventually burn out and all life would eventually end apart from God’s intervention. To continue to live, man must work, he must struggle, and he must fight against those forces that would destroy him. In the sweat of our brow we must toil to grow our food. Against the forces of nature—wind, flooding, drought, insects, animals, and disease—farmers struggle to raise crops. All of us struggle to be healthy. We must guard and fight against diseases of all sorts—bacteria, viruses, cancers, deficiencies, and a myriad of other forces that seek to make us sick and destroy us. Even getting out of bed is a struggle. Practicing personal hygiene, going to work and school soon becomes drudgery, yet we must not stop. Emotionally, we struggle to maintain a proper attitude about ourselves, about life, and about others. Living as a fallen human being in the midst of others of the same nature, causes psychological pressures that disrupt our lives, can make it miserable, and are at times overwhelming. Many there are who would rather give up this earthly existence than to continue to face the misery that life has become to them. Even spiritually we struggle. The unsaved struggle to find acceptance with God; and believers struggle to maintain their religious piety. Often, reading the Bible, praying, and attending church, is nothing more than a boring ritual. We struggle also to maintain our earthly goods. We must maintain our houses, lands, automobiles, and everything else we have to preserve them for future use. The destructive forces of nature and corruption would soon destroy everything that man has labored to build and possess, if we do not fight against them. One must only look at the condition of cities, homes, the farmer’s field, and other material things that have not been maintained, to see what neglect soon brings about.

Heb 10:23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)
24 And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

1 Tim 6:12 Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.

Prov 24:30 I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;
31 And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down.
32 Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.
33 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:
34 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man.

Life therefore, in this present world and in our earthly bodies, means to struggle against destruction, decay, and death. This struggle begins at birth and will end at our physical death. Even a baby must struggle to be born, to breathe, to eat, and cries out when its welfare seems threatened. Our existence upon this planet depends upon our struggle to live. All of us would soon die if we failed to put forth any effort to live; and within us, within our soul, our psychic, is the will to live. Self-preservation is at the center of our being. Even our bodies have been designed by the Creator to fight against the forces that would destroy it. We have a complex system of defenses, that even without our volition, are activated by just the threat of danger. When we face a serous situation adrenalin begins to flow, giving us superhuman strength and energy. When we injure ourselves, the blood coagulates to stop the bleeding, and antibodies rush to the scene to fight against infection. If we get a viral or bacterial infection, an army of white blood cells began to attack the intruders. The body will even shut down in shock if the situation becomes life threatening, preserving strength to try and live on. The body is so amazing that only the most serious diseases and injuries can destroy it. 

Psa 139:14 I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

Life is a struggle because God pronounced in the Garden of Eden that it would be. It has been called a part of the curse placed upon man because of sin. This curse, which is actually a blessing to man in his fallen state, proclaims that man must now labor or struggle to eat and to live. There would be no more carefree days of walking through the Garden and plucking fruit from off the trees. In the sweat of man’s brow would he now labor for the essential things of life. However, this struggle would be used by God to keep man from falling deeper into the pit of sin, and actually drive men to the Saviour. “Idleness,” it is said, “is the devils workshop”; and those who have nothing but time on their hands soon find themselves involved in mischief. Who are those that have the greatest problems with sin and lead depressing and unhappy lives, who lie awake worrying about their possessions and how to hold on to them? Who are the greatest enemies of God and of the Gospel, who consider religion and salvation foolishness? Those that are rich and have their ease in this world, who know nothing of a hard days work. To whom has God reserved the blessings of the Gospel and salvation? Is it not the poor of this world, those that must labor to provide a living for themselves and their families? Who are those to whom sleep is sweet, and who find happiness and contentment in the simple things of life? Is it not those who must labor to have even a little of this worlds goods, but are rich toward God?

Gen 3:17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

Eze 16:49 Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.

Jam 2:5 Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?
6 But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats?
7 Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called?

