January 24, 2021

The Shepherd's Corner

THE SHEPHERD’S CORNER

Yesterday in the wee morning hour our brother Darma moved to his new home in heaven.  Jesus Our Savior came and took him to His eternal and glorious dwelling where there is no more sickness and sorrow.  Darma fought a good fight and he finished well.  Despite his long illness he kept the faith; he never wavered and stayed faithful till the end.  His body may have decayed but not his faith in Jesus; it remained strong and glowing every day from sunrise to sunset. 

Revelation 22:20-21 comprise the last verses of the Bible, “He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon.’  Amen.  Come, Lord Jesus.  The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people.  Amen.”  But, as we can see, these are the beginning, not an ending to a book.  These are not words to conclude a story; these are in fact words to a new story.  Jesus Our Lord promised that He would come again and with His coming, a new story begins in heaven.

We often think of life as a book where our birth marks the first chapter and our death, its last.  But it is not so.  Our death is not to be the last chapter; it is merely another chapter because right after, there is another chapter, and this is to be the best chapter of all.  It is to be the best chapter not because everything and everyone will be different and new.  No, we will meet and be with those we have known; even the new acquaintances will be familiar and dear to us.  Most importantly we will be with Our Heavenly Father Whom we have intimately known; Whom we talk to and share with daily. 

As C. S. Lewis explains, “When we see the face of God, we shall know that we have always known it.   He has been a party to, has made, sustained and moved moment by moment within, all our earthly experiences of innocent love.”  Hallelujah!

Pastor Paul

More Shepherd's Corner Articles

The Shepherd's Corner - January 26, 2025
By the grace of God, the fires are under control.  We don’t know for how long but at least for now, we can take a deep breath.  We, who have lived in this country long enough should by now have known that natural disasters are not an exception to the rule.  They are the norms. ...
Read More
The Shepherd's Corner - December 18, 2016
THE SHEPHERD’S CORNER On Tuesday we cremated Oom Tek Bien and on Friday, we released his ashes to the Pacific Ocean via Long Beach. We will not see him at church—or anywhere on this side of the heavens—because he is already on the other side of the heavens. Based on John 5:24, we can say [&hel...
Read More
The Shepherd's Corner - September 9, 2018
THE SHEPHERD’S CORNER A friend in ministry, who happened to have graduated from the Bible school where I teach, shared with a group of us that he had just visited a former professor....
Read More