@ALBUM: Worship. @ARTIST: Craig Smith @SONG: Ancient of Days Craig Smith Chosen to serve as the sacrifice lamb The binder of all the earths wounds Called the Deliverer, Chief Cornerstone Slain and then buried, but He rose from the tomb Chorus He is the Ancient of days Giver of freedom with the price that He paid He is the Ancient of days Exposing the enemy's great masquerade Giver of life, His is the Ancient of days Courageous Redeemer, who's life giving blood Is the ransom for wayward man's soul Covenant Messenger, Heir of all things The Shepherd and Guardian, Guardian of souls Chorus Warrior of holiness, Messiah and King Ruler of Israel, Salvation's great Captain Hope for all man One day every tongue will say the Lord is He Chorus "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being by Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overpower it." John 1:1-5 "...conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay upon the earth knowing that you were not ransomed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with the precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ." I Peter 1:17-19 It's an awesome thought to realize that Jesus, the man born of a virgin and laid in a hay stable, created the universe with God the Father. They spoke a word and the stars and planets were flung into existence. They spoke another word and living creatures were formed, and yet another word and man's flesh was formed. They used their very breath and breathed life into the nostrils of this man they had created. They gave this man the ability to decide, a choice to obey his Creator or to disobey Him. He disobeyed. God, the Ancient of Days, loved this man so much, He gave His only Son, His co-creator, to be born in a manger, then be put to death by this man. God's Son, His Lamb, was the ransom for this man.--Bill Stuckey @SONG: Jehovah Craig Smith Psalm 93:1, 90:2, 119:137 We come to Thee, O Lord, and bow Before the King of Israel God of strength and majesty Sacrifices of praise we bring to Thee Chorus Jehovah, Jehovah From age to age He is the same Jehovah, Jehovah Holy and righteous is Thy name We praise Thy name, O Lord, with song Honor and glory to our God belong Lord of splendor we proclaim All heaven and earth do You sustain Chorus Praise the name of Jehovah our Lord! When David wrote the Psalms, he could look across the horizon and see the sunrise. He could marvel at the Lord's creation and sing His praises. I can imagine David lying in the grass looking up at the clouds by day and gazing at the hundreds of stars on a clear night, penning Psalm 147. His psalms span the earth and the seasons describing clouds and rain, snow and frost, lightning and hail. The magnificent creation that surrounds us today. Last summer some friends invited my wife and me to join them in Colorado for a weekend on a beautiful mountain like. As the sun beamed down on us in our fishing boat, we were forced to shed jackets and long-sleeved shirts and enjoy a hot, summer day, while surrounded by breathtaking snow-capped mountains. The glory of God and His divine nature are truly broadcast by His creation! (Romans 1:20) He sustains this same heaven and earth from David's day and before, to our day and beyond. Thousands of years after David with our powerful telescopes, we know much more about our world. We now know the temperature of the sun and its distance from us. We know that our earth rotates around the sun 365 times each year. We also know that if the sun was hotter or colder we couldn't survive. If it was closer or farther away we could not exist. The more knowledge we have, the more reason for us to know our existence is not by chance. Yesterday's television changed our perspective, today it is computers, and tomorrow it may be supercomputers. God has allowed us to develop a very complex world. He has provided us the intelligence and the natural resources. We must not lose our perspective; we are still living in God's creation. And He still loves our praises! We just have more to praise Him for as we discover more what He has given us.--David Stubblefield @SONG: Rest That Remains Words by Charles Wesley/Music by Craig Smith Matthew 11:28-30 Lord I believe in a rest that remains To all Thy people known A rest where pure enjoyment reigns And Thou art loved alone A rest where all our souls desire Is fixed on the things above Where doubt and pain and fear expire Cast out by perfect love Remove this hardness from my heart This unbelief remove To me the rest of faith impart The sabbath of Thy love Safe in the way of life above Death, earth and hell we rise We find when perfected, perfected by love Our long sought paradise Come O my Saviour come away Into my soul descend No longer from Thy creature stay My author and my end Come Father, Son and Holy Ghost And seal we Thine abode Let all that I am in Thee be lost Let all be lost in my God "And by the seventh day, God completed His work which He had done and He rested..." Genesis 2:2 "There remains therefore a Sabbath rest for the people of God. For the one who has entered His rest has himself rested from his works as God did from His." Hebrews 4:9,10 "Come to Me all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28 "Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall through following the same example of disobedience (unbelief)." Hebrews 4:11 God's rest after the creation had nothing