Three small words, yet so much meaning. (I know this comes a couple days after Easter, but at this point, you're lucky you're reading anything new on here at all.) As this Easter season has now come and gone, those words mean so much. To any of the crazed WalMart customers, those words mean that the chaos-filled aisles of Easter candy and baskets and whatever else could be marketed as "Easter" are now almost empty and filled with clearance signs. The Easter season is finished. Now, it's time to market for Memorial Day.
However, to Christians, those three words are possibly the most significant words that Christ ever spoke. [I say possibly only because I know that there is some great biblical scholar out there that can point to some other phrase to prove me wrong, but hey, I'm the author of this blog, and I say that they are the most significant.] God's plan of salvation was complete...with one step remaining, His resurrection. In this generation of all-gods-lead-to-heaven and do-what-works-for-you, it's comforting to know that it's not up to me to figure out which path I should take to heaven. There is no option. There is but one way, the straight and narrow. What overwhelming peace. What peace to know that while other religions have a shrine or mosque established where their god is buried, my God lives. My God is not unaware of the economic or political struggles that I, and my nation and world, face. My God is not buried somewhere, rotting away in a grave while this country and world continues to decay. He lives. In His sovereign grace and foreknowledge, He allows these struggles to occur. I have been particularly finding peace in this while looking on at the world that my children will grow up in. What kinds of government will tell them how to live their lives? What kind of perversity will be bombarding them from every area of life, telling them that gross perversions are commonplace? My God is in control of all of this. I reminded of the imperative nature of conveying this pattern of life as my children grow closer to the "age of accountability" every day. May the Lord save their souls while they are young. May He hold them closely to Himself. Life will not be easy, but the Lord will be a safe refuge in the storm.
Back to my original thought, praise the Lord salvation is complete. Praise Him that death could not hold Him. That man, mighty as he thinks he is, cannot destroy Christ. That since Christ has conquered death, absolutely nothing can defeat Him. That I'm not relying on my pitiful "good" works to "buy" my way into heaven. That I don't need to spend a purgatory period trying to make myself better by being punished for the wrongs I have done. I am accepted in Christ just as I am. With Christ as my Savior, the moment I am absent from the body, I will be in Christ's presence. How can I not but rejoice? How does this not make the "momentary" suffering of children constantly crying seem so insignificant in the grand scheme of life? So what if the stock market crashes? So what if gas becomes too expensive to purchase for my car? So what if the economy hits a recession? What's the worst that can happen? We're homeless and living in a box. The box isn't even ours. It's all the Lord's. And if we suffer while being homeless, what's the worst that can happen? We die and then are instantly rejoicing in the presence of the Lord. Life's not that bad. The end result is unending joy. No matter what happens in life, Christ lives for me!
From that thought, I'd like to springboard into another. On Easter Sunday, we sang many of the traditional Easter songs. However, many songs were brought to mind that aren't necessarily classified as "Easter", but they are songs that have meant a lot to me and remind me what a blessing it is to trust in Christ. I've included the lyrics below, as well as why I've been singing them in my head constantly over the past year. The first, I've mentioned in a previous post. It's In Christ Alone. I've decided that I want this song sung at my funeral. Well, if whomever is arranging my funeral doesn't like the song, I at least want the 4th verse sung.
In Christ alone my hope is found
He is my light, my strength, my song
This Cornerstone, this solid ground
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm
What heights of love, what depths of peace
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease
My Comforter, my All in All
Here in the love of Christ I stand
In Christ alone, who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save
'Till on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live
There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave He rose again
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost it's grip on me
For I am His and He is mine
Brought with the precious blood of Christ
No guilt in life, no fear in death
This is the power of Christ in me
From life's first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand
'Till He returns or calls me home
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand
Seriously. Look at that last verse. How can that not be your life's song. Anyway, another one that I've enjoyed having in my head is O Church Arise. We first started singing this at church just before our missions conference, with an emphasis on the second verse. However, once again, it's the 4th verse that encourages me.
O church, arise and put your armor on;
Hear the call of Christ our captain;
For now the weak can say that they are strong
In the strength that God has given.
With shield of faith and belt of truth
We'll stand against the devil's lies;
An army bold whose battle cry is "Love!"
Reaching out to those in darkness.
Our call to war, to love the captive soul,
But to rage against the captor;
And with the sword that makes the wounded whole
We will fight with faith and valor.
