Resurrection Sunday

"Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; He has risen, just as He said. Come and see the place where He lay. Then go quickly and tell His disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee"
Matthew 28 v 5-7

"Posterity will serve Him; future generations will be told about the Lord. They will proclaim His righteousness to a people yet unborn - for He has done it"
Psalm 22 v 30+31

"For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve"
1 Corinthians 15 v 3-5

"I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end He will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see Him with my own eyes - I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!"
Job 19 v 25-27

"The word of faith we are proclaiming: That if you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."
Romans 10 v 8 + 9

Good Friday

"But He was pierced for our transgresions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed. we all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to His own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all"
  Isaiah 53 v 5+6

"From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land. About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, 'Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani'"
  Matthew 27 v 45+46

"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning?"
  Psalm 22 v 1

"At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split."
  Matthew 27 v 51

"Hang the curtain from the clasps and place the Ark of the Testimony behind the curtain. The curtain will separate the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place"
  Exodus 26 v 33

"Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away."
  Matthew 27 v 59+60

"We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn Him to death and will turn Him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day He will be raised to life."
  Matthew 20 v 18+19

Morning Needs

O God, the author of all good,
I come to Thee for the grace another day will require
                        for its duties and events.
                I step out into a wicked world,
                I carry about with me an evil heart,
                I know that without thee I can do nothing,
                            that everything with which I shall be concerned,
                                                   however harmless in itself,
                                  may prove an occasion of sin or folly,
                                  unless I am kept by thy power.
Hold Thou me up and I shall be safe.
Preserve my understanding from subtilty of error,
                my affections from love of idols,
                my character from stain of vice,
                my profession from every form of evil.
May I engage in nothing in which I cannot implore Thy blessing,
          and in which I cannot invite Thy inspection.
Prosper me in all lawful undertakings,
           or prepare me for disappointments;
Give me neither poverty nor riches;
Feed me with food convenient for me,
           lest I be full and deny Thee
           and say, Who is the Lord?
           or be poor, and steal, and take Thy name in vain.
May every creature be made good to me by prayer and Thy will;
Teach me how to use the world, and not abuse it,
                       to improve my talents,
                       to redeem my time,
                       to walk in wisdom toward those without,
                           and in kindness to those within,
                       to do good to all men,
                       and especially to my fellow Christians.
And to Thee be the glory.

"Morning Needs" from  The Valley of Vision (A collection of Puritan Prayers and Devotions) by Arthur Bennett

Immortal Honours Rest on Jesus' Head

This glorious hymn chokes me up every time I sing it, for it reminds me of my constant dependance on my awesome Saviour Jesus Christ, and how He will supply all that I need. It makes me smile too, for exactly the same reasons.

Immortal honours rest on Jesus’ head;
My God, my portion, and my Living Bread;
In Him I live, upon Him cast my care;
He saves from death, destruction, and despair.

He is my Refuge in each deep distress;
The Lord my strength and glorious righteousness;
Through floods and flames He leads me safely on,
And daily makes His sovereign goodness known.

My every need He richly will supply;
Nor will His mercy ever let me die;
In Him there dwells a treasure all divine,
And matchless grace has made that treasure mine.

O that my soul could love and praise Him more,
His beauties trace, His majesty adore;
Live near His heart, rest in His love each day;
hear His dear voice and all His Will obey.

 --- William Gadsby (1773 - 1844)

We sing it to Eventide, which is also the tune for "Abide with me," which amuses me a little, because my mother *hates* "Abide with me" because it sounds so mournful and dirge-like. Indeed she threatens that if we play it at her funeral she'll pop out of her coffin and tell us to stop it immediately. (I quite like this song to that tune, but shhh, don't tell her!)

New Term, New Books

This term I'm going to be reading one-to-one with one of the ladies from my weekly Bible study. I let her have free rein over what we would study, and she chose Philippians. Having re-read it over a few times in preparation, I'm pretty excited about it. We're going to use it as an opportunity to hone Bible handling skills too, so I'm also using Dig Deeper by Nigel Beynon and Andrew Sach to see which "tools" we can use to explore the passage.

How utterly hopeless...

I've been working through Romans 3v9-20, in preparation for a Bible study that I will be leading at church next week. It has served as an incredible reminder of how utterly sinful I am. Thinking on it each evening has thoroughly condemned me, as each evening I realise how I have failed to glorify God's name. Each day I have dragged Christ's beautiful name through the mud. I have willfully and deliberately shown unkindness, malice, envy, lack of love, unadvised speech, hasty temper and a great multitude of more sins which mean that His name is not honoured in my life as it should be. And each night I must whisper my confession and contrition, before the God who holds me accountable.

This I believe is Paul's purpose in writing this part of the passage. Each word another blow that drives right to the heart of my cockiness, my self-surety, my sinful belief that I may be justified in God's sight because of my works. For, none is righteous, no, not one, not even you Beckie, however much you may think you are.

How my heart aches, and I think this is what Paul wants us to be, before he reminds us, with that glorious "But" in verse 21. For if we do not recognise our utter hopelessness to be right with God, then the gospel loses its power. If we can be saved another way, if we can be right with God on our own, then the death of Christ means nothing, it really was, just a carpenter dying for annoying the religious authorities of the day. But knowing that there is no way that mankind can be saved, that there is no way that I can be right with God, then I am desperate, I am alone, I am dependent. 

Thank God for that "but" - that I can be right with God, apart from my works. My works that should condemn me are cast aside, and the pure, spotless, glorious perfection of Christ is seen in all its power. But that's another week, and another study. For now I remember my sinfullness, and look forward to my salvation.

"Evening Renewal"

My Father,
If Thy mercy had bounds, where would be my refuge from just wrath?
But Thy love in Christ is without measure.
Thus, I present myself to thee
      with sins of commission and omission,
              against Thee, my Father,
              against Thee, adorable redeemer,
              against Thee and Thy strivings, O Holy Spirit,
              against the dictates of my conscience,
              against the precepts of Thy Word,
              against my neighbours and myself.
Enter not into judgement with me,
For I plead no righteousness of my own,
    and have no cloak for iniquity.
Pardon my day dark with evil.
This night I renew my penitence.
Every morning I vow to love Thee more fervently,
                       to serve Thee more sincerely,
                       to be more devoted in my life,
                       to be wholly Thine;
Yet I soon stumble, backslide,
      and have to confess my weakness, misery and sin.
But I bless Thee that the finished work of Jesus needs no addition
                                                  from my doings,
                              that His oblation is sufficient satisfaction
                                                  for my sins.
If future days be mine, help me to amend my life,
                                                   to hate and abhor evil,
                                                   to flee the sins I confess.
Make me more resolute, more watchful, more prayerful.
Let no evil fruit spring from evil seeds my hands have sown;
Let no neighbour be hardened in vanity and folly
                  by my want of circumspecion.
If this day I have been ashamed of Christ and His Word,
                   or have shown unkindness, malice, envy, lack of love,
                   unadvised speech, hasty temper,
                   let it be no stumbling block to others,
                   or dishonour to Thy name.
O help me to set an upright example that will ever rebuke vice,
                   allure to goodness,
                    and evidence that lovely are the ways of Christ.

--From "The Valley of Vision -- a collection of Puritan Prayers and Devotions -- by Arthur Bennett"

--- I would replace "If this day" with "Since this day"