“This is My Son, My Chosen One; listen to Him!” (Luke 9:35).

Saints want to enter in to Jesus’ thoughts and words because they desire to be His sacred cavalry and holy infantrymen who position the artillery of His word so that all might become mighty in the Scriptures. Nonetheless, they must be careful and aggressively thorough listeners to fulfill their chief end. Ambassadors of Christ draw their doctrine from the most hallowed of fountains filled with the most consecrated of words.

God expects a sanctifying response to Jesus’ teaching, so negligent hearing is a sin. What encumbers or distracts your listening to His wonderful words of life? Fertile imaginations, strange fantasies, voyeurism, dullness and tempting options affect your hearing and afford mal-hearing. You are responsible for not only hearing, but hearing accurately without imposing your philosophy, theology or personal desires into the hearing. Vice occurs when virtue is dishonored.

God commanded Moses to remove his sandals from his feet to emphasize the holiness of the situation he was entering and attune his ears to the personal declarations of the God who is (Ex. 3:5f.). Mary understood that the only way she could effectively listen to the Lord’s word was to be seated at His feet (Lk. 10:39). Busyness, inordinate cares and the movement of others would not distract her.

Your ear is your heart’s ambassador even as your heart is your ear’s ambassador. The Bible is God’s legacy to man – the only creature in all of His creation He afforded the ability to hear and respond eternally to everlasting words. The word appropriately preached and received increases knowledge and diminishes sin. Jesus’ word is as the manna to the Hebrews. You can only get enough of the angel’s food for that day and an accounting will be made to God for the manna gathered and the manna you fail to gather.

Scores of churchmen walk in a land of broken dreams, broken promises and broken vows because their hearts have been broken by a fallen world that consistently disappoints. Nevertheless, the remedy for all this brokenness can be found in the word of Christ. God wants you moving from being a mere spectator in this world to being a full participant in the world to come. How can this come about?

Adam listened to the words of the same God who walked with him in the cool of the garden. Eve listened to the voice of the serpent of old. Adam amended allegiances and listened to the serpent’s disciple. No one was listening to God. You must not listen to worldly voices but to the voice of the One who rebukes the wind, calms the waves and stills the souls of men. The word of God should scare the foolishness out of you so that you can rightly parse the verb of living in a fallen world.

The word of the Son of God birthed His church. God’s word allows you the opportunity to dwell in the heavenlies of God rather than the jaded earthiness of men. At this very moment, Jesus is at the right hand of God interceding for every living saint (Ro. 8:34). That is what Jesus wants you to know when He intercedes to God for you crying out, “Sanctify them in the truth; Thy word is truth” (Jn. 17:17).

In the 19th Century, a naturalist from England came to Charleston to meet with the president of the College of Charleston. It was loud at the site of debarkation with hawkers, cobblestones and horse drawn wagons clacking. The naturalist asked the president if he heard a certain cricket sound. The president thought it impossible with all the noise. Just then the naturalist threw a handful of shillings on the cobblestones and it became deathly quiet as all started looking for the man’s silver. You will hear whatever you listen to hear.

“If any man is willing to do His will, he shall know of the teaching, whether it is of God, or whether I speak from Myself” (Jn. 7:17).

SOLI  DEO  GLORIA!

Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs

• No. 295 Crown Him with Many Crowns (tune: Diademata)
• No. 660 O God Beyond All Praising

Hymn of Commitment

• No. 511 Jesus, and Shall It Ever Be (tune: Brookfield L.M.)

Postlude

• Remember Mercy

VESPER SERVICE

Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs

• No. 271 Sing, Choirs of New Jerusalem
• Remember Mercy

Your mercy flows upon us like a river.

Your mercy stands unshakable and true.

Most holy God, of all good things the Giver,

We turn and lift our fervent prayer to You.

CHORUS: Hear our cry, O Lord,

Be merciful once more;

Let Your love Your anger stem,

Remember mercy, O Lord, again.

Your church once great,

Though standing clothed in sorrow,

Is even still the bride that You adore;

Revive Your church, that we again may honour

Our God and King, our Master and our Lord.