When faced with trials on ev'ry side,
We know the outcome is secure,
And Christ will have the prize for which He died—
An inheritance of nations.
Come, see the cross where love and mercy meet,
As the Son of God is stricken;
Then see His foes lie crushed beneath His feet,
For the Conqueror has risen!
And as the stone is rolled away,
And Christ emerges from the grave,
This vict'ry march continues till the day
Ev'ry eye and heart shall see Him.
So Spirit, come, put strength in ev'ry stride,
Give grace for ev'ry hurdle,
That we may run with faith to win the prize
Of a servant good and faithful.
As saints of old still line the way,
Retelling triumphs of His grace,
We hear their calls and hunger for the day
When, with Christ, we stand in glory.
It speaks of the "saints of old" lining the way, encouraging us onward with stories of God's grace. When I think of these words, I think of 2 sets of people. First and foremost, I think of the great apostles of old. What great stories Paul and Peter and other spiritual "giants" have. Yet, these were ordinary men that just trusted in God's grace to see them through. Also, I am reminded of godly family members that have passed on to Heaven. What things they have taught me. There are innumerable lessons to be learned if we'd but look. Not to use a secular example in the midst of spiritual examples, but I kinda picture it like The Amazing Race. Now, my analogy isn't quite doctrinally sound because I know that this isn't how it actually is, but it's the best analogy I can think of. In the final leg of The Amazing Race, as the final 3 teams approach the finish line, all of the previous contestants are there, cheering on their former competitors. The team that finishes in first, is pressing for that finish line for all it's worth. They can practically taste that million-dollar prize. How much greater it is in our Christian life. At our finish line, it's not a mere million dollars that we hunger for, but an eternity praising and worshiping God. As we press on in life, these saints of old, who were not our competitors, but our examples, cheer us on with the lessons they taught us. They wait for us at the finish line, not with a twinge of jealously that they didn't win the million dollars, but with joy as we join them in God's presence.
Well, the hour grows late, and the children will rise soon. There is still more that I'd love to share. However, the part of me that doesn't want to deal with the kids on little sleep, is telling me that I need to get to bed. Thanks for putting up with my ramblings. I hope I didn't bore you too much.
However, to Christians, those three words are possibly the most significant words that Christ ever spoke. [I say possibly only because I know that there is some great biblical scholar out there that can point to some other phrase to prove me wrong, but hey, I'm the author of this blog, and I say that they are the most significant.] God's plan of salvation was complete...with one step remaining, His resurrection. In this generation of all-gods-lead-to-heaven and do-what-works-for-you, it's comforting to know that it's not up to me to figure out which path I should take to heaven. There is no option. There is but one way, the straight and narrow. What overwhelming peace. What peace to know that while other religions have a shrine or mosque established where their god is buried, my God lives. My God is not unaware of the economic or political struggles that I, and my nation and world, face. My God is not buried somewhere, rotting away in a grave while this country and world continues to decay. He lives. In His sovereign grace and foreknowledge, He allows these struggles to occur. I have been particularly finding peace in this while looking on at the world that my children will grow up in. What kinds of government will tell them how to live their lives? What kind of perversity will be bombarding them from every area of life, telling them that gross perversions are commonplace? My God is in control of all of this. I reminded of the imperative nature of conveying this pattern of life as my children grow closer to the "age of accountability" every day. May the Lord save their souls while they are young. May He hold them closely to Himself. Life will not be easy, but the Lord will be a safe refuge in the storm.
Back to my original thought, praise the Lord salvation is complete. Praise Him that death could not hold Him. That man, mighty as he thinks he is, cannot destroy Christ. That since Christ has conquered death, absolutely nothing can defeat Him. That I'm not relying on my pitiful "good" works to "buy" my way into heaven. That I don't need to spend a purgatory period trying to make myself better by being punished for the wrongs I have done. I am accepted in Christ just as I am. With Christ as my Savior, the moment I am absent from the body, I will be in Christ's presence. How can I not but rejoice? How does this not make the "momentary" suffering of children constantly crying seem so insignificant in the grand scheme of life? So what if the stock market crashes? So what if gas becomes too expensive to purchase for my car? So what if the economy hits a recession? What's the worst that can happen? We're homeless and living in a box. The box isn't even ours. It's all the Lord's. And if we suffer while being homeless, what's the worst that can happen? We die and then are instantly rejoicing in the presence of the Lord. Life's not that bad. The end result is unending joy. No matter what happens in life, Christ lives for me!
