A Man of sorrows ...

He came to His own - 
Their Hope and Messiah 
- And "his own received him not";

He came to a world
Where He, the sinless One,
Was besieged by sin;

He found God's rights
Had been usurped
By the prince of darkness;

He bore the diseases,
The bereavements, the suppressions,
Of His people;

He faced the death
Of the cross; man's rejection
And God's forsaking:

"A man of sorrows
And acquainted with grief".

15/05/20

And left alone of men

Among disciples
Apprenticing fishers of men;

Among disciples
Teaching the way of God's will;

Among disciples
Serving in bondman service;

Among disciples
Looking for comforters,
Looking for watchers,
Looking for prayers.

Without disciples,
"Left alone of men",
"And all left him and fled".

Despised

Among Pharisees,
Upholders of ancient tradition,
Despised.

Among Sadducees,
Dependers on the rational mind,
Despised.

Among Nazarens
Merely "the carpenter", their villager,
Despised.

Among Herodians,
Pomp and state of courtiers,
Despised.

Among Romans,
Sword and cross of state,
Despised.

Amongst us, you and me,
Apart from the divine breath,
Despised.

He hath no form nor lordliness ...

'A seeming Trades-mans sonne of none attended
Save of a few in poverty and need',
"He hath no form nor lordliness",
No designation like 'the Great' or
'The Conqueror'; and when we see Him,
Purblind as Pharisees, Sadducees,
Or publicans, "there is no beauty
That we should desire him". O light
Enlighten; open our vision
To see what God sees in Him!

12/05/2020

The first two lines are a quotation from the poem of Aemilia Lanyer:
Salve Deus
Rex Judaeorum

He shall grow up before Him ...

The Father had not before

Seen a holy Babe, a holy Child

Or a holy Youth, at each stage displaying

Wisdom perfect to His growth.

"He shall grow up before him ..."

In goodness that was perfect, perfection

That was divine.  Straight to the light

The sapling grows; straight too

To its source of moisture, for He

Was "as a root out of dry ground".

Not straight saplings but parts of His creation still! 

11/05/20

And to whom hath the arm of Jehovah been revealed?

Swan on Straiton Pond

And to whom hath the arm of Jehovah 
Been revealed?

To those whom He has redeemed
With a stretched-out arm.

Whose pursuers, by the greatness of His arm,
Are still as stone.

Who have learned that underneath are
The eternal arms.

Who His arm is not shortened
That it cannot save.

10/05/2020

Who hath believed our report?

Blackbird Fledgling in our Garden

Prophets had delivered
Their report: telling of God's
Power and love, His Servant,
His coming, suffering and triumph:
A drum roll.  But had to ask:
Who hath believed our report?

Apostles have spoken: trumpets
With more certain sound, for they
Report what they have seen: a Man
Triumphant over sin and death
Sits glorified.  Still they must ask:
Who hath believed our report?

And feeble saints have whispered,
Or roared the report:
Written it on parchment or
Paper; printed it, broadcast it,
Posted it; yet still must ask:
Who hath believed our report?

The Lord Himself testified it;
The Father endorsed it, and Him;
The Holy Spirit joined His help
To men preaching in weakness.
Still They must send the challenge:
Who hath believed our report?

Kingdom Poets (a blog by D.S. Martin): Richard Baxter

Kingdom Poets (a blog by D.S. Martin): Richard Baxter: Richard Baxter (1615―1691) is an English poet, theologian and Puritan church leader. His ministry in the English town of Kidderminster, wher...

What is the path for us to go?

Path near Fala, Midlothian

I have been given a loan of the notebook of an old saint, now with Christ.  Among his notes is:

Thy Paths

O Lord, teach me thy paths:       Psalm 25: 4

Thy paths drop fatness:              Psalm 65: 11

Hold up my goings in thy paths: Psalm 17: 5

To this I have responded by some simple verse:

THY PATHS

Make me to know Thy ways,
O Lord; teach me Thy paths;
For if I roam from Thee my days
Will be sad aftermaths.

Thy goodness crowns the year:
Thy paths drop fatness, Lord;
And walking with Thee, in Thy fear,
i strike a happy chord.

From paths of evil men
- Because I hear Thy lips –
I keep, and Thou dost hold, and then
My footstep never slips.

What helps for past, present and future?

MERCY

Mercy in the past;

Mercy till I am with Christ;

Mercy for today.

The photo is a view on a lockdown walk 

AWAKE

Awake, World, where things seem to fall apart
For God has shown the limits of your art,
Since for too many years you have ignored
The way by which He shared His loving heart.

Awake, poor Christians, for "How can you sleep?"
While your frail ship tosses upon this deep,
But now, "Arise, and call upon Thy God",
And grasp the word He gave to you to keep.

Awake, my soul, arising from the dead
And Christ will shine on you, as He has said,
So that you gain the blessings He would give
To those who go where He Himself has led.

2 May 2020