to do with tiredness. It had everything to do with completion. God had an eternity of energy and power remaining, but He rested because His creation was complete. Have you ever wondered what God's plan was for the eighth day? It was not much work; the work was complete. God desired to walk and commune with His creation in His completed world that they might continue in His rest together. Man interrupted that rest through disobedience and unbelief. We, in our natural state, have chosen our way rather than God's. We somehow have been deceived to believe that enough award of achievement, enough satisfaction of desire, and enough accumulation of possessions will allow us to reach a point of comfort in relaxation and rest. But, there is always more to accomplish, more to experience, and more to possess. That is why we can find ourselves successful, yet unsatisfied, unfulfilled, and weary. It is then that the Savior gently invites us to come to Him, walk with Him, learn from Him, and share in His rest. To yoke ourselves with Jesus Christ, we must lay down our burdens, surrender our motives, and relinquish our methods. "Not my will, Lord, but Thine!" You must settle that issue deep in your heart; once and for all. Then your rest will begin. It will increase as you walk with Him, learn from Him, and apply your faith. To refuse to settle this is unbelief--the disobedience that rules out rest. To lay aside the self-preferences of pride, lust, and covetousness, and then trust in the promises of God will surely yield rest. God's plan has never changed; He has made provision through His Son for your completion, and with completion there is a rest that remains.--Steve Swift @SONG: Lord of All the Earth Craig Smith Blessed are You, Father, sender of the rains Ruler of the earth and all that it contains Maker of the seasons who's declarations stand The heavens hear Your voice obeying each command Chorus You are the Lord of all the earth The God who reigns on high You are the Lord of all the earth The God we glorify Blessed are You, Jesus, Holy Son of God Captain of salvation, glory of the Lord Everlasting ruler, bread of lasting life Jesus the Redeemer, Holy Prince of Life Chorus Blessed Holy Spirit, breath of Holy God Spirit of Jesus, comforter of God Spirit of wisdom, spirit of might Revealing, understanding of He who sends the light Worship the Lord There are five distinctively divine attributes, which each person of the Godhead possesses. These are eternity, omnipresence, omniscience, omnipotence, and immutability. We worship the triune God, the Creator and Lord of all things. May our prayers be that He keep us truly devoted to pleasing Him. To get our eyes off of what is temporal and of no lasting value, and keep our eyes only on those things of eternal worth.--Craig Smith "For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. Romans 1:20 "The fool hath said in his heart, 'There is no God.'" Psalm 14:1 On a clear night with no city lights, we are able to see maybe 6,000 stars and planets with the naked eye. This is only a small percentage of the 10 billion stars and planets in our galaxy alone. The deepest spot in the ocean is over a mile deeper than the tallest mountain (Mt. Everest) is high. Thirteen thousand, three hundred kinds of fish live in the sea. Scientists have described and named about a million kinds of animals. Of these, more than 800,00 are insects. They discover from 7,000 to 10,0000 new kinds of insects every year. The human heart beats 100,000 times a day and a 70 year old man has pumped 46 million gallons of blood in his lifetime through arteries and vessels that would stretch 60,000 miles. The grayish-pink, jelly like ball in our heads that we call a brain, contains 10 to 100 billion neurons linked together in amazing complexity to smoothly control our five senses. As we look at the world around us, how can we do anything but bow to the Lord of all the earth.--Bill Stuckey @SONG: Pure Heart Craig Smith Matthew 5:8 Over and over I hear it again That the Father desires pure heart Not to seek earthly treasure or the favor of man But to be found with pureness of heart Chorus Pure heart is what the Father desires Holy heart purified by God's holy fire Broken heart, proven to be faithful and true Fashion in me a heart that's thirsting for You Search ever chamber, expose them to me Create motives of honor and simplicity May you find faithfulness, integrity A heart which is worthy for Your eyes to see Chorus My only ambition is to stand before You And find I was pleasing in Your sight And obedient child of God, faithful and true Found with pureness of heart Chorus The pure heart is free of mixed motives. It is one emptied of self, and filled with total devotion to the Lord.