From that thought, I'd like to springboard into another. On Easter Sunday, we sang many of the traditional Easter songs. However, many songs were brought to mind that aren't necessarily classified as "Easter", but they are songs that have meant a lot to me and remind me what a blessing it is to trust in Christ. I've included the lyrics below, as well as why I've been singing them in my head constantly over the past year. The first, I've mentioned in a previous post. It's In Christ Alone. I've decided that I want this song sung at my funeral. Well, if whomever is arranging my funeral doesn't like the song, I at least want the 4th verse sung.
In Christ alone my hope is found
He is my light, my strength, my song
This Cornerstone, this solid ground
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm
What heights of love, what depths of peace
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease
My Comforter, my All in All
Here in the love of Christ I stand
In Christ alone, who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save
'Till on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live
There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave He rose again
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost it's grip on me
For I am His and He is mine
Brought with the precious blood of Christ
No guilt in life, no fear in death
This is the power of Christ in me
From life's first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand
'Till He returns or calls me home
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand
Seriously. Look at that last verse. How can that not be your life's song. Anyway, another one that I've enjoyed having in my head is O Church Arise. We first started singing this at church just before our missions conference, with an emphasis on the second verse. However, once again, it's the 4th verse that encourages me.
O church, arise and put your armor on;
Hear the call of Christ our captain;
For now the weak can say that they are strong
In the strength that God has given.
With shield of faith and belt of truth
We'll stand against the devil's lies;
An army bold whose battle cry is "Love!"
Reaching out to those in darkness.
Our call to war, to love the captive soul,
But to rage against the captor;
And with the sword that makes the wounded whole
We will fight with faith and valor.
When faced with trials on ev'ry side,
We know the outcome is secure,
And Christ will have the prize for which He died—
An inheritance of nations.
Come, see the cross where love and mercy meet,
As the Son of God is stricken;
Then see His foes lie crushed beneath His feet,
For the Conqueror has risen!
And as the stone is rolled away,
And Christ emerges from the grave,
This vict'ry march continues till the day
Ev'ry eye and heart shall see Him.
So Spirit, come, put strength in ev'ry stride,
Give grace for ev'ry hurdle,
That we may run with faith to win the prize
Of a servant good and faithful.
As saints of old still line the way,
Retelling triumphs of His grace,
We hear their calls and hunger for the day
When, with Christ, we stand in glory.
It speaks of the "saints of old" lining the way, encouraging us onward with stories of God's grace. When I think of these words, I think of 2 sets of people. First and foremost, I think of the great apostles of old. What great stories Paul and Peter and other spiritual "giants" have. Yet, these were ordinary men that just trusted in God's grace to see them through. Also, I am reminded of godly family members that have passed on to Heaven. What things they have taught me. There are innumerable lessons to be learned if we'd but look. Not to use a secular example in the midst of spiritual examples, but I kinda picture it like The Amazing Race. Now, my analogy isn't quite doctrinally sound because I know that this isn't how it actually is, but it's the best analogy I can think of. In the final leg of The Amazing Race, as the final 3 teams approach the finish line, all of the previous contestants are there, cheering on their former competitors. The team that finishes in first, is pressing for that finish line for all it's worth. They can practically taste that million-dollar prize. How much greater it is in our Christian life. At our finish line, it's not a mere million dollars that we hunger for, but an eternity praising and worshiping God. As we press on in life, these saints of old, who were not our competitors, but our examples, cheer us on with the lessons they taught us. They wait for us at the finish line, not with a twinge of jealously that they didn't win the million dollars, but with joy as we join them in God's presence.
Well, the hour grows late, and the children will rise soon. There is still more that I'd love to share. However, the part of me that doesn't want to deal with the kids on little sleep, is telling me that I need to get to bed. Thanks for putting up with my ramblings. I hope I didn't bore you too much.
1 comment:
Thanks for posting this Susan, you put into words what I was feeling that weekend (and should be feeling all the time). Easter was also such an awesome reminder to me of how blessed we are as Christians. How can we not want to share something this amazing with others?!
P.S. I LOVE "In Christ Alone" as well...we also sang that on Easter.
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