Showing His Shining

“Make Thy face to shine upon Thy servant; and teach me Thy statutes” (Psalm 119:130).  “As often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's death till He come” (1 Corinthians 11:26).

The face of Jesus Christ our Lord

Is shining now upon His own

Who worship Him in sweet accord

As symbols of His death are shown. 

He calls us now to come and sup

And spreads His gracious table thus:     

We eat the bread and drink the cup

To show the death He died for us. 

We show the shining of His face

As we are gathered to recall

The wonder of amazing grace

That ransomed sinners from the fall.

His statutes thus to us are taught

As we reflect on why Christ died.

We see the price by which we’re bought:

His justice must be satisfied.

We see His judgment on our sin

That thus required such a price!

We see His love poured out to win

Our souls by His great Sacrifice!

O Lord, Your cross is shining still

Upon humanity today

To show the purpose of Your will

To rescue sheep that went astray.

In bread we show Your body broken;

In wine we show Your blood was shed,

Yet as we contemplate each token,

You’ve taught us, Lord, to look ahead. 

For these are tokens of the past

To thus recall Your love so true,

But soon shall come the trumpet blast,

Then we shall ever be with You! 

Until that day of celebration,

O Lord, we pray that You will find

That we have shown Your great salvation

As with Your Gospel we have shined!

Time's Tension

“It is time for Thee, LORD, to work: for they have made void Thy law” (Psalm 119:126).   “Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth… Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks” (Proverbs 27:1,23).  “A wise man's heart discerneth both time and judgment” (Ecclesiastes 8:5).  “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31).

There is a tension in the air

That God would have us each discern: 

As hearts are plunging in despair,

God’s Spirit calls them now to turn. 

The time has surely come today

That diligence should be employed

In working as we watch and pray,

Defending truth that men make void. 

We see the darkness growing great

As falsehood blinds so many eyes,

As lawlessness is fueled by hate,

And fools profess that they are wise.

The time is late as we are urged

To guard the sheep within our folds.

Let our presumption now be purged 

That boasts of what tomorrow holds.

A wise man’s heart discerns the time

And sees God’s judgment drawing near. 

As godlessness unleashes crime,

We need to make the Gospel clear!

So let the dreamer tell his dreams,

That fools alike today applaud,

As we declare that Christ redeems

The souls who yet will turn to God!

There is an ending to the story

Of God’s great purposes for man.

The time is NOW to give Him glory

And to proclaim redemption’s plan.

Lord, thank You for this comprehension

Of truth that You convey by grace.

We’re living in a time of tension

When people need a Hiding Place.

O Lord, this opportunity

Is closing which You now ordain.

As we approach eternity,

Lord, help us make the Gospel plain.

Better than Birth

“Thou art my Hiding Place and my Shield: I hope in thy Word” (Psalm 119:114).  “The curse causeless shall not come” (Proverbs 26:2).  “A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one's birth… Consider the work of God… There is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not” (Ecclesiastes 7:1,13,20).  “For though I preach the Gospel, I have nothing to glory of” (1 Corinthians 9:16).

Consider the work of our God’s saving grace; 

Consider the curse that we thereby avoid! 

The curse shall not come into Christ’s Hiding Place,

Since He bore our sin, and its cause is destroyed! 

The day of our death is far better than birth,

Since that is the day we shall then see our Lord. 

There’s not a just man without sin in the earth;

It’s only by Christ that we have this reward.

The days now are drawing us closer to death,

But death cannot harm those in Christ anymore. 

How sweet is the prospect!  Upon our last breath,

The next air we’ll breathe is upon heaven’s shore!

Now we who are preaching the Gospel admit

There’s nothing within us that we glory of

Apart from our Savior, whose grace makes us fit

To thus be partakers in heaven above. 

We’re clothed in the righteousness of our Lord’s name; 

His name is as ointment poured forth with His favor.

His work on the cross has removed all our shame

And draws out our hearts now to worship our Savior. 

O Lord, we remember the day that we hid 

When we found our Shield and Refuge in You,

Astonished to see on the cross what You did

To take away sin as we never could do! 

Receive now our worship, O Lord, from our hearts,

Though praises in heaven are better declared. 

Until that day comes and our spirit departs,

Lord, help persuade those who are not prepared.

Wandering from the Word

“Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path” (Psalm 119:105).  “Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the desire: this is also vanity and vexation of spirit” (Ecclesiastes 6:9). 

Without the Word of God today,

How dark the path of life would be!

We hopelessly would go astray

And thus be lost eternally.

How woeful is such wandering

That stumbles blindly in the night!

Should not our souls be pondering

The truth God shows us in His light? 

There is no valid explanation

To wander with such vain desire,

For Christ has come with His salvation:

What more could honest faith require?

His promise given is complete

To thus deliver souls from wrath. 

We have His Word to guide our feet,

Which shines as light upon our path. 

Yet people choose to be unwise

And wander far from God instead

Until, in death, they close their eyes

And fix their destiny ahead. 

O Lord, Your Word is light indeed

That lights the path we walk with You. 

How sweet Your voice is as we read

Your counsel that we know is true!

Until we see You face to face,

Lord, help us to persuade the lost

To no more wander from Your grace,

As by Your Word they count the cost.

Honey from Heaven

“Manna… was like wafers made with honey” (Exodus 16:31).  “How sweet are Thy words unto my taste!  Yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!  Through Thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way” (Psalm 119:103,104).  My son, eat thou honey, because it is good; and the honeycomb, which is sweet to thy taste:  so shall the knowledge of wisdom be unto thy soul: when thou hast found it, then there shall be a reward, and thy expectation shall not be cut off” (Proverbs 24:13,14). 

 

How sweet are the words of the Lord to my taste,

Delightful as honey from heaven above,

For thus is the wisdom of God clearly traced

That we may hate falsehood, and truth we may love!

The knowledge of wisdom is sweet to the soul

That tells us of heaven, our wonderful home.

It shows how a sinner is truly made whole

And strengthens our hearts as the pure honeycomb. 

As manna, which tasted like wafers with honey,

We have in this desert God’s sweetest provision,

More precious than anything purchased with money,

Since God’s Word provides for our spirit’s nutrition.

Consider the knowledge of God carefully:

Whenever it’s found there shall be a reward.

How vast are these treasures bestowed that we see

Extended in Christ, our Redeemer and Lord!

We thank You, O Lord, and we greatly rejoice

For honey from heaven in Your Word we find,

As daily therein we are hearing Your voice

To gladden our heart and enlighten our mind.

 

We praise You, O Lord, for this sweet expectation

Of honey from heaven we find in Your truth.

Since we hold the Gospel of so great of salvation,

Now help us reach others and train up our youth.