The End of the Story

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” Psalm 23:6 KJV

“Tell me the old, old story” says the old hymn. Sure, we tell of Gabriel’s visit (Luke 1:26-38), Joseph’s dream (Matthew 1:20-23), the star of the Magi (Matthew 2:1-2), and the miraculous birth in a stable. (Luke 2:6-7)

We tell of a boy who grew in “wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and with man.” (Luke 2:52)

We tell of a man who made the blind see, the lame walk, and the dead rise. (Matthew 11:5)

We tell of that awful night in a garden when Jesus literally shed blood, sweat, and tears as he prayed for the cup to pass from him, but accepted the will of God and the betrayal kiss of a beloved friend. (Mark 14:32-45)

We tell of the sham of a trial, the brutal crucifixion, and the hurried, incomplete burial in a borrowed tomb. (Luke 23)

Then - the best part! - we tell of an enormous stone, another angel’s visit, and an empty burial-bed with linen laid upon it. (Luke 24) Jesus came, lived a perfect life, died for our sins, then conquered sin and death and the grave for the enormity of His love for us.

Hallelujah!

But that’s not the end of the story.

The real end of the story isn’t even found in the gospel accounts. It’s way back there in the Old Testament. In one of the best-known Scripture passages - the twenty-third Psalm. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know you’re saying it in your head already. But stop. Read that last phrase of that last verse:

“...I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.”

That’s the end of the story.