1 Cor 1:26 For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called:
27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;

Ecc 5:12 The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep.

There is, however, no denying that this toiling, this struggle, is often wearisome, and those who must work to maintain their existence, do find some comfort in their day of rest—their weekends, vacations, time of retirement, and finally that heavenly rest to those who are in Christ. However, for the most part, we must work to eat, to stay healthy, to keep up our appearance, and to maintain our possessions. Everything that seems to be worthwhile and good must be acquired with some effort. The easy road is the path to destruction; to float downstream requires no effort; but if we are to resist the decaying influences of life, we must struggle through self-discipline and hard work. Those who cease to work, to struggle against the decaying forces of this world, will soon waste away and die—emotionally, spiritually, physically, and economically.

Prov 27:23 Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds.

Prov 19:15 Slothfulness casteth into a deep sleep; and an idle soul shall suffer hunger.

Ecc 10:18 By much slothfulness the building decayeth; and through idleness of the hands the house droppeth through.

It is not hard to see those who have given up, who have quit trying. Even people in the prime of their youth, who instead of applying themselves to study, self-improvement, and work, give themselves over to a lifestyle of drugs and crime—thereby becoming merely leaches on society. Individuals who at one time were hard-working family men and women, devoted to their spouses and children, give up and abandon their responsibilities. They leave their families hoping to escape and find an easier way. You finally see them wandering the streets and sleeping on cardboard, living only to find another drink of alcohol or a fix on drugs. You see businesses that have given up and have ceased to do those things that at one time made them successful, sinking slowly into bankruptcy. You see organizations, where everyone was once energetic about what they were doing and the causes they once deemed important, now seeking the easy way; and have become ineffective as they slowly die. Churches that were once vibrant and alive in carrying out the mission of their Lord, are now spiritually dead; they are losing their young people to the world and cease to bring anyone to the knowledge of Christ. They became “rich and increased with goods”; the congregations became self-satisfied and gave themselves over to idleness and self-indulgence. They build beautiful buildings and recreational centers equipped with all the latest and best furnishings; but the true temple of God, which is in the hearts of its members, is in desperate need of restoration. Even great nations and kingdoms, which once prospered and ruled the world through strength of character and great sacrifice, are in ruins; or are second rate powers because they stopped doing what made them great, and gave in to self-indulgence.

Prov 13:4 The soul of the sluggard desireth, and hath nothing: but the soul of the diligent shall be made fat.

Heb 12:1 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,

Rev 3:14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;
15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:
18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.

From the preceding thoughts about what it means to live in this sin cursed world, we can now base our meaning of death—as it pertains to this life. We may also begin to lay some groundwork for how the words “and die” may be applied spiritually to Job and to us. Dying may be thought of as the cessation of the struggle to live; it is to give up, to yield to the forces that seek to destroy our existence—physically, emotionally, and spiritually. How much can be said for how ones attitude effects both the quality and longevity of life? Those who struggle against death, who fight against it by eating right, getting sufficient sleep, getting the proper amount of exercise, abstaining from destructive habits, and maintaining a proper mental and spiritual outlook, have a much better chance of living a longer and happier life, at least in the human perspective, than those who merely drift along and do not resist decay. We acknowledge that there are forces over which we have no control, in spite of our best efforts—heredity, accidents, diseases, and death at the hands of others are some of them. These are all events that many times are out of our ability to do any thing about and can prematurely end our lives—in spite our best efforts. However, it has been shown that those who maintain a will to live can sometimes overcome even the most serious blows to life, in relation to those who merely give up.

Phil 4:5 Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.

1 Pet 4:3 For the time past of our life may suffice us to have wrought the will of the Gentiles, when we walked in lasciviousness, lusts, excess of wine, revellings, banquetings, and abominable idolatries:

1 Cor 9:24 Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.
25 And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.
26 I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air:
27 But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.

