Crucifixion to the World by the Cross of Christ
author unknown
When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of Glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss
And pour contempt on all my pride.
Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast
Save in the death of Christ my God;
All the vain things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them to his blood.
See from his head, his hands, his feet,
Sorrow and love flow, mingled down;
Did e're such love and sorrow meet?
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?
His dying crimson like a robe
Spreads o'er his body on the tree,
Then am I dead to all the globe,
And all the globe is dead to me.
Was the whole realm of Nature mine,
That were a present far too small:
Love so amazing, so divine
Demands my soul, my life, and my all.
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The Dream
by Victor Ross
I dreamt the Lord came and stood at my bed;
A crown of thorns surrounded His head.
He said, "Oh my child, I love you so much",
He reached out, and I felt the warmth of His touch.
I said, "Lord tell me how much You love me";
He reached out His hand so the nail prints I'd see.
He said, "Look back in time two thousand years",
To my mind came a vision washed with tears;
I saw Him hang on a cruel Roman tree,
On a hill that was called Mount Calvary.
From His hands and His feet, the blood ran down,
It trickled too, from His thorny crown.
I heard His voice both strong and true,
He said, "This my child, was all for you."
I bowed my head, and felt His pain,
His suffering for my eternal gain.
And when I awoke, at my bed I knelt,
Deeply moved by all I'd felt.
I heard Him say, "As this was for you,
Will you forever to Me be true?"
I must never forget the worth of the Cross,
For each one in danger of eternal loss;
The blood that flowed from His riven side,
That day on Calvary when the Saviour died,
Still cleanses from all sin and shame,
For He in His body took our blame.
As He loved us then, so He loves us now,
Though we cannot grasp just why - or how.
He said, "Greater love hath no man than this",
Could any, such wondrous love dismiss?
We can but take this Christ to our heart,
And determine, never from Him to part.
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Although copyright is retained,
words may be used freely for the glory of God.
The Easter Way
by Pippin Stanley
This is the story of the Easter holiday
At least what is told as the holiday way.
First we go shopping for the prettiest new clothes
Baskets, jelly beans and a chocolate bunny with a bright pink nose
Each year at this time this is what our kids see as the way of the day.
But there is another way that we Christians see,
It's the story of God's son, come to pay a price for me.
God loves us so much that he allowed his son
To suffer the cost of the sins that we'd done.
It's the story of why Jesus died for such as we.
It's time to tell our kids of God's love
Through Jesus, his son, whom he sent a dove.
We must let them know that Jesus is the way
To celebrate this most awesome day.
When he came to earth and left his wondrous mansion above.
He was beaten and tortured and placed on display
All he had loved and come to save... just turned away
The crowds that came to see yelled "Crucify him, crucify him!"
So he carried his cross, and paid the cost that he knew would save them.
He died a horrid death of pain and suffering but it didn't end that day.
Now for the real glory of our celebration
On the third day with guards at their station
The angels came and the guards fell asleep
They rolled the stone back, our savior to seek.
Jesus rose up and out of the tomb
and sits at the right hand of the God of creation.
Now bunnies are funny and cute to boot
And Peter cotton tail, bringing the loot
And all dressed up for the Easter egg hunt
All the kids, all different sizes, even the runt.
But will this bring eternal life? Not for all that loot!!!
Let us celebrate the life that our Savior gave
I mean the eternal life that Jesus brought up from the grave.
This is the story of the holiday cheer
Our lord paid for our sins, so have no fear
Jesus paid the price so our lives we could save.
I hope that this year we will share with the world the
wondrous gift that Jesus has so freely given to all who seek him.
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Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one man than this,
that he lay down his life for his friends.
John 15: 12,13
Eloi, Eloi, Lama Sabachthani
A cry uttered by Jesus Christ while dying on the cross,
preserved in the original Aramaic:
"My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?
by Keith Clayton, Jr. 1968 - 1998
Father,
Now the sun is risen,
I thank Thee for Thy silent strength
Given me in my hour of despair--
When the darkness
Seemed to smother,
And the tears
I selfishly shed
For my own pain
And trivial troubles
Shut out the light,
And I rendered myself
Alone.
Father,
Now Thy Son is risen,
I thank Thee for allowing One
So much greater than I
Thine Only Begotten,
Flesh of Thy flesh,
To complete a task so
Wonderful and
Terrible
By leaving Him
Necessarily
Alone.
