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| For all the saints who from their labors rest.
Who Thee by faith before the world confessed,
Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blest,
Alleluia, Alleluia!
Thou wast their rock, their fortress, and their might;
Thou, Lord their captain in the well-fought fight;
Thou, in the darkness drear, their one true light.
Alleluia, Alleluia!
Oh, may Thy soldiers, faithful, true, and bold,
Fight as the saints who nobly fought of old
And win with them the victor's crown of gold!
Alleluia, Alleluia!
Oh, blest communion, fellowship divine!
We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;
Yet all are one in Thee, for all are Thine,
Alleluia, Alleluia!
And when the fight is fierce, the warfare long,
Steals on the ear the distant triumph song,
and hearts are brave again, and arms are strong.
Alleluia, Alleluia!
The golden evening brightens in the west;
Soon, soon to faithful warriors someth rest;
Sweet is the calm of paradise the blest
Alleluia, Alleluia!
But lo, there breaks a yet more glorious day:
The saints triumphant rise in bright array;
The King of Glory passis on His way.
Alleluia, Alleluia!
From earth's wide bounds, from ocean's farthest coast,
Through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,
Singing to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost:
Alleluia Alleluia!
What a great hymn. It talks about what will happen to believers at the end of their life. Alot of people beleive that people go to heaven because they are good people or they did alot of good works in their life. That isn't the case at all. Paul says in his letter to the Romans that you are saved by faith alone. Faith in what? Faith in Jesus Christ as the Risen savior. Becuse of Him we are holy in the sight of God. No amount of our good works could ever do that. And because we are holy and perfect in the sight because of Jesus' death and resurrection. We also will join the countless host in white streaming through the gates of pearl. Into a place where there will be no more tears or pain. No more hunger or death. A place where we will be in the loving embrace of God.
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| Hey, everybody
How is everything. Everything is going pretty good.
Megan and I picked out the ring I will wear for the rest of my life.
That's about it for the wedding plans. Work is going pretty well.
They decided to move me to backup ICC. That means more hours and
hopefully a raise. Other than that nothing else going on.
Congrats to my sister Becca on her confirmation!
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| Anchor Cross
My Father once stood at the foot of the hospital bed of a young man who was being kept alive by a machine. He had been in a car accident and his heart had stopped. Later he was unhooked from the respirator. My Dad and the boy's mother talked for an hour or so, mostly about her son. At one point she pulled out his box, you know the kind every parent has. The box that is filled with every important class project, mementos, hand drawn pictures. It was during this that my father asked himself quietly, "How can she cope and go on with this?" Even now I, myself, ask that question. It's been almost a year and a half after my Father passed away. Sometimes I find it very hard to continue on. But I, like this mother, have help. We have the promises of Jesus Christ to hold on to.
The writer of the book of Hebrews tells us that our hope in Christ, that is the sure and certain hope that fills our lives because of what Christ has done, is "an anchor for the soul." The shape of the anchor cross reminds us that our lives are anchored in Christ. Having been fishing in a boat many times I've had a lot of experience with anchors. An anchor keeps the boat from drifting so that you can fish in one spot. Many of Jesus' early followers were fishermen. They were familiar with anchors. The anchor in their boats saw them through stormy days and kept them from drifting. As long as the anchor held, there was hope.
In a way the cross is an anchor. It keeps us from drifting in sin. All around us sin wages it's war on the world like the forces of a storm rage war on a boat. But the cross keeps us anchored in the promise that the Lord, Jesus Christ, took all of that sin upon himself when he died on the cross, just so we may have eternal life with him in heaven. The cross also keeps us anchored during the hard times in our lives. Whether it is the death of one we love, or some sickness that makes life difficult, or some relationship that adds stress to our lives, the cross is there to hold us to the promise of our Savior. Even during life's greatest storm, death, the cross fills us with hope. Many graves in the early church were marked with anchor crosses. Even in song we wing of the cross at death. "Hold thou thy cross before my closing eyes." But why the cross? Because it shows us that sin is paid for. The sacrifice has been made. The gates of heaven are opened and we are welcomed into the ever-loving embrace of our Lord and friend. The cross anchors us to this wonderful truth. The truth of life everlasting with him. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Now may the peace of God that passes all human understanding anchor your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus until life everlasting.
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| Andrew's Cross
St. Andrew is kind of an enigma. He was one of the first people to follow Jesus. Yet he wasn't really included in the inner circle of disciples: Peter, James, and John. In fact there aren't that many references to Andrew in the Bible. What is recorded, however, reveals Andrew as a humble, unassuming, devoted disciple of Jesus.
But it is more about Andrew's death that we are concerned about today. Andrew, like his master, died on a cross. What happened was that Andrew was in Greece preaching. While he was there the Roman Governor's wife was converted to Christianity. The Governor was angry and ordered that Andrew be put to death. Andrew felt, however, that he was unworthy to die on a cross shaped like his Lord's. As a result, he was crucified on an "X" shaped cross. The Governor was so awed by the crucifixion and the Love of the people around him that he wanted to get Andrew off the cross. But Andrew would not permit it.
Andrew was a humble man who understood the great privilege God had granted in allowing him to know Jesus as Savior. And Andrew's cross reminds us of that. By nature we are not humble people. Have you noticed how difficult it is when others are being praised and commended, to keep from wanting to say what you have done and so drawing attention to yourself? Have you noticed how difficult it is to keep from thinking "Well, when do I get mine? When do I get what I deserve, what is coming to me?" How hard it is to think about others and their needs rather than our own. Or to be concerned about their feelings, rather than our own.
Unlike us the Savior was! The Bible reminds us that Jesus humbled himself, even to the point of dying in the cross for our sins. The one who did no wrong, humbled Himself, thought of our need, and took our sin upon Himself, to suffer and die in our places. Jesus endured the cross for us. In His humility and other-centeredness, He died so that we might be forgiven and glorified through the grace of God. ONLY THROUGH JESUS DO WE HAVE THE PROMISE OF EVERLASTING LIFE. WE CAN DO NOTHING ON OUR OWN. Without Him we have nothing to boast about. So we must be like Andrew and humble ourselves to the Lord, the provider of everything. In Jesus' name. Amen
Now may the peace of God, that passes all human understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus until life everlasting.
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