1 Cor 15:32 If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not? let us eat and drink; for to morrow we die.

How often do we see the living partner of a life-long marriage, give up and die soon after their departed spouse? How accelerating do the forces of death come upon an old person who gives up their desire to live? How different, have studies shown, is the quality and longevity of the lives of those who have terminal diseases, between those who pray and hope and fight against the disease, than those who merely give up? Now we have said all that to say this—our will to live has a great deal to do with how long we live and also the quality of life we enjoy. Many people who are chronically sick, or have tremendous emotional burdens and pain, or have lost a dear loved one such as a life-long spouse or a dear child, give up their will to live and die prematurely.

Mark 5:34 And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.

Eze 33:11 Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?

Now, before someone objects to what we have just said— that it contradicts our previous statement about God’s sovereignty in governing how long we live; we were never designed to be some kind of robot, droid, or puppet; a mechanical pawn that merely plays out its life as it has been preprogrammed to do; but our will to live has a very significant impact upon our life, and co-exists quite properly along with God’s sovereignty. Who gives us the strength of will to fight against death, or who takes away our desire to live? Certainly God influences the attitude of His children and His enemies. Our choices and our will are merely used by God to carry out His will—either for blessing, or chastisement, or for cursing. We might even say that God influences our choices as He so plainly did to Ahab, the wicked king of Israel. He died prematurely according to the sovereign will of God; but it was completely his own choice that brought it about.

Psa 13:1 How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me?
2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?
3 Consider and hear me, O LORD my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death;

1 Kings 22:2 And it came to pass in the third year, that Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came down to the king of Israel.
3 And the king of Israel said unto his servants, Know ye that Ramoth in Gilead is ours, and we be still, and take it not out of the hand of the king of Syria?
4 And he said unto Jehoshaphat, Wilt thou go with me to battle to Ramoth-gilead? And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses as thy horses.

1 Kings 22:20 And the LORD said, Who shall persuade Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead? And one said on this manner, and another said on that manner.
21 And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the LORD, and said, I will persuade him.
22 And the LORD said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt persuade him, and prevail also: go forth, and do so.

1 Kings 22:29 So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead.
30 And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and enter into the battle; but put thou on thy robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle.
31 But the king of Syria commanded his thirty and two captains that had rule over his chariots, saying, Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel.
32 And it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, that they said, Surely it is the king of Israel. And they turned aside to fight against him: and Jehoshaphat cried out.
33 And it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots perceived that it was not the king of Israel, that they turned back from pursuing him.
34 And a certain man drew a bow at a venture, and smote the king of Israel between the joints of the harness: wherefore he said unto the driver of his chariot, Turn thine hand, and carry me out of the host; for I am wounded.
35 And the battle increased that day: and the king was stayed up in his chariot against the Syrians, and died at even: and the blood ran out of the wound into the midst of the chariot.

The prime example of the power of ones will over the forces of death can be found in our Lord Himself. Even when His life seemed to be entirely out of His control while hanging on the cross, He had to give up His spirit in order to die. No power on earth or hell could have taken His life from Him, except He gave it up willingly. Jesus, who is the embodiment of life itself, had to “give up the ghost.” If he had not willfully ended His life, he could have hung there on the cross forever, even without a drop of blood in His veins.

John 10:17 Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.
18 No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.

Luke 23:46 And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.

Albeit, we are not the Son of God, nor do we possess the authority over death that He had, but we do have some influence over death when we resist it and have the will to fight against it. When God created Adam, He created him in God’s own image, and He “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life.” Man, without sin, could have lived forever in his natural state, even as God had intended him to do. God gave to Adam all the resources within his body and within nature to sustain, heal, and perpetuate his life forever. Now when Adam sinned, he did not fall immediately down and die in the way we think of death; or as one might imagine if we were to apply God’s warning to him in only a literal physical way. He died, as God had said he would, in that same day; but Adam died in the sense that he became separated from God. Nevertheless he lived on physically for some nine hundred years in his fallen state. Adam still retained a glowing ember of the life which he once possessed, even though the process of dying for his complete being had begun the instant he fell. All humans have this life force within us, as our father Adam did after the fall. We are born in his fallen image and are spiritually dead in the sense that we are also separated from God, even as he was; and we too are destined to die literally and physically like he did. Howbeit, we still retain that ember of life, and have some limited power over our natural life, even as Jesus did in the absolute sense. The Scriptures record many instances where some men, by their own volition, “gave up the ghost.”