--Craig Smith In the natural realm, when we speak of the heart, we are referring to the chief physical organ in the human body. Though failure of other human organs can result in death, no other part plays a more important life sustaining role than that of the heart. This is also true in the spiritual realm. Throughout Biblical history, the heart has represented the man himself. The very center of his every emotion and appetite. It is no wonder then, that the Lord requires we love Him with all our heart. A heart wholly devoted to the Lord is a heart which is pure, it has no admixture. It is not divided, polluted, or contaminated by foreign substances. The Psalmist tells us (Ps 51:16,17) God is not pleased with sacrifices and burnt offerings. In fact, He told the Israelites, the very ones He set up the sacrificial system through, that He no longer took pleasure in their burnt offerings, and that the offerings had even become "worthless." (Is 1:11-13) The problem was not in His system, but was instead in the hearts of His people. He knew their hearts, and their hearts were void of the necessary total devotion and love for Him. They were merely going through a heartless motion of meaningless religious ceremony. The result, "When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide my eyes from you, yes, even though you multiply prayers, I will not listen." (Is 1:15) He then appeals to them to repent of their sins and by doing so, even though their "sins are a scarlet, they will be washed white as snow..." I cannot help but mention the close parallel in Israel's situation then, with the present situation in our western culture today. According to various polling systems, the majority of people living in the United States have a belief in God. However, for a majority, we do not seem to have a great effect on our society. Could it be that a great many of those polled are jus going through "meaningless religious ceremony"? We would all do well to compare our present relationships with Christ with the early churches relationships to Christ. Once again, what pleases the Father is the whole heart devoted to Him. The acceptable sacrifices to the Lord are no longer "burnt offerings" but instead "...a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart..." The word "broken" in these passages refers to a crushing into the form of powder. If you were to take a small stone and toss it into a swift stream of water, the stone would resist the flow and quickly sink to the bottom. However, you could recover the same small stone, pound it into a fine powder, and then pour it from your hand into the stream and even though it is the same mineral substance, it no longer resists the stream's flow, but instead floats wherever the stream carries it. In many ways we are like the small stone. With selfish, unsubmissive hearts, we resist God's flow or direction and find ourselves sinking. However, if we are wise, we will approach the Lord and ask Him to reveal any and hurtful object in our hearts. Reveal anything that divides us from a right relationship with Him and restore us to the joy of our salvation. May our prayers be that He will crush us into submissive, totally devoted hearts. Suddenly we will realize we are flowing with Him and being totally fulfilled by our relationship with Him, instead of living in the strife of resistance. We will never know total fulfillment, until He has from us a total heart, a whole heart, a pure heart.--Craig Smith @SONG: Refuge Craig Smith Lord, You are my hiding place The strength on which I stand Your truth alone do I embrace Not the wisdom of this land You are the only resting place From the perils of this sphere Prince of Peace, the God of Grace Keep me from the enemy's spear Chorus You are my fortress Haven from the storm Shield me with your faithfulness Refuge of my soul Though I'm in the midst of war The enemy all around If I gaze with the eyes of man It seems I'm losing ground But in the shadow of Your wings A refuge I have found A place where I find strengthening And Your serenity abounds Chorus Concealed within Your shelter In the troubled day In Your secret place You hide me You're my refuge Chorus The very nature of the world in its present condition, causes tribulation (Matt 16:33), but even in the midst of enemy confrontation, attack, and confusion, we are assured the Lord is in control and is our place of refuge. Psalm 91:1,4 "He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. He will cover you with His pinions and under His wings you will seek refuge, His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark."--Craig Smith " Thou art my hiding place; Thou doest preserve me from trouble." Psalm 32:7 "He is a shield to those who walk in integrity, guarding the paths of justice and H preserves the way of His godly ones." Proverbs 2:7,8 "...the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in times of trouble. And the Lord helps them and delivers them; He delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in Him." Psalm 27:39-40 Several years ago, one of the worst tornadoes in our nation's history swept a quarter-mile wide path of destruction, devastation, and death through a town in the Southwest United States. The responses of the people in that sudden onslaught of nature's killing force are interesting to observe. Many were caught completely unaware. Some were warned, but ignored it. Some, seeing the approach of the threatening cloud, panicked and scrambled about unprotected. Many were unprepared, having no knowledge of what to do or where to hide in the midst of catastrophe. But there were others who were prepared, though not knowing the time or place of the storm. They were aware that where they dwelled there was the potential of destructive tornadoes. They did not underestimate the ability of the unleashed power of this world to kill, sweep their possessions away, and destroy everything in its path (John 10:10). These people recognized the threat, obtained knowledge of what to do and where to seek protection, and remained