CHORUS

As we have slept, this nation has been taken

By every sin ever known to man;

So at its gates, though burnt by fire and broken,

In Jesus’ name we come to take our stand.

CHORUS

Hymn of Commitment

• No. 508 Jesus, Lover of My Soul

Doxology

Let all the words I speak

And all the thoughts within

Come up before Thy sight

And Thine approval win.

O Thou Jehovah, unto me

My rock and my Redeemer be. Amen.

Postlude

• Stand Up, O God, Be Present Now

How can you experience enduring joy in the midst of trials?  When you are in the thicket of testing, do you really care if your faithfulness produces endurance?  Who is interested in being made perfect and complete as the hounds of hell are assaulting them?

Joy is more of an attitude than an emotion.  Notice that James employs the verb “consider,” rather than the word “feel.”  Consider engages your mind; whereas, feel commissions your emotions.

Joy is a disposition toward life premised upon your total heart, soul and intellectual acknowledgment of the worthiness of the Lamb who was slain.  Your joy in Jesus does not induce you to ignore your trials.  Quite the contrary!  You are joyful because you know you are being made perfect by virtue of your trials.

You appreciate the certainty that “to you it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake” (Phil. 1:29).  Christian joy overcomes despair, despondency and discouragement because of the Christian having the eye of his soul affixed upon the joy set before him.

You have an awareness that the world is lacking.  You know that your trials come from God, the devil, and this fallen world as well as from your own flawed choices (Isa. 45:7).  Regardless of the source, your trials are God-provisioned strengtheners.  He will not allow a test to come your way too colossal or too horrifying for you (I Cor. 10:13).

Every trial is going to test your faith so that you might prove you truly possess the genuine article (Hab. 2:4).  Your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is a revolutionary grace serving as the summit of all graces.  It is the most worked and attacked grace in your Christian armor.  Since only exercised faith can be proven, only proven faith lacks nothing, because without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6).  The world, the flesh and the devil do not want God pleased with you – you do want Him pleased.

You are joyful because you know that tested faith develops perfects and completes the saint.  The larger your trials, the more faithful you persevere, the more perfect and complete you will become. You will lack nothing when you appear before God’s throne.

Perhaps, faithful endurance is the most difficult stride in your sanctificational walk.  You will never allow your faith to founder when tested, will you?

“In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (I Pe. 1:6f.).

GLORIA IN  EXCELSIS  DEO!

Jesus is addressing the cost of discipleship. He wants you to know that this universe will cease, but His word will not. He even says, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away” (Mk. 13:31).

Throughout Scripture, God calls you to discover your strength in His word.  Your feelings will deceive you – His word will not.  Are you depending upon your feelings to save you from loneliness, boredom, physical pain, emotional distress and all the vagaries accompanying living in this world?

For your benefit, God presents many images representing the nature and function of His word:

• Honey for God’s people (Ps. 19:10)
• Gold and silver possess less value (Ps. 119:72)
• Lamp and light to show the way (Prov. 6:23)
• Hammer breaking hardened hearts (Jer. 23:29)
• Sword discerning the heart (Heb. 4:12)
• Fire propelling the Christian to speak (Jer. 20:9)
• Mirror reflecting one’s true condition (Js. 1:23)
• Seed springing up into life (I Pe. 1:23)
• Rain and snow nourishing the seed (Isa. 55:10f.)
• Milk for babes (I Cor. 3:1f.)
• Meat for the mature (Heb. 5:12-14)

God’s word is so precious to Him that He even calls His only begotten Son “the Word” (Jn. 1:1).  Jesus verifies the purpose, effectiveness and duration of Holy Scripture when He declares:

Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not

come to abolish, but to fulfill.  For truly I say to you, until heaven and

earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass away from

the Law, until all is accomplished.  Whoever then annuls one of the

least of these commandments, and so teaches others, shall be called

least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them,

he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven (Mt. 5:17-19).

