"Now concerning those who have fallen
asleep,we do not want you to ignorant, that you may not grieve as those who have no hope" (1
Thessalonians 4:13).
Recently, one of our dear brothers at Grace
passed into eternity, quietly and peacefully. His passing, though rather
sudden, has reminded me of the fleeting nature of life and the true meaning of
our existence. The apostle Paul had to deal with a myriad of thoughts and ideas
about what death was really all about. "What happens when we die"?
"How will the dead be raised"? "If the Lord comes, what will
happen to those who have already died"?
And on and on it went. As you can imagine, a faith that had been established in
the Gentile world a mere two decades before the writings of the New Testament,
was bound to raise a lot of questions in the minds of the believers.
