By Cindy Koch –

Some of us are expecting the outbreak to begin any day now. A virus infecting the whole world, killing the inner mind and heart, leaving only a shell of the undead body to roam the earth. Passed from ravenous creature to creature, soon we will be constantly reminded of death and destruction in the lifeless eyes of others. Hiding, running, screaming in terror to escape the jaws of hungry zombies, we will fight to survive with those who are left alive. It is only a matter of time until every single person is captured by this horrifying outcome.

But I’ll tell you, my friends, this is not just a fictional story of the future for the science fiction enthusiast. The zombie apocalypse has already begun. It is no wonder that shows like “The Walking Dead” were popular because we recognized something all too familiar in the zombie reality portrayed there. But the horror stories in our popular entertainment get the story a little mixed up. Even though the zombie storyline is falling out of popularity as of late, our real-life version we live with should still give you chills.

I see the zombies every once in awhile, but they are disguised so maliciously in our everyday life. Instead of dried blood dripping from fatal wounds, these zombies have their hair and nails done up just right. Instead of limping aimlessly and stiffly through the fields, these zombies walk tall with purpose, power, and focus while thirsting for their next victim. Instead of infection from another zombie’s poisonous bite, these zombies have been infected from birth, cursed to crave the flesh of another, doomed to destroy every good thing that remains on the earth.

Yes, the zombie apocalypse is now. It began with the deadly bite of a forbidden fruit, and the virus has been passed to every offspring from the first living-dead man and woman. The brilliant deception of the fallen race of zombies is that they are not dead. They have fooled themselves to believe that their death-craving existence is life. They have taught their disease infested children that there is nothing more than feeding, sucking the marrow, following the scent of blood, to satisfy their eternally unsatiated hunger. The zombies walk around dead and thirsty, right now.

But just yesterday, on the observance of All Saints Day, we all sang together about the reverse zombie apocalypse.

Thou wast their rock, their fortress and their might; Thou, distant Lord their captain in the well-fought fight; Thou, in the darkness drear, their one true light. Alleluia! Alleluia!

And when the fight is fierce, the warfare long, Steals on the earth the triumph song, And hearts are brave again, and arms are strong. Alleluia! Alleluia!

But, lo, there breaks a yet more glorious day; The saints triumphant rise in bright array; The King of Glory passes on His way. Alleluia! Alleluia!”

From the very beginning, where death consumed all of God’s beautiful creatures, He gave a gift of reverse, of restoration. The zombies that have roamed the earth, hidden and dead, are slaughtered with a word of light. A captain broke into our un-dead darkness and breathed new life. But the apocalypse is a violent battle against the death that never should have been. The apocalypse is a gift of comfort for those who are bathed in His word of promise. The reverse zombie apocalypse is your reality right now.

Apocalypse is a transliteration of the Greek word (Αποκάλυψις) for “revelation”. The last book in the Bible is appropriately named “Revelation”, a vision from God himself about our unseen reality.

“The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. (Rev 1:1-2)

The incredible hope of the Christian faith is the reverse zombie apocalypse. Life instead of death. Breath instead of dust. All because of a great and mighty Savior who took away the sin of the world. When Jesus died on the cross, we saw just a glimpse of God’s revelation, His restoration, His reverse of the sin and death epidemic we have been plagued with. 

And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many. (Mat 27:50-53)

And so, in the Revelation of St. John we hear about the end of the zombie apocalypse. The dead are raised to eternal life. Not to violently eat flesh and walk aimlessly around the earth. Not to be ravenous and evil as our popular movies depict. No, that is already the shameful reality of all who wander the earth right now. Rather, in Christ the dead are raised to be what God intended. In Christ, the dead are raised to love and worship the One who created them.

After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands.

Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?”

I said to him, “Sir, you know.”

And he said to me, “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore, they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” (Rev 7:9, 13-17)

You are washed in the blood of the Lamb. You are alive, even though the world treats you as if you were dead. You are a saint fighting the seductive call of the zombies. Remember who you really are. Listen to the Word that clothed you in white robes. Hear the voice who breathed new life into your dead ears. You, toady, are a triumphant saint who will be risen from the dust of the ancient zombie apocalypse.