The Lamb is the Lord

"O God the Lord, the Strength of my salvation, Thou hast covered my head in the day of battle" (Psalm 140:7). "These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for He is the Lord of lords; and King of kings" (Revelation 17:14).

The battle arrayed against Jesus the Lamb
Is clearly one-sided; that much is plain!
For the Lamb is the Lord, the Almighty "I Am,"
And all Satan's forces are gathered in vain.

Yes, the Lamb is Lord reigning over all things.
He speaks into being the things that were not.
He's Lord of all lords and the King of all kings,
Giving us victory for battles He's fought.

Marvelous to Me

"Thou hast... laid Thine hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me.... There shall Thy hand lead me, and Thy right hand shall hold me.... I will praise Thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are Thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well" (Psalm 139:5,6,10,14).

How marvelous You are to me,
That You, Lord, lay Your hand
Upon my life to make me free,
And make me understand.

And though some knowledge is too high
For me to comprehend,
Yet I know Whom I trust and why,
To lead me till the end.

No Cause, No Curse

"Then Balak... called Balaam... to curse you. But I would not hearken unto Balaam, therefore he blessed you still: so I delivered you out of his hand" (Joshua 24:9,10). "The curse causeless shall not come" (Proverbs 26:2).

It only takes a moment's pause
To see the evidence
That judgment's curse has ample cause
To bring its consequence.

The curse was ours! We were undone!
We went from bad to worse,
But God sent His beloved Son
To bear away our curse.

Not only is the curse removed,
But by Him we are blessed!
And though by grace we're still reproved,
We need not be distressed.

For God who took our sin away
Is working in us still
To thus conform us everyday
More to His perfect will.

Good Heed to God's Heart

"Take good heed therefore unto yourselves, that ye love the Lord your God" (Joshua 23:11).

My heart and my soul have no greater need,
And no higher longing is measured above
A fuller surrender by taking good heed
To give to my Lord and Savior my love.

Altar of Affirmation

"The altar... shall be a witness between us that the LORD is God" (Joshua 22:34).

The Lord is God forevermore;
We have seen the evidence.
We won't forget and can't ignore
That Jesus Christ is our Defense.

Thus we come in affirmation
To this altar to proclaim:
Christ is Lord of our salvation;
We exalt His holy name!

Surely Short

"Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! For the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time" (Revelation 12:12).

The devil knows his time is short
And therefore has great wrath.
And so he's working to distort
The Gospel and its path.

Let us then who know the Lord
Thus likewise understand
That time is short; we move toward
Emmanuel's bright land.

And shall we not redeem the time
Since time shall be no more
When once we reach our home sublime
On heaven's peaceful shore?

Blessing the Blesser

"Behold, bless ye the Lord, all ye servants of the Lord.... The Lord that made heaven and earth bless thee" (Psalm 134:1,3).

We bless the Lord, proclaiming His worth,
And worship at His throne.
The Lord who made the heaven and earth
Will also bless His own.

We bless Him for the things He's done
Throughout His vast creation!
We bless our Savior, God the Son,
For giving us salvation!

Prospect of Prophecy

"There failed not ought of any good thing which the Lord had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass" (Joshua 21:45).

Nothing God promised has ever yet failed.
All He has said came to pass.
Hold to this prospect till He has prevailed:
For so shall it be at the last.

Way to be Wise

"Man's goings are of the Lord; how can a man then understand his own way?" (Proverbs 20:24).

The goings of man have come from the Lord
How then can man understand his own way?
The answer, of course, is to look now toward
The Maker of man and obey.

It's not by psychology books on your shelf
It's not by your favorite opinion,
It's not the self image you grant to yourself,
But giving to God His dominion.

Run to the Refuge

"The Lord also spake unto Joshua, saying, Speak to the children of Israel, saying, Appoint out for you the cities of refuge, whereof I spake unto you by the hand of Moses" (Joshua 21:1,2). "The name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.... he shall not be visited with evil" (Proverbs 18:10, 19:23).