ever alert to respond promptly and with wisdom in the face of danger. One group of people was at a bank when the tornado came on the horizon with radios and sirens sounding the warnings. Choosing not to flee in their automobiles, they entered the bank's vault and stepped out unharmed. The bank building was demolished. Automobiles were overturned. Everything unprotected was crushed, and those without sufficient cover were killed. Now, how should we view the potentiality of catastrophic happenings in this life that we live? Should we not have an expectation that it could happen? Should we not know that the Enemy of Gad, Satan, stalks about seeking to kill us, steal away what God has given us, and destroy our lives? Then we must also know that the Word of God is wisdom and knowledge to those who will hear and receive His preparatory truth. He has given His Holy Spirit to dwell in us to sound the alarm and give us strength. We can know beforehand of dangers and pitfalls. We can know how to respond in the face of threatening situations. We can know what shields us and protects us. And, above all, we can know assuredly that God the Father, Himself, is a stalwart Hiding Place; always close to us; desirous to preserve us; strong enough to save us; and faithful as a Refuge for us. All of this is not to bring us to a tense existence always waiting for the brink of calamity. Rather, the Word of God makes us able to rest in the assurance of the Father's complete provision for us: "...he who listens to Me (Wisdom) shall live securely and be at ease from the dread of evil." (Proverbs 1:33) Will you choose to enter His security and rest? You must walk and live in the reality of your salvation through the blood of Jesus Christ, your spiritual sustenance through the indwelling power of His Spirit, and your ever-present Refuge in the arms of the loving and eternal Father, God. A brief word to those who may have already suffered tragedy and destruction when perhaps you were unknowing and unprepared. This same God who is your Refuge is also a God of healing and restoration. Turn to Him. Confess any sin of ignorance or rebellion to Him. Remove the rubble of previous hurts by forgiving all who were involved (including yourself). Allow God to rebuild your life. Like Paul, "...forgetting what lies behind and reach forward to what lies ahead...press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:13,14) If this is your situation, you may pray this prayer: Heavenly Father, remove the scales from my spiritual eyes that I might see the safety and security of Your Refuge for me. In Jesus' Name, I cast down all fear of the future, and I stand on the promises of Your Word. Holy Spirit, teach me and give me understanding of my inheritance in Christ Jesus. Teach me of my Refuge. I will rest in Your Word. Amen.-- Steve Swift @SONG: Father Me Craig Smith Psalm 68:5 Chorus Father, father me, take my life And father me I am a child without a father's hand to hold To lead and comfort me A helpless offspring without a loving home Outside on my own Come and father me Chorus Let me abide within the shadow Of Your wings Protected by the wisdom of Your love Knowing the assurance a father's love will bring Come and father me Chorus I can't remember when I first realized I had a father. It just seems as if Dad were always there--loving me, having answers to all my questions, protecting me, disciplining me, comforting me when I was hurt. So often, we take for granted the presence of an important "someone" in our lives, not realizing how dependent we are upon that person. The first time I understood the significance of this was when I was about seven years old. My father took my older brother and me to a Cardinal baseball game in St. Louis. After the game, Dad stopped along the street outside the stadium to buy a souvenir for my younger brother who was not with us. Since in my seven-year-old wisdom I thought I know just exactly where we had parked. I did not wait on Dad and my brother, but took off through the crowd for the car. What I did not know was that we had come out another exit on a different side of the stadium and there were parking lots on all four sides of the stadium. When I arrived at the exact spot I remembered the car being parked, it was nowhere to be seen. A chill ran through me--then panic! I ran back to where Dad had stopped--he was gone. For the first time in my life, I was lost. There I was in a big, strange city with thousands of people going in every direction, but I was the loneliest person in the world. I wanted and needed my father. I turned around and headed back to the parking lot again to make sure the car wasn't there, and I came upon a policeman directing traffic. After listening to my problem, he made me stay with him, because he know my father would come back looking for me. Sure enough, in a few minutes my Dad came running toward me, picked me up in his arms, and gave me a big hug. I had been lost--but he found me. Just as my father has been with me since long before my conscious memory, our Heavenly Father has been ever present with us since before the beginning of time. He promises in 2 Corinthians 6:18, "I will be a father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters." He is there when we are lost in the crowd and lonely, ever waiting for us to be still and seek Him. He is there waiting to pick us up in His arms and give us a big hug. He will cover us and give us refuge under His wings (Psalms 91:4), much like a mother hen gathers her little chicks under her wings to protect them from danger. He is there and concerned about even one lost little boy in the crowd, for Jesus taught that the Shepherd will go look for one lost sheep even while the other ninety-nine are safe, and that our "Father is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost." (Matthew 18:12--14) Yes, our Heavenly Father desires for us to come to Him as a little child (Matthew 18:4, Mark 10:15) and allow Him to "father us." What loving, comforting arms He has!