God’s word is functional and profitable:

• Guiding your feet (Ps. 119:105)
• Alerting you to the movement of the Holy Spirit (II Pe. 1:20f.)
• Cleansing you (Jn. 15:3)
• Protecting you from Satan’s flaming missiles (Eph. 6:12, 17)

You will not stand in eternity unless you stand today with God’s eternal word (Jn. 17:17). Are you in the least way ashamed of Jesus or any word He ever spoke? Remember, “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever” (Isa. 40:8).

SOLI DEO GLORIA!

Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs

• No. 94 How Firm a Foundation
• No. 610 “Take Up Your Cross,” the Savior Said

Hymn of Commitment

• No. 516 Jesus, I Live to Thee (TUNE: Trentham)

Postlude

• Allegro

VESPER SERVICE

Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs

• Psalm 45 (Tune: Diademata)

My heart doth overflow;

A noble theme I sing.

My tongue’s a skillful writer’s pen

To speak about the King.

More fair than sons of men

Thy lips with grace o’erflow,

Because His blessing overmore

Did God on Thee bestow.

Thy sword gird on Thy thigh,

O Thou supreme in might,

And gird Thyself with majesty

And with Thy splendor bright.

To victory ride forth

For meekness, truth, and right;

And may Thy right hand teach to Thee

The deeds of dreadful might.

Thine arrows sharpened are,

Men under Thee to bring,

To pierce the heart of enemies

Who fight against the King.

Thy royal throne, O God,

From everlasting is;

A righteous scepter evermore

Thy kingdom’s scepter is.

Thou righteousness hast loved

And wickedness abhorred;

On Thee, ‘bove all, has God, Thy God,

The oil of gladness poured.

Through every coming age

I’ll make Thy name to live;

The peoples therefore evermore

Their praise to Thee shall give. Amen.

• No. 571 Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus

Hymn of Commitment

• No. 587 Who Is on the Lord’s Side?

Doxology

Grant us thy peace, upon our homeward way;

with thee began, with thee shall end the day;

guard thou the lips from sin, the hearts from shame,

that in this house have called upon thy name. Amen.

Postlude

• My Times Are in Thy Hand

Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs

• No. 92 A Mighty Fortress Is Our God
• No. 271 Sing, Choirs of New Jerusalem

Hymn of Commitment

• No. 411 Shine Thou Upon Us, Lord

Postlude

• La Rejouisance

VESPER SERVICE

Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs

• Psalm 42 (Tune: St. Anne)

As in its thirst a fainting hart
To water brooks doth flee,
So pants my longing soul, O God,
That I may come to Thee.

My soul for God, the living God,
Is thirsting; shall I near
Before the face of God approach
And in His sight appear?

My tears have unto me been food
Both in the night and day,
While unto me continu’lly,
“Where is your God?” they say.

Poured out within me is my soul
When this I think upon:
How often with the eager throng
I rev’rently had gone.

How to the house of God I went
With voice of joy and praise,
Yea, with the multitude that kept
The solemn holy days.

O why, my soul, art thou bowed down?
Why so discouraged be?
Hope now in God!
I’ll praise Him still!
My help, my God is He!

• No. 150 The Law of God Is Good and Wise

Hymn of Commitment

• No. 71 Stand Up, O God, Be Present Now

Doxology

Jehovah’s perfect law
restores the soul again;
His testimony sure
Gives wisdom unto men;
The precepts of the LORD are right,
And fill the heart with great delight. Amen.

Postlude

• Sing, Choirs of New Jerusalem

Morning Worship

Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs

• No. 457 Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing
• No. 660 O God beyond All Praising

Hymn of Commitment

• In Christ Alone

Doxology

Praise God from whom all blessing flow; praise Him, all creatures here below;

praise Him above, ye heav’nly host: praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.

Postlude

Allegro Maestoso

Vesper Service

Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs

• Psalm 103 (Tune: Austrian Hymn)
  

Bless the LORD, my soul; My whole heart ever bless His holy name.

Bless the LORD, my soul; forget not all His mercies to proclaim.

Who forgives all thy transgressions, Thy diseases all Who heals;

Who redeems thee from destruction, who with thee so kindly deals.

Who with love and mercy crowns thee, satisfies they mouth with good,

So that even like the eagle Thou art blessed with youth renewed.