The cities of refuge that God had appointed
Were beautiful portraits of Jesus our Lord.
We run to the Savior, the Father's Anointed,
To flee from the wrath of His judgment sword!

Ah! Safe now at last in the Refuge of Christ,
Within the strong tower of His righteous name!
His work on the cross has completely sufficed
To rid us of vengeance that judgment could claim!

Forgiveness Factor

"If Thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? But there is forgiveness with Thee.... for with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him is plenteous redemption" (Psalm 130:3,4,7).

Since You must mark iniquities,
Oh Lord, then who can stand?
What hope have we since Your eye sees
The judgment sins demand?

We hear, oh Lord, that You forgive,
Yet there is no exemption:
The soul that sins, it cannot live,
Unless it has redemption.

Hallelujah! Thank You, Lord!
Forgiveness had a price
That only Your grace could afford
Through Your great sacrifice!

Your holiness is satisfied!
Redemption paid in full
Is mine, oh Lord, because You died
To thus forgive my soul!

Cut Cords

"Many a time have they afflicted me from my youth: yet they have not prevailed against me.... The Lord is righteous: He hath cut asunder the cords of the wicked" (Psalm 129:2,4).

The cords of the wicked have never prevailed
To draw me away from my God.
How can it be that they so clearly failed?
Now doesn't that seem a bit odd?

No, not at all, if you know of the grace
That guards us each step of the way.
Yes, everyday there are trials to face,
But this only prompts us to pray.

God is the One who cuts all the cords
That bind us without and within.
The Sword of the Spirit, His Word, thus affords
The freedom that severs our sin.

Chorus of Christ

"And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times tend thousand, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing" (Revelation 5:11,12).

Join the great majestic chorus;
Sing with every tribe and nation
Of the Christ who suffered for us,
Died, and rose for our salvation!

Gather with this joyful throng:
Saints and angels sing their praise
To exalt the Lamb in song
With their single voice they raise!

Vanity vs. Victory

"Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain" (Psalm 127:1).

There is a weary vanity
That builds to no avail:
The Lord builds for eternity;
All else is doomed to fail.

There is a watchman who has kept
His vigilance all night.
But just as well he could have slept
Unless God fights our fight.

Cherished and Chastened

Valentine's Day

"As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent" (Revelation 3:19).

We see God's love in our salvation
So clearly at the cross,
Yet also when His hand will chasten,
To spare our souls from loss.

Be zealous, therefore, hastening
To hear Him and obey
Who cherishes with chastening
To teach us in His way.

Right Rod

"Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me.... For the rod of the wicked shall not rest upon the lot of the righteous; lest the righteous put forth their hands unto iniquity" (Psalm 23:4, 125:4).

What comfort, Lord, to know your rod
Is that which rests on me!
Not the wicked, but my God
Corrects me perfectly!

I thank you, Lord, that You're the One
Who measures my correction,
That I may hear Your words "Well done!"
That grace brings to perfection.

Finding Lost First Love

"If it had not been the Lord who was on our side.... then the waters had overwhelmed us, the stream had gone over our soul" (Psalm 124:2,4). "I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works" (Revelation 2:4,5).

Where is first love found again
Recovered from its loss?
Just think of how it would have been
If Christ refused the cross!

Remember, then, the joy you knew
When Jesus saved your soul.
Let everything you say and do
Be under His control.

Earnest Eyes

"Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress, so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God, until that He have mercy upon us" (Psalm 123:2). "Behold, He cometh with the clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of Him. Even so, Amen." (Revelation 1:7).

My eyes are fixed upon the Lord;
I wait for His command,
Just as a servant looks toward
His master's gestured hand.

Behold, He's coming back again
And every eye shall see
Those hands once pierced by sinful men
Of Him Who died for me.