Father,
In the garden green of Olivet,
In the still and solitude
The Creator of everything
Offered up all He had,
And submitted Himself
To all the vengeance of Hell;
And in His hour of need,
The Friend of the friendless
Was forsaken,
Forgotten,
For what?
Although the spirit was willing
The flesh indeed was weak;
And they slumbered,
Leaving Him,
The Balm of mortal pain,
To suffer,
Alone.
In the beauty of that desert place,
The Savior of mankind
Faced all the ugliness
His charges could offer:
The pain, the hate,
The sin, the sorrow,
The waste, the wickedness,
The pride, the poverty,
The deceit, the ignorance,
The doubt, the fear,
The betrayal
--And even the
Loneliness--
Alone.
As His immortal, righteous blood
Was spilled, like sweat
From every pore
And fell to the thirsty earth below,
I cannot hide
My honor and my awe
At His great love for me;
Neither can I hide
My shame,
Self-reproach
And regret. For
How many of those precious drops
Am I responsible for?
--As He suffered
The bitter cup,
Alone.
The longest night
the world will ever know,
The solstice of eternity,
Fell on Emmanuel
And by the light of torches
The Light of the world,
The very God of Love,
Was betrayed by a kiss,
Enslaved by strangers,
Rejected by His own,
Denied by those who
Knew Him best,
And led away
In chains
Alone.
How it must have hurt Thee
To witness the sufferings
Of Thy Beloved
Inflicted by Thine other children--
Those whom He had come to save;
To steadfastly persevere,
And answer not a word,
Amidst the jeers
The blows,
The spit
And scorn;
To see His perfect body torn,
His perfect soul rent in anguish,
Staggering and fainting beneath
The evil and imperfection
Of all mortality
Collectively
Alone.
And Thou,
Beyond the grasp of human pain
Did surely mourn at the
Mocking of His misery
By so many witnesses and
Beneficiaries of His
Miracles and ministry--
Those who knew better;
Who unworthily
And ungratefully
Bore Thy birthright;
Those with whom Thou had
Cut they covenant
Now cut the flesh of Thy Son
Deliberately.
And in the crowded mob
He wept
Alone.
Down the winding passages of
The City of Peace,
Stumbled the Prince of Peace.
Plaited thorns adorned His crown;
Stripped of all but His
Mantle of Duty;
How it must have burdened Thee
To see Thine Own,
Who in innocence
Did glorify Thy name,
Bearing a scapegoat's load--
The weight thereof
Not unfamiliar to Thee,
Which could so mercifully have been loosed
By Thy Omnipotence;
Yet in the name of mercy
Didst Thou allow
This charade of justice
To continue.
At a crossroads He was lifted up
Upon the cruel cross.
And in His torment,
When He needed Thee most,
Thou left Him
Unwillingly
Alone.
Father,
In the vastness of Thy creations,
was there any place large enough
To contain the immensity
Of Thy sorrow?
Was there any place small enough
And far enough away
To hide from the pleas and cries
Of Thy suffering Son?
Until the moment He pronounced
"It is finished."
Triumphing, at last
Alone.
In olden times, the Scriptures say
Thou wert a jealous God described;
I think I know now why--
Jealous lest man ever
Slight,
Forget,
Or with anything replace
The memory of the Sacrifice
Made by Thy Son
Alone.
O Father,
I thank Thee
For sacrificing Thy
Fatherhood for Thy
Godhood, by
Giving us Thy Son
To pay the ransom we could not.
And by so doing,
Thy righteous heart was broken also--
For what Father could bear to see
His helpless child suffer
And not rush to his aid?
--Instead, to leave him
Intentionally
Alone.
O Father,
I thank Thee
That through the tears that fell
From His eyes
And from Thine,
That my tears may be dried
And my eyes opened
To the Hope of my Salvation,
And the reassurance of my
Eternal worth
--In spite of myself--
That my meager life
Was worth dying for.
And He died
For me, and
Because of me,
That I might live for Him,
In all my days serving Him
As tool and ambassador
Of the love He had for us;
The love that gave purpose to His life
And life to His purpose.
Father, I acknowledge my
Hungering need
To bear and be borne by the
Unconditional Love of Christ,
Who unselfishly serves all those who but
Come unto Him.