In His righteousness Jehovah will deliver those distressed;

He will execute just judgment in the cause of all oppressed.

In the heavens has Jehovah founded His eternal throne;

Over all is His dominion; He is king and He alone.

Bless the LORD, all you His angels, You on whom He strength conferred,

Who His orders are performing, who obey His every word.

Bless the LORD, all you His servants, hosts that know and do His will,

Who forever wait upon Him, all His pleasure to fulfill.

Bless the LORD, all you His creatures, all His works with one accord

In all parts of His dominion. O my soul, bless thou the LORD. Amen.

• No. 32 Great is Thy Faithfulness

Hymn of Commitment

• No. 2 O Worship the King

Doxology

May the grace of Christ our Savior and the Father’s boundless love, with the Holy Spirit’s favor, rest upon us from above.

Thus may we abide in union with each other and the Lord, and possess, in sweet communion, joys which earth cannot afford. Amen. (Tune: Hyfrydol)

Postlude

The Lord’s My Shepherd, I’ll Not Want

The Greek word (pistis) translated faith, believer and trust is deployed by God through Paul to the churches in the region of Galatia five times in verses 6-9. The religion of God is about your pistis. What keeps you from exercising faith, being known as a believer and trusting God in all matters, grand and small?

Beloved, Christianity is:

• Historical – Based on facts (Isa. 9:6f.; Jn. 20:30f.; 21:24f.)
• Revealed – God-made, not man-made (Dt. 29:29; Jn. 1:1f., 14, 18)
• Redemptive – The central theme of all Scripture from Genesis 3 forward (Mk. 10:45; I Cor. 15:3f.)

God gives you no reasonable reason to doubt Him, His goodness, His provisions or His power.  In what regard are you failing to trust Christ?  What are you withholding from the safety of Christ’s omnipotent eternal hand?

Paul entrusted the Lord Jesus with his ambitions, body, cares, character, conflicts, dangers, doubts, death, fears, hopes, intellect, joys, life, reputation, sins, thoughts, works, salvation and eternal well-being. Paul could have been a high Pharisee, but he counted “all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:8).  Paul could have been a rabbi, but he suffered the loss of all things and chose rather to take up company with a culturally despised group of unlettered men who would be accused of turning their world upside down (Acts 17:6).

Paul believed that his eternal life was of more value than this present life – his lifestyle and the constancy of his conflicts authenticated his belief.  Paul believed that Christ Himself would present him before the throne of holy glory “having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing… holy and blameless” (Eph. 5:27). Paul knew that even if he was chained, Jesus was not – he would die, but Jesus could not because all authority had been given to Christ in heaven and on earth (Mt. 28:18)

Scores of Christians appear willing to contradict their Christianity if that is what they perceive is required in order for them to reach their life goals or otherwise insulate themselves or their families from possible undesirable circumstances.  Would you rather be a Christian or President, a Christian or command an army, a Christian or a sports hero, a Christian or an entertainment icon, a Christian or wealthy and powerful, a Christian or approved by the world? You can be both, but what choice would you make if you had to choose

The second person of the Trinity is without beginning and without end.  The One from eternity past through the eternity that shall know no end is the everlasting Fiduciary taking upon Himself the sacred responsibility of accepting the entrustment of those believing that He is the exclusive guardian of all they hold dear.  He speaks and it is done – He commands and it stands fast.  In Christ, all of life’s impossibilities become possible because He works all matters after the counsel of His own immutable will to His own glory (Eph. 1:11f.).

God’s martyrs are commanded to “entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right” (I Pe. 4:19).  Are you living such an eternal entrustment?  Have you entrusted your silver and gold, health and prosperity, saved and unsaved family members to Christ?  Will you die in the triumph of entrustment?

GLORIA IN  EXCELSIS  DEO!

Jesus was not sent nor did He send out others to establish hospitals, form orphanages, labor in soup kitchens, raise funds for recreational facilities or build homes for the poor (Not that any of these activities are inappropriate!). Jesus was sent and Jesus sent the twelve to proclaim the kingdom of God. What is the kingdom of God, where is the kingdom of God and why is it so essential for God to send His only begotten Son and for His only begotten Son to send His disciples into the world for its proclamation?