Until that day I'll fix my eyes
Upon my Lord and Savior,
That I may please Him and be wise
In all of my behavior.

Faithful and Faultless

"Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.... Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen" (Jude 21,24,25).

Our God is able to keep you from falling,
And faultlessly He shall present you above.
In view of this prospect and true to your calling,
Keep yourself faithful each day in His love.

Woeful Ways

"Woe unto them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core" (Jude 11).

Woe unto those whose way is as Cain,
As Balaam, who ran for reward,
And Korah whose lust for power was vain,
Whose ways were condemned by the Lord.

Keep us, Oh Lord, from their foolish ways!
Lead in Your perfect path.
Teach us, Oh Lord, to give You the praise
For saving our souls from Your wrath.

Pride and Preeminence

"Diotrephes, who loveth to have the preeminence among them, receiveth us not" (3 John 9).

Shall we give preeminence
To our own selfish pride?
Purge us, Lord, from arrogance;
Let none of it abide!

Come, Lord, take Your rightful place
Within our hearts today.
Reign in us with truth and grace,
And melt our pride away.

Face to Face

"Having many things to write unto you, I would not write with paper and ink: but I trust to come unto you and speak face to face" (2 John 12).

How many things our God would write
If everything were said,
Yet now we walk within the light
His written Word has shed.

Soon enough (we thrill to think!)
We'll see Him face to face!
Beyond the paper and the ink
He'll manifest His grace!

Singular Savior

"He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life" (1 John 5:12).

There is a singularity
That clarifies our lot:
All who have the Son are free;
All who don't are not.

All who have God's holy Son,
The Savior, Jesus Christ,
Possess salvation that was done
When He was sacrificed.

No works remain, nor valiant strife;
Our Savior paid the cost:
Those who have the Son have life;
Those who don't are lost.

Launched with Love

"Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.... We love Him, because He first loved us" (1 John 4:10,19).

Our world has been invaded
By a love that's not like ours.
God came to earth and traded
His majesty for scars.

He loved us to the very end,
Though we gave Him no good reason.
He came to be the closest Friend
To a world that gave Him treason.

Now praise the Lord for faithful love
Unhindered by our hate,
That launched His mission from above
To save us from our fate!

Grace of the Greater

"They draw nigh that follow after mischief: they are far from Thy law. Thou art near, Oh Lord; and all Thy commandments are truth" (Psalm 119:150,151). "Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is He that is in you, than He that is in the world" (1 John 4:4).

I see the godless drawing near
Whose ways are far from God.
They blaspheme God and do not fear;
They hear the world applaud.

But God is near who dwells within
And greater is His power
Who will deliver us from sin
Each day and every hour.

Seeing Now what's Seemingly Not

"Thy word is very pure: therefore Thy servant loveth it. I am small and despised: yet do not I forget Thy precepts" (Psalm 119:140,141). "Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. And every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself, even as He is pure" (1 John 3:1-3).

Now things are not what they seem;
There's more than we can see.
The truth indeed is like a dream
Of things that could not be.

But God has told us to behold
The things that must seem odd:
And we believe as He has told,
We are the sons of God!

Behold what love has called us His!
With eyes of faith we see:
That we shall see Him as He is.
And we shall like Him be!

Light that Lasts

"The entrance of Thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.... Make Thy face to shine upon Thy servant; and teach me Thy statutes" (Psalm 119:130,135). "The darkness is past, and the true light now shineth.... And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever" (1 John 2:8,17).

Your words enter in, Lord, and give to us light.
How bright is the light of Your face!
The darkness is past that robbed us of sight.
How great is the sight of Your grace.

And now we can see what is passing away,
And also the things that remain.
Those who will hear God's Word and obey,
Forever the Lord will sustain.

Focus of Fellowship

"That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full" (1 John 1:3,4).

Let this be the focus of all that we say
And the purpose in all that we do:
That we may have fellowship with God today,
And that others may share our joy too.