-- David Stubblefield @SONG: Sculptor of My Heart Craig Smith Psalm 25:4 Search with holy eyes This vessel in Your hands Sift and purify By the standards You demand Sculptor of my heart Cast and forge my mind With a quest for purity And as the poet weaves his line Compose You melody Chorus Please make of me Your Kingdom's art May You be pleased Sculptor of my heart You have fashioned perfectly Your image in the Son Shape and pattern within me To be the paragon Sculptor of my heart Hew away those places Which cause blemish to the whole As the only skillful Master Engrave Your name upon my soul Chorus You create from a heart of stone A vessel of honor that You call Your own, Your own Chorus The desire of the Father is that we be conformed to the image of His Son. May we have the boldness and wisdom to come before the Lord and prayfully request He mold uss into that which is pleasing and productive to His Kingdom, at whatever the cost to us personally. There are at least two qualities found in a master-craftsman in relation to his work. One is the constant striving for perfection in his art. Patiently exerting all his abilities to create a beautiful, expressive, and seemingly flawless place. Secondly, being able to apply his entire imagination to visualizing the completed art form, even prior to picking up his first sculpting tool. After mentally fixing what the completed form will look like, he then begins to hammer and chisel away those unsightly chunks and pieces which would distort the final image. He will labor diligently until that which was once only a mental image cast upon formless material, has been transformed into a timeless work of art. Through the laborious and skillful process of the artist, material which once had little worth is converted into an object of great value. In similar manner, we come to Christ as objects of little value, and certainly no value when considered in relation to the Kingdom of God. As we are convicted of our sin, ask forgiveness and repent of our sin, He becomes our Saviour and His Lordship then moves into every aspect of our life. As we stand before Him, in His grace, as mere babes in Christ, He not only sees our present immature state, but He also supernaturally sees the finished products. Because of the redemptive work of Jesus Christ, we have moved from a position of worthlessness to God, to a secured position of great potential and eternal value to God. He takes "...from a heart of stone," and through the work of the Holy Spirit makes "a vessel of honor." The gift of salvation is made available to each of us only to the extent that we each are willing to respond in obedience to His invitation. Upon accepting His terms to that free gift, we then become a child of the King. This is the foundation we are established on, and can reason from God's Word, that we should continue to build on. It is the process of tearing down the fleshly man, and building up the spiritual man "...put on the new self (man) who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him." (Col. 3:10) The Lord did not intend for us to remain as "babes," in fact we are instructed to "long for the pure milk of the Word, that by it (we) may grow in respect to salvation." (I Peter 2:2) "...grow (increase) in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." (II Peter 3:18) It should be our desire, goal, and prayer that the Father would remove, hammer and chisel, away any material which does not conform to the image of His Son. He reveals those thing in our live which are unpleasing in His sight, and we respond in obedience so they do not hinder the final result. We submit to Him because He has loved us enough to give us life through His Son. We were created to bring glory to God, to be pleasing in His sight. That is our destiny. We are the clay in the potter's hand. We are material being constructed into living objects which are pleasing and bring satisfaction to the Father. God is not just wise, He is the source of true "Wisdom." As vessels, then, let us not worry but have complete trust in Him and His wisdom that He will chip away only those unnecessary and unsightly pieces. As we are in submission and obedience to Him, the end result will be a living work of art, worthy of the King's chambers.--Craig Smith We Praise Thee, O God, Our Redeemer Craig Smith We praise Thee, O God our Redeemer, Creator In grateful devotion our tribute we bring We lay it before Thee We kneel and adore Thee We bless Thy Holy Name, glad praises we sing @SONG: Glory to the Holy One Craig Smith John 6:68,69 Messiah, the Anointed One Emmanuel, Son of God Ruler of Israel, blessed forever We bring our praise to You Lamb of God, the Righteous One Prince of Life, Hope of Man Glory of the risen Lord, Lion of Judah We bring our praise to You Glory to the Holy One of God Rejoice, rejoice for Christ the King Was laid in the tomb but is risen as King Sing of His glory Sing of His might Jesus is risen and given us light Jesus has given us light Alleluia We are the fruit of Jesus' labor (John 4:34. Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to accomplish His work.") Jesus our Saviour, Son of God, alone is worthy of praise, Jesus, God's only Son, given freely became the substitute for our sin. The Lamb of God, in His sinless sacrifice, became more than Savior. He became our Lord and Master. The Messiah is man's only hope. We are baptized with Him in death, but not eternal death, but death to the power of sin over us (Romans 6:22. But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life.) We also are raised with Him in victory over sin, made possible by His blood. Thus Jesus is worthy of all praise and glory. The Power of resurrection (Philippians 3:10. that I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death), brings us to victory in Jesus. We are overwhelming conquerors in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:37. But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.) We move from darkness and despair with no hope, to the light of His glory in the Father. Through His perfect sacrifice, we are bought with a price (1 Cor. 6:20. For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.) His precious blood atonement. We become His servant. Jesus becomes our King to rule over us in righteousness and love. Our command from the Lord is to walk, by His example, in glory and power and exalt the name of Jesus in all we do. Jesus through His sacrifice and obedience, even unto death, brought glory to God. We through our praise and obedience even unto death bring to Jesus, glory and honor. The Lord tells us in (1 Samuel 15:22. And Samuel said, "Has the Lord as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams.") It is better to obey than sacrifice. We cannot repay Him for the magnitude of His sacrifice; but we exalt our Lord with our submission in obedience to the Holy Spirit. Our command is to walk in Light as given and to seek His truth with an unquenchable fire.--Ron Stumbaugh @SONG: He is Risen Craig Smith Matthew 28:6 Prophets foretold the Messiah would come Born from the womb of a virgin His name Emmanuel, God's chosen one Many blind eyes would receive Him He spoke with authority, He healed the lame And the captive cries out to His name Chorus He is risen Just as He said He is risen He is risen Up from the dead He is risen He taught that the Kingdom of God was at hand And that He and the Father are one Preaching repentance throughout all the land And redemption would be through the Son When the Pharisees, they went into a rage And plotted an end to His days Chorus Beaten and mocked, He would be crucified The sentence of death He carried Thorns on His head and a wound in His side He gave up His breath and was buried He rose from the grave the Son of the Highest The Horn of Salvation is Jesus The one mediator between man & God, Jesus the Lord Chorus He is risen Light of the world He is risen The Commander, Messiah Is risen Son of the Highest He is risen The great, mighty God Lord of all Jesus is God's fulfillment of His promise given in the old testament. That promise was a substitute for the sin of each man, by the shed blood of God's only Son Jesus. Just as the prophet (Isaiah 7:14) foretold. God's chosen One, Immanuel was born of a virgin. Even as a child of twelve He astonished the priest (Luke 2:47) with the authority with which He spoke. His ministry did not actually begin until the age of thirty. But in a span of three years his life changed the world forever. He preformed numerous miracles, healing the lame (John 5:8), the blind (Matthew 20:34) even raising the dead (John 11:43-44). Those trapped by sin, then and now, call on His name to be set free. His teaching was radical. Speaking of such things as the kingdom of heaven is at hand (Matthew 3:2), now is the day of salvation (2 Cor. 6:2), to know Him was to know the Father (John 14:7). The theme of His message focused on our need of repentance, and forgiveness of our sins. He boldly stated He was the only accepted path to forgiveness and fellowship with God. That unless a man repent of his sins and receive Jesus as his Savior, he could not enter heaven (Acts 4:12). For this teaching He enraged the Pharisees, who jealously guarded the religious control of the people. Thus keeping them in bondage to a false legalism. This is what the Bible in Proverbs 14:12 tells us, the ways of man are the ways of death. True to the prophesy of old, He became the Lamb without a spot or blemish, to be sacrificed for our sin. He who had known no sin (2 Cor. 5:21), was beaten, mocked, spit on, and crowned with a crown of thorns. Then in His final act of obedience He suffered the cross. Giving up His last breath He accomplished what none of us ever could. Jesus became the perfect and acceptable substitute for our sin. Thus we now have an avenue to eternal life through Jesus the Messiah. With the resurrection comes the crushing of the head of Satan. Death no longer has to mean separation from God. Now as we turn to the Risen One, the Mediator between man and his Creator, the Horn of Salvation, the Light of the world, the Commander, we share in His victory of all eternity.--Ron Stumbaugh