Everyone is a resident of the kingdom of God or the kingdom of darkness (Jn. 8:44). The kingdom of God is God’s kingdom, not man’s. It is a commonwealth of grace wherein righteousness dwells, purity is pursued and Jesus is more loved than all others, God is adored and the Holy Spirit is obeyed. God populates His kingdom with those created for His honor, living in constant praise of His presence and doing all to His glory (Isa. 43:7, 21; I Cor. 10:31).

God lends some definition to His kingdom by declaring what it is not. Jesus says, “My kingdom is not of this world” (Jn. 18:36). God says, “The kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Ro. 14:17). God invades this land with Himself so that in Christ, He is with you establishing His kingdom likeness (Mt. 1:23).

God’s kingdom of grace is habituated by a redeemed people who in this life pray and live every day “Thy kingdom come” (Mt. 6:10). It is supernatural in origin, character and purpose. Jesus says, “The kingdom of God is in your midst” (Lk. 17:21). Yet, God’s kingdom is presently hidden from the eyes of the unbelieving (II Cor. 4:4).

Some would protest that the kingdom of God has not been established, but Jesus says, “If I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Mt. 12:28). Moreover, you certainly know from the Bible that Jesus has cast out demons (Lk. 4:33-36; 8:27-33; 9:37-42; 11:14). God’s kingdom is a kingdom in this world that is being built, formed and revealed. It is God’s reigning sovereignty in the hearts of those He loves and it is marked by lives residing in harmony with God in Christ wherein competing sovereignties are mortified.

Kingdom-dwellers know that earthly affairs estrange them from God’s kingdom. They intentionally refuse to mistake earth for heaven by setting their minds on eternal matters (Col. 3:1-4). Graced citizenry are pulsed by sacred energies and holy impulses so that they are letting goods and kindred go, this mortal life.

Are you a dweller of God’s kingdom? How would you know? Jesus says, “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has, and buys that field” (Mt. 13:44). Have you found the treasure of peace in Christ Jesus?

Matthew was in the tax gatherer’s booth when Jesus blessed him with God’s kingdom. Paul was on the way to persecute Christians when Jesus blessed him with God’s kingdom. Both of these men “left everything behind, and rose and began to follow Him” (Lk. 5:28). They determined that “whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ” (Phil. 3:7). They knew that God’s kingdom is built upon the living stones of denying ungodliness and worldly desires and living sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus (Tit. 2:12f.)

Christians guard the commonwealth of grace with a holy jealousy (Nu. 25:11). His joy compels you to abandon all for the loveliest of all kingdoms. What ambitions, activities, associations, dispositions and opinions have you surrendered to the grace of Christ?

SOLI DEO GLORIA!

St. Bartholomew’s Day
August 24th, A. D. 1572

Shortly after 1560, a period of religious wars, which lasted on and off for thirty years set in for France. Into the details of these wars we cannot here enter, but we concentrate attention on the lights and shadows of the period. At the centre of action was Catherine de Medici, and although at the beginning she seemed to wish to maintain a balance of power between Protestant and Catholic forces, it soon became clear that her ultimate aim was to crush the Huguenots.

Craftily she hit upon a plan to gain her object. To cement a treaty between the two parties, she proposed that the Catholic Princess Margaret, the sister of King Charles IX, should be given in marriage to Henry de Bourbon, the new Huguenot King of Navarre. All the notables of the land were invited to Paris where the marriage was to take place. Among them was Admiral Coligny. The Huguenots were not aware of the trap that was being set for them.

Before the festivities which followed the wedding were over, there occurred one of the most hideous crimes recorded in history. The date was St. Bartholomew’s Day, 24 August, 1572. On the evening of that day Catherine went to her son, the king, and told him that the Huguenots had formed a plot to assassinate the royal family and the leaders of the Catholic party, and that, to prevent the utter ruin of their house and cause, it was absolutely necessary to slay all Protestants within the city walls. Catherine had prepared a document to this effect and she presented it to the king for signature in order to make it an official document.
The weak-minded king at first refused to contemplate such a dreadful crime against a section of his subjects, but finally, pressed by his mother, he yielded and exclaimed, ‘I consent, but, then, not one of the Huguenots must remain alive in France to reproach me with the deed; and what you do, do quickly’.