As Counsellor,
Advocate
And Friend;
That neither I,
Nor any of us
Need ever be
Alone.
Father,
Let me let Him in!
Let His Light fill the recesses of my soul,
That darkness and evil
Find no place.
Let me always make room
For Him for Whom the inn was full.
Let your Spirit make me wise enough
To seek the King of Kings
As the Magi did;
And as
Wise men
Still and
Always do.
Let me ever joy
In that same glory
That was witnessed
To lowly shepherds
Long ago.
Praise be
To the Father
And the Son!
The glory be
To Him and Thee
Alone.
Please bless me,
Dear Father,
That I may live my days
In remembrance
Of Him Whose hands
First sculpted me in clay.
Whose hands now rest in Thine;
Those hands
Thou once suffered
To be pierced
For my sake.
Father, wouldst Thou bless me,
That as He bore my burdens,
I may lift all those around me
With whom I share this
Borrowed existence--
For Thy sacrifice,
And His,
Was not for me
Alone.
And in His name may I
Heal the poor in Spirit,
Feed those enhungered
Of body or soul;
Build up where others tear down;
Make Peace
Spread Love;
Share
His
Hope;
That as I represent Him
In my small corner of the world,
No one I meet
Will ever be
In need,
In doubt,
or
Alone.
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Copyright 1998-2000 Connie Clayton
For the author Keith Clayton, Jr.
www.compucast.com/easter.html
Reprinted with permission
Keith's poem has touched those from around the world, and I'm grateful to him
for allowing me to share it with all of you. If you
enjoyed the poem and would like to let his family know,
just email us and we'll forward your note.
Easter Bells
by Jessie Dorothy Tubb
Slow toiled the bells at Eastertide,
When Jesus our Lord was crucified,
A crown of thorns, a heavy cross to bear,
What anguish and pain He suffered there.
Thru' hands and feet, the cruel nails were driven,
Nailed to the cross, His life for us was given,
His deep compassion, as His last breaths he drew -
"Father, forgive them, they know not what they do".
Then all was o'er, His precious body laid,
In rocky tomb, neath cool and quiet shade,
A stone was rolled, to seal His place of rest,
Loved ones with tears of sorrow in their breast.
Sweet chimed the bells, on glorious Easterday!
The tomb was empty where the Saviour lay,
Thus spoke an angel, as Mary stood in dread,
"Lo! He is not here, He is risen as He said!"
And He appeared, they His voice again did hear,
"Behold it is I, be of no doubt or fear",
His hands and feet, the cruel wounds still bore,
"I will be with you now and evermore".
Joyful the bells! That rang at Eastertide,
Our Lord is risen to His Father's side,
Oh may we join Him, in Heav'n above the skies?
"Thou too shall dwell with Me, in Paradise!"
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Copyright 1999-2000 by Jessie Dorothy Tubb
The Foreboding Cross
by Ed Rutherford
It stands there
The symbol of Death
Foreboding, dark, garish and cold
It takes away my breath
Standing over me
In the darkness of the rain
Demanding an answer to its unspoken query
I stand mute warped in my pain
It speaks.. "He died here."
He who loved.. Who loved me
He who called me to life and peace
Who opened my heart that I might see
Cruel Cross you torment me now
My failure, my fear rise up in my heart
Bitter gall fills my insides.. I sob.. I cry..
My voice tears gloom's dark curtain apart
I denied him.. Not once.. Twice..
Three times.. A Galilean.. One of his? No!
You were with Jesus.. Not I.. Someone else
Then the mocking call.. The cock does crow
Oh Lord, Would that I had died..
Upon that cruel and ugly cross
Would that I hung there in stifling pain
Would that I.. Not Him.. Had suffered the loss
Then in the darkness I hear a voice
From the distance or deep inside of me..
His voice.. Soothing, drenched in peace
"In that moment.. I prayed for thee."
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For Love Alone
by Walter Stuck
When You O gentle Lord in utter weariness
the wooden beam upon Your sacred Shoulder held
I stood there with the crowd, and You alone know
if I like others cheered, or in deepest sorrow knelt.
You will not tell me my Sovereign Lord, of Your Pain,
knowing I would be crushed to know,
All I understand for now that Love alone,
infinite, beyond my comprehension decreed it so.
