Once slave to sin, now servant of the Lord,

For as you died with Christ, with Him you rose,

And here eternal life can be explored,

The path to righteousness and where it goes.

The Grace of God sustains you as you move,

One fruit our holy Father loves to give;

So here you are with nothing left to prove,

Just pass the gift along, and so forgive.

Now that the Holy Spirit’s in your soul,

The Savior living in your heart and mind,

It is no longer you who’s in control;

Thank God for this, to be so well defined!

It started when you made a simple choice.

There’s victory in Jesus; now rejoice!

~~~~~~~~~~~

But now being made free from sin,

and become servants to God,

ye have your fruit unto holiness,

and the end everlasting life.

Romans 6:22 KJV

sonnet #340

There comes a day when all the universe

Will rise up with one voice and praise the Lamb,

And everything that is, though so diverse,

Acclaims the worthy One of the I AM.

The Lamb was slain for all the sins of man,

Receiving power as the Lord of Lords,

And riches of the grace that e’er began,

And wisdom far beyond the mind explored,

And strength to conquer evil dark and grim,

And honor equal to our Father God,

And glory of salvation promised Him,

And blessings evermore the heavens laud.

            The Lamb will always sit upon the throne

            Forever and forever, ever known.

            ~~~~~~~~~~~

¹¹ And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;

¹² Saying with a…

If you believe the promises of God,

And of His only Son who spoke for Him,

By Grace will we be saved though we are flawed,

The blood of Christ alone atones the grim.

Then those of us whom Jesus Christ has called

Know well the crown of glory that awaits,

And all the things of earth no more than galled,

We keep our sight on Him and His estate.

Then let us hold the faith and move ahead,

To imitate the Savior’s life and love,

Remembering His blood for us was shed,

And all that we have now comes from above.

Press toward the mark: with Christ eternal life,

And be not so deterred through pain and strife.

~~~~~~~~~~~

¹⁴ I press toward the mark for the prize

of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

¹⁵ Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded:

Have faith when all the roads for you are closed,

When all the avenues you’ve tried have failed.

Your faith in Christ will have new ways exposed,

Will open boulevards where none prevailed.

Have faith when everyone has told you No,

When time and time again you face defeat.

Your faith in Christ will help success to grow,

Will show you how to win when you compete.

Have faith when hope is low and all seems lost,

When others walk away in dark despair.

Your faith in Christ will stand at any cost,

Will give you victory when none would dare.

Have faith when even you begin to doubt;

Your faith in Christ makes mountains move about.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Then Jesus answered and said unto her,

O woman, great is thy faith:

be it unto thee even as thou wilt.

And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.

Matthew 15:28 KJV

Here is, my brother, wisdom bold and true:

That God the Father of us all is light.

There is no darkness in Him, through and through;

He is both true and holy in His might.

The gloom of sin can’t hide from Him at all;

He sees within our hearts, there’s no disguise.

His light is life to all things great and small;

Illuminating both the earth and skies.

God turned the lowly shepherd boy to king;

He walked the earth as Jesus, two as one.

He makes the dead to live and angels sing;

He calls the second coming of His Son.

Our God’s the light of Grace and Mercy, too;

He is the light of love, and He loves you.

~~~~~~~~~~~

This then is the message which we have heard of him,

and declare unto you,

that God is light,

and in him is no darkness at all.

Now, go your way and eat your bread with joy,

And likewise drink your wine with merry heart!

Such words we’d love to hear and thus enjoy

When we approach the gates of Heaven’s start!

Then after such a long and weary life,

To hear that God’s accepted now our works,

No mortal aches and pains, no longer strife,

Eternal rest in Heaven with its perks!

O let me hear those words when I am gone

Away from all these trials and tragedies!

The Savior’s arm around my shoulders drawn

And said with such a love I’m now at ease!

Now, go your way, and eat and drink in bliss,

Well done, my faithful servant, grace is this!

~~~~~~~~~~~

Go thy way,

eat thy bread with joy,

and drink thy wine with a merry heart;

for God now accepteth thy works.

Ecclesiastes 9:7 KJV

I walk up to the casket of a friend

Whose life and loves I barely even knew

And as I view his body at its end

I wonder if he knew the Savior, too.

A stranger came and stood beside me there;

His smile was warm, his eyes were full of light.

He said “Here lies a man that really cared,

Who always strove to treat his neighbor right.

He came across as strict but ever fair.

No, as a man he was not sinless pure,

But he was intimate with God in prayer;

He loved the Savior deeply to be sure.

He has a life eternal with the Lord:

His faith in Christ was where his wealth was stored.”

~~~~~~~~~~~

And this is life eternal,

that they might know Thee the only true God,

and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

John 17:3 KJV

The preacher speaks about the Word of God,

On how the Savior died for all our sin.

I look around the church and see heads nod

And wonder who believes and thus are in.

I feel a gentle stir within me start,

That old familiar nudge the Spirit gives,

And Jesus whispers in my soul and heart,

Then I rejoice again to know He lives!

‘Don’t try to guess who has been saved or not,

For you don’t know who hears Me and believes.

Just spread the gospel – I discern who’s caught.

The Spirit sees what senses can’t perceive.’

It’s not our job to guess who has been saved,

Whose name is in the Book of Life engraved.

~~~~~~~~~~~

He that heareth my word,

and believeth on him that sent me,

hath everlasting life,

and shall not come into condemnation;

but is passed from death unto life.

John 5:24…

What do you own that God has not conferred?

The same is yours to take with you at death.

The wealth you gained, the debt you once incurred

Mean nothing when you’ve drawn your final breath.

For naked did you come; the same to go,

And all you wear between the two is thread.

The only covering that’s worth to show

Came from the Son of God, the blood He shed.

The Lord does give; He also takes away,

But once you are His child it’s understood.

The Earth and all that’s in it will decay,

But your eternal Home is here for good.

Now let us praise the holy name of God,

And all that He has given us be awed!

~~~~~~~~~~~

Naked came I out of my mother’s womb,

and naked shall I return thither:

the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away;

blessed be the name…