11-7-15 Turn the Other Cheek

³⁸ Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth:

³⁹ But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

Matthew 5:38-39 KJV

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When Jesus said to turn the other cheek,

The world has since ignored it out of hand.

Most people think it makes you look so weak

You’ll fall in line to anyone’s demand.

To turn the other cheek resentfully,

Your indignation makes you anger’s slave.

If you think you are grander morally,

Your haughty pride makes you a moral knave.

When someone strikes you, instantly forgive,

And turn the other cheek with mercy mild.

The Lord’s the only one to judgment give;

Through love you’re free: no sins have you compiled.

So turn the other cheek if you are struck,

And choose the way of grace; you won’t get stuck.

10-26-15 Wait – Don’t Hate

⁸ Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.

⁹ For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth.

Psalm 37:8-9 KJV

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When someone does you wrong it’s natural

To let your anger get the best of you,

But wrath will be your wisdom’s funeral

And then the worst of you will soon break through.

Yet you’re no slave to sin: the old man died; ¹

He’s crucified with Christ when you are saved.

If you’ve been wronged let Spirit be your guide;

Just wait upon the Lord; let hate be waived.

When evil’s done to you first turn to prayer;

The patient love of Jesus will descend.

When you are meek the new earth’s yours to bear. ²

God cuts off evildoers in the end.

Serenity belongs to those who wait;

In Christ there is no room for those who hate.

1Romans 6:6

2Matthew 5:5

8-1-15 The Root of All Evil

For the love of money is the root of all evil:

which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith,

and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

1 Timothy 6:10 KJV

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The love of wealth begins with just a kiss,

A secret rendezvous, a warm desire.

The more you have the more you want for bliss;

The more you want the more that you require.

You think of all the things that it can bring,

How easy life would be if you were rich.

You need it more than God, this precious thing;

The love of money turns your life to kitsch.

Idolatry begat all evilness:

Desire of the fruit to have it all.

As long as this is what you must possess,

You are a slave to sin and sure to fall.

If you love God as much as you need air,

Then money’s not an issue nor a snare.

~~~~~~~~~~~

 

sonnet #423

6-19-15 Hope

But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren,

concerning them which are asleep,

that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.

1 Thessalonians 4:13 KJV

~~~~~~~~~~~

The marrow of your soul is thick with grief,

And sorrow’s made a home within your heart.

It feels as if the Lord’s become a thief

For making someone precious to depart.

This is the time to mourn, you’ve lost a friend;

The world seems so much colder than before.

Remember, though,that this is not the end;

Death’s just like walking through an open door.

Your faith confounds the others with no hope;

You know that life exists beyond the grave.

The Holy Ghost is here to help you cope;

Because of Jesus, you are not grief’s slave.

Your heart is heavy now, as it should be,

The day is coming, though, your friend you’ll see.

~~~~~~~~~~~

sonnet #393

5-7-15 He Hears

But verily God hath heard me;

he hath attended to the voice of my prayer.

Psalm 66:19 KJV

            ~~~~~~~~~~~

My enemies have painted me as vile;

An evil man, a phony hypocrite.

If this is true, could I then God beguile?

Would He then heed my prayers and thus commit?

Yet God has heard me, I who am His slave.

The love He has for me has changed my ways,

For He sent Christ His Son whose life He gave;

He died for all my sins. It’s He I praise!

If I were still the man I used to be,

I would not waste my time to spread the Word.

But my old self is dead on Calvary,

And now I follow Christ, His Spirit’s heard.

            My Father hears my prayers; I am His child.

            He answers every one so clear and mild.

            ~~~~~~~~~~~

 

sonnet #353

4-24-15 So Well Defined

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

4-9-15 The Bond of Peace

The Holy Spirit binds us all as one

Who came unto the shadow of the cross

And gave our life to Christ, God’s first-born Son,

Now counted closer than a family’s gloss.

So here we are as one and Spirit led.

The things that caused contention surely cease,

For now the love of Christ’s the common thread

That brings so naturally a bond of peace.

Where there was once dissension we find grace,

No longer slave to sin and anger’s hook;

Forgiveness helps us run the longer race,

A stamina not gained by hook or crook.

When differences arise within the flock,

The key of Christ will open any lock.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Endeavour to keep the unity of the Spirit

in the bond of peace.

Ephesians 4:3 KJV

3-16-15 No Longer Slave to Sin

Before you came to Christ you were a slave,

So hopelessly involved in sin and shame,

A victim to desire that bodies crave;

The passions of the flesh are all the same.

And then convicted by the Holy Ghost,

You fell before the cross as Spirit slain,

Declaring Christ your Lord, the final host

You rose a son of God no sin to stain.

Your flesh was crucified: the lust, the thirst,

No longer slave to sin and all its ways,

You now have conscious choice as Spirit nursed

To fall to such temptations and malaise.

Call out to Jesus when seduced by sin;

Have faith in Christ and love will always win.

~~~~~~~~~~~

And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh

with the affections and lusts.

Galatians 5:24 KJV

3-10-15 One Spirit One Body

When you let Jesus rule your heart and mind,

Accepting Him as Savior, King and Lord,

And so in faith believe His Love defined,

His blood was shed for you, your sins deplored.

The Holy Spirit washes over you,

And who you used to be is dead and gone;

You’re born again, regenerating new,

Now one within His Spirit to live on.

The body’s compromised of many parts,

Each doing what is needed for the whole;

The blood of Jesus beats within our hearts,

Enabling us to seek the unsaved soul.

Oh friend, believe that Jesus died for you

And drink the Spirit’s cup – be born anew!

~~~~~~~~~~~

¹³ For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body,

whether we be Jews or Gentiles,

whether we be bond or free;

and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

¹⁴ For the body is not one member, but many.

1 Corinthians 12:13-14 KJV

12-19-14 Chosen

When you were still a slave and doomed to death,

The Savior bought you with His very life.

He chose you for His own, your pulse and breath,

Ordained to follow Him through sweat and strife.

When you were Spirit-filled and born anew,

He showed you how to love and live and pray,

Then sent you out to search the whole world through

To find the lost before they slip away.

The souls that come to Him must be matured

To carry on the work He’ll have them do.

Whatever you’re in need of rest assured,

Just ask the Father, He will see you through.

Christ chose you, He ordained you, You are His,

A slave to Jesus now, and all He is.  

~~~~~~~~~~~

Ye have not chosen me,

but I have chosen you,

and ordained you,

that ye should go and bring forth fruit,

and that your fruit should remain:

that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name,

he may give it you.

John 15:16 KJV