I carved that Cross and all the while You watched me
gentle Lord never ceased holding me in Your arm.
Knowing all too well that I would inflict
unbearable pain, also unspeakable harm.
Could You not burn most gentle Lord, with Love's Divine fire,
imprint the mark of my vicious deeds upon my heart,
always to see or would I O gentle One,
even knowing all what I have done still not perpetually choose
the path that leads to Thee.
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Copyright © 1997-2000 Walter Stuck
Is It Spring Break Yet?
by Monica Therese Hopkins
Where did this Spring Break come from?
Who gave it that name anyway
Who took away the Easter Holiday
Easter is a very special day
How did the courts have the right
To change the name of a sacred day
What do you think, what will be next
What about changing Christmas
To Santa Claus Day
Freedom of religion is a right this is true
But how far will the government go
To mock our Lord who saved me and you
I do not like this not one little bit
My Lord Jesus arose for me on this day
Gave His life to show us His love
Spring Break is not a day to celebrate
And for this I want our Lord to know
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My Easter is Coming
by R. Jaudon Berry
When my heart cries out, "I'm alone!"
On my cross of despair
I look at the cross to my left
And Jesus is there.
Since Friday He has been
Quietly sharing my pain,
And when I listen
I hear Him say,
"Lo, I am with you ... always."
When pain comes again,
And does not go,
It's easier now
Because I know
That my Easter, too
Will one day come ...
And my Saviour and I
Will truly be one.
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Copyright, 1998-2000, R. Jaudon Berry
Prayer To Jesus Christ Crucified
author unknown
My good and dear Jesus,
I kneel before you,
asking most earnestly
to engrave upon my heart
a deep and lively
faith, hope and charity,
with repentance for my sins,
and a firm resolve to make amends.
As I reflect upon
your five wounds,
and dwell upon them with
deep compassion and grief,
I recall, dear Jesus,
the words of the prophet David
spoke long ago concerning yourself;
"They have pierced my hands
and my feet, they have
counted all my bones!"
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Soon to Fly
by Pat Worrell
Left my golden robe behind,
I came to walk with mankind.
Came to show you how to dream,
How to flow in things unseen.
How to listen and how to look,
For your sake I was forsook.
Walked on water, showed you how,
Tell me who is doing it now?
Calmed the storm with my tongue,
Left not one thing undone.
Healed the sick and raised the dead,
Fed thousands with a few loaves of bread.
I cast a legion of demons into swine,
I gave my life for mankind.
I confess for you night and day,
Tell the Father what you say.
It won't be long before you fly
Away with me~ the day is nigh.
Speak out boldly, believe your word,
Preach the gospel 'til all have heard.
Take authority, don't give up,
Time is short, it will soon be up.
The time to act will soon be past,
Night is coming and coming fast.
Calm your heart and listen now
To stirring sound behind heaven's wall!
Angelic army and snow white steeds
Await the harvest of prophetic seeds.
Listen, hear it's almost time
As the throne room fills with song divine.
Be still and know that I Am He,
I'll soon carry you home to Me.
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Pat's work is Copyrighted. You can visit his site: The Disciples Den
Or email him here: disciple@disciplesden.org
The Unique Christ
author unknown
His birth was contrary to the laws of life,
His death was contrary to the laws of death;
He had no cornfields or fisheries,
But He could spread a table for five thousand
And have bread and fish to spare!
He walked on no beautiful carpets or velvet rugs,
But He walked on the waters of the Sea of Galilee
And they supported Him!
When He died, few men mourned,
But a black crepe was hung over the sun!
The men trembled not for their sins,
The earth beneath them
Shook under the load!
All nature honored Him!
Sinners alone rejected Him!
Corruption could not get hold of His body;
The soil that had been reddened with His blood
Could not claim His dust!
Three years He preached His gospel;
He wrote no book,
Built no church-house,
Had no monetary backing;
But after 1900 years,
He is the one Central Character in human history;
The pivot, around which
The events of the ages revolve,
And the only Regenerator of the human race!
Was it merely the Son of Joseph and Mary
Who crossed the world's horizon 1900 years ago?
Was it merely human blood
That was spilled on Calvary's Hill
For the redemption of sinners?
What thinking man
Can keep from exclaiming
My Lord and My God!
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