Gen 1:29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.

Gen 2:9 And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

Gen 2:17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Gen 25:8 Then Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a good old age, an old man, and full of years; and was gathered to his people.

Gen 49:33 And when Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the ghost, and was gathered unto his people.

We might also say at this point, that young people need to be careful of the seeds they sow in their youth. Sinful lifestyles rob us of our strength to live. Those who live a clean life have more zeal to fight on, to struggle, than those who sow their wild oats when young. Sin saps our energy for life and causes us to yield to the forces that would destroy us. It causes us to have a defeatist attitude whereby we think that it doesn’t matter what we do, we are going to die anyway. Nature teaches us many lessons—the wild oats that we sow will spring up in our lives and choke out the good seed. It is the principle of sowing that—we always reap later than when we sow, we always reap the same thing that we sow, and we always reap much more than we sow.

Ecc 12:1 Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them;

Ecc 11:9 Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment.
10 Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh: for childhood and youth are vanity.

Deut 5:16 Honour thy father and thy mother, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.

Mark 4:7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit.

Gal 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

Hos 8:7 For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind: it hath no stalk: the bud shall yield no meal: if so be it yield, the strangers shall swallow it up.

Though all of us know, to some degree, that death is inevitable, most people do not face its reality with any serious forethought. Many there are which merely succumb to the forces that are at work to destroy them. They give no effort or struggle to go on living, nor do they prepare for what may be ahead. They have accepted the lies that have been passed down to them from generation to generation; which lies have emanated from the father of lies, even Satan. Most people are too caught up with the struggles of day to day living to think beyond this earthly existence. They are like those that merely drift along on the river of life, unaware that up ahead they will be swept over a great waterfall to their death. In our youth we live as though death has no claims upon us; and it is only as we grow older and the signs of decay begin to set in, that we begin to give it any serious consideration. Even then, most people live in denial of that horrific event.

Matt 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

John 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

Luke 21:34 And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.

We are not suggesting however, that the specter of death has no influence even upon those who live the most irresponsible and carefree lives. Indeed, whether we think about it or not, it is the greatest cause, psychologically, for all that we do. It may be a repressed fear or a subconscious fear, but its influence is inescapable. The Bible declares that “through fear of death” we are all our lifetime keep in bondage. Satan uses the fear of death to control his subjects, and to cause them to practice all manner of unscriptural and ungodly means to avoid it and the consequences that might come after it. We do not see where the Devil was ever given the control over death, but he certainly has learned to use it to promote his kingdom of fear over men; and he has made it work for his advantage in order to reign over men. We all fear to die, and that fear drives us to struggle against it in ways that are laborious, unscriptural, and unfruitful. What must happen to all of us is—that we must come to understand the network of lies upon which we have built our existence; and we must be turned to the truth that will set us free from the fear of death. These inordinate struggles therefore, are the target of God’s message to Job; and it is these struggles that Job must “die” to—if Job is ever going to find peace with God and rest from his spiritual bondage.

Heb 2:14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;
15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

Deut 32:17 They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; to gods whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared not.

1 Kings 18:25 And Elijah said unto the prophets of Baal, Choose you one bullock for yourselves, and dress it first; for ye are many; and call on the name of your gods, but put no fire under.
26 And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped upon the altar which was made.
27 And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud: for he is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, or he is in a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked.
28 And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon them.
29 And it came to pass, when midday was past, and they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that there was neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded.

John 8:31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
33 They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?
34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.
35 And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.
36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.