When I was in high school, the great rock biography "No One Here Gets Out Alive" was published and I read it as soon as it was released. The book examined the life and death of Jim Morrison, lead singer for the legendary rock band The Doors, and it was divided into three sections -- "The Bow Is Drawn" (Morrison's early years), "The Arrow Flies" (his success and stardom as frontman for The Doors) and "The Arrow Falls" (his descent into drug and alcohol abuse, and his death at age 29).

The title of the book was taken from a Doors song, "Five to One," and became associated with its most infamous performance during a 1969 concert in which a drunken Morrison lambasted the audience as "idiots" and "slaves" then ended with him being accused of "attempting to incite a riot." Morrison was arrested and ultimately convicted for indecent exposure.

Perhaps some concertgoers wondered if they would make it out of there alive that night! Yet the line also applies to life itself, since truly no one does get out alive. As it has often been noted, the statistics on death are very impressive -- one out of every one persons die. And we can't take anything with us from this world, which is why you'll never see a U-Haul following a hearse. With that in mind, here are a few things that God's Word tells us about death:

*Death has a common cause. Scripture states that "the wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23). Whereas human beings lose their lives to everything from heart disease to cancer and other diseases to accidents and homicides and so much more, there is only one ultimate cause of all death -- sin. Death originated in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve sinned (the Fall of Man), and that original sin has been passed down to all of their descendants (all mankind) through the seed of Adam, bringing with it evil, suffering and death. First Corinthians 15:21-22 declares: "For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive." No, it was not God who brought evil, suffering and death into the world, that was entirely man's doing as a result of our rebellion against God (James 1:13-15).

*Death is not the end. No, it's not, the Bible reveals that we must all stand before Christ and be judged by Him after this world ends -- "And it is appointed for men [all mankind] once to die, but after this the judgment" (Hebrews 9:27).

*Christ has defeated death. Because of Christ's triumphant victory over death at the cross, the One who faced death squarely, conquered it for us and rose bodily from the grave now offers to give us that same victory and to raise us up to eternal life: "The thief [satan] does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly" (John 10:10). So those of us who are believers in and followers of Christ can rejoice by saying: "O Death, where is your sting? O Grave, where is your victory" (1 Corinthians 15:55).

*There is a second death. First is physical death, but for those who haven't surrendered to Christ as Lord and received Him as their personal Savior, the Bible teaches that there is a second death, which is defined as eternal separation from God in a place of torment called the lake of fire, or hell. Revelation 20:14-15 describes the scene: "Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire."

*Only Jesus can free us from the fear of death. This was one of the reasons Christ came into the world in His incarnation, as we read in Hebrews 2:14-15: "Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage."

*Only Jesus can save us from the second death. Apart from Christ, none of us can stand at the judgment, so apart from Him we have no escape from death and therefore no hope whatsoever. This is the message of all of Scripture, from the Old Testament: "Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way, when His wrath is kindled just a little. Blessed are all those who put their faith in Him (Psalm 2:12). And this companion verse to Psalm 2:12 from the New Testament, "he who believes in the Son has everlasting life; but he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him" (John 3:36).

There is an escape door from death and into heaven, but it is only found in Christ alone! As Jesus declared: "I AM the Door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture" (John 10:9).