The Paris mob was to be given a free hand; only Henry of Navarre, the bridegroom on the occasion, was to be spared. At midnight, August 24th, the castle bell tolled; this was the signal for the horrible butchery to begin. Coligny was one of the first victims. When the hordes appeared and stormed his house, he realized what was about to happen. ‘Friends’, said he to his companions, ‘Flee and save your lives. I for one am ready to die, and I trust myself to God’s mercy.’ Some of his friends escaped.

Thirsting for blood the crowd faced the calm, signified Admiral, a young man taking the lead. ‘Are you Coligny?’ he asked. ‘I am he’ was the response; ‘young man, reverence my grey hairs’. A stab with a saber was the answer. Mortally wounded, the body was hurled to the pavement in response to the command that came from the courtyard below. While Coligny’s dead body lay there, Henry of Guise stooped down, looked at the Admiral, and said, ‘I recognize him; it is he himself’. Then, kicking the gentle face, he went out, gaily encouraging his followers. ‘Come, soldiers, take courage, we have begun well. Let us go on to find others, for so the king commands’.

The body of the Huguenot leader was treated shamefully. The head was cut off and carried to Catherine and Charles. It was afterwards embalmed and sent to Rome as a present for Pope Gregory XIII. The hands were also cut off and for three days the trunk was dragged about the streets of Paris by a band of brutal youths. For three days and nights the massacre continued within the city. Thousands were put to death. Orders were issued to the cities of France to purge themselves of heretics. In many places this decree was disobeyed, but in others it was carried out, and frightful massacres took place.
S. M. Houghton, Sketches from Church History (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth Trust, 2001), pp. 131-133.

GLORIA IN EXCELSIS DEO!

A crucified person no longer lives. When you become nothing, then God will make of your nothing a new world even as He created the present world from nothing. Are you willing to become nothing so that Christ would be your all in all?

Converted churchmen want Christ to live in them. Their first love is for Him to so live in their flesh that onlookers no longer see them, but Him. Could it be said of you that you are the most thoroughly converted person onlookers ever saw?

Paul died to his confidence in the flesh, his circumcision, his national identity, his tribal identity, his legalism and his Pharisaical commitments (Phil. 3:4f.). His being crucified with Christ resulted in him being comfortable with his singleness in Christ. From Paul’s perspective, he no longer lived.

What is the extent of your surrender to God in Christ Jesus? The crucified can no longer live by faith in themselves because there is no longer a self in whom to trust, so there must be a transference, for man cannot continue to live without trust. Is Jesus not the Lord of heaven and earth who gives life and breath to all so that in Him you live and move and have your being (Acts 17:24-28)? Who is better positioned to receive your absolute surrender than the God who made the world and everything therein?

A crucified man no longer seeks resemblance to his first father and mother. His trust is in the last Adam and his primary motivation is precise resemblance of the One he trusts. He is so moved because he has an acute awareness of Christ’s love for him – a love so expansive that Satan and death must be defeated in order to perfect His sacred love.

Jesus chose to be abandoned by His Father so that you would be adopted into His family. He paid the most heavenly of all costs to secure your relationship. How dear is that relationship to you?

Thus might I hide my blushing face while His dear cross appears;
Dissolve my heart in thankfulness and melt mine eyes in tears.
But drops of grief can ne’er repay the debt of love I owe;
Here, Lord, I give myself away, ’tis all that I can do.
E’er since by faith I saw the stream Your flowing wounds supply;
Redeeming love has been my theme and shall be till I die.
Dear dying Lamb your precious blood shall never lose its pow’r,
Till all the ransomed church of God be saved to sin no more.
(Alas! And Did My Savior Bleed; There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood)

“Our old self was crucified with Him, that our body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin” (Ro. 6:6).

SOLI DEO GLORIA!