Jesus Bore The Cross For Me Part Three

 

 

Jesus Bore the Cross For Me, Part Three

Remarkable! Extraordinary! Incredible! All of these, and so much more. Such is the Love of God expressed in Jesus bearing all of our sins and the penalty of separation from Him and death as He suffered and died upon the Cross. Such is the Love God has for you and me and every one of His children. Truly, fully, surely, we are blessed. So, let’s reflect upon what Jesus has done for us on the Cross one more time.

JESUS BORE THE CROSS FOR ME

Jesus bore the cross for me,
Jesus bore the cross for you,
Our Savior chose to die
so we could live with Him.

I praise Him with my heart,
I choose Him with my soul.
I believe Him with my mind,
I serve Him with my strength.

God’s own eternal plan
led Jesus to the cruel cross
to take the sting of death
and crush the serpent’s head.

I praise Him with my heart,
I choose Him with my soul.
I believe Him with my mind,
I serve Him with my strength.

The serpent did his worst,
he offered all he had,
he spoke his boldest lies
but Jesus spoke God’s Word.

I praise Him with my heart,
I choose Him with my soul.
I believe Him with my mind,
I serve Him with my strength.

The Pharisees set traps,
the Sadducees sowed doubt,
the Romans mocked the King,
but Jesus chose to die.

I praise Him with my heart,
I choose Him with my soul.
I believe Him with my mind,
I serve Him with my strength.

Peter denied his Lord,
disciples ran away,
they left Him all alone
while Jesus chose to die.

I praise Him with my heart,
I choose Him with my soul.
I believe Him with my mind,
I serve Him with my strength.

Mary stood with her son,
John stood beneath the cross,
some stood close by and mocked,
but Jesus died for love.

I praise Him with my heart,
I choose Him with my soul.
I believe Him with my mind,
I serve Him with my strength.

The soldiers did their job,
cast lots for His dear robe.
Would they call His own name?
Jesus, the Son of God.

I praise Him with my heart,
I choose Him with my soul.
I believe Him with my mind,
I serve Him with my strength.

 

Jesus fully knew the work He had come to earth to do. He knew this had been God’s eternal Gospel Plan from all of eternity. He knew He would be born in Bethlehem; He would preach and teach the Kingdom of God; He would heal many and cast out many demons; He would raise people from the dead; He would work mighty miracles; He would appeal to those whose hearts were open; He would declare truth openly to those whose hearts were not open; many would listen; some would believe; many would oppose Him; and in the end, He would be arrested, tried, condemned and crucified. But that would not be the end. He would rise from the dead on the third day, even as the Scriptures had predicted; and you and I, as we believed in, repented and trusted in Him—we would be given the indescribable gift of eternal life. Praise God! And so, He triumphantly declared from the Cross, “It is finished!” Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!

 

From His Very First Step

From His very first step
upon this earth
Jesus was making His Way
toward the Cross
where He would pay
the debt for
sin we owed,
each of us.

From the day His parents
found Him in the
Temple in Jerusalem
Jesus was walking
the Father’s own Way
for Him as He
sought Him
everyday.

As he taught and as He
healed and as He
fed the thousands and walked on
water Jesus sought
to follow as His
Father led Him
always toward
the Cross.

At the tomb of His friend,
Lazarus, He
raised Him to live even as
He knew He chose
the path leading
Him surely toward
His death for us
on the Cross.

Upon the cross He lifted
Himself and prayed
to the Father; “Forgive them,
they do not know
the evil they
do and the price
I willingly
choose to pay.”

No wonder He said when He
bowed His head, as
His pilgrimage for all
our sin came to
its end; “It is
finished.” God’s
Mission was
accomplished.

When all had been accomplished, when sin and death had been slain. When the price had been paid, when the Lamb of God had paid the eternal price. When God’s eternal Gospel plan had been fulfilled. Then Jesus, our Lord and our Savior cried out to His Father with absolute faith; “Father, into your hands I commit my Spirit.” Jesus knew the Father. While Holy God could not look upon all our sin carried by Jesus on the Cross, once death had come, eliminating the penalty for that sin; Jesus knew He could count on God’s precious promise in Isaiah 49:15: “I will not forget you . . . I have carved you on the palm of my hand.” Jesus not only claimed that beautiful promise for Himself. He claimed it for you and for me. We can make our precious last words, just as victorious as those of our Savior. We can declare with confidence, even with our last breath, “Father, into your hands, I commit my Spirit.” That will simply be our speaking the absolute truth. What a debt we owe.

What A Debt I Owe

What a debt I owe
to the perfect love of Jesus
and His life and death for me
and His resurrection power
and God’s forgiveness
complete and eternal
and the Holy Spirit’s
Guarantee and presence.

What a debt I owe
for His Words upon the Cross
even as He was dying;
“Father, please forgive them,
they know not what they’re doing.”
. . . and to the dying thief;
”Today, you will be with
me (free) in paradise;

. . . and then to His dear
mother, “Behold your (new) son,”
and then to His beloved
friend, “ Behold your mother;”
and as He shuddered and
shouldered our (every) sin;
“My God, my God, , why have
you forsaken me?”

. . . Then in longing for
all He had lost, His blood, his
sweat, his tears—He gasped,
“I thirst;” . . . and finally,
in triumph He declared
”Father, into Your hands
I commit my spirit.”
. . . And then He died.

What a debt I owe
to the perfect love of Jesus
and His life and death for me
and His resurrection power
and God’s forgiveness
complete and eternal
and the Holy Spirit’s
guarantee and presence.

Hallelujah! Praise You Jesus!
You have given Your life for me.
Hallelujah! Praise You Jesus!
You have destroyed all my sin.
Hallelujah! Praise You Jesus!
You have spilled Your precious blood
to cleanse my heart, my soul, my mind.
Hallelujah! Praise You Jesus!

Jesus Bore The Cross For Me, Part Two

Jesus Bore The Cross For Me, Part One

 

JESUS BORE THE CROSS FOR ME

Jesus bore the cross for me,
Jesus bore the cross for you,
Our Savior chose to die
so we could live with Him.

I praise Him with my heart,
I choose Him with my soul.
I believe Him with my mind,
I serve Him with my strength.

God’s own eternal plan
led Jesus to the cruel cross
to take the sting of death
and crush the serpent’s head.

I praise Him with my heart,
I choose Him with my soul.
I believe Him with my mind,
I serve Him with my strength.

The serpent did his worst,
he offered all he had,
he spoke his boldest lies
but Jesus spoke God’s Word.

I praise Him with my heart,
I choose Him with my soul.
I believe Him with my mind,
I serve Him with my strength.

The Pharisees set traps,
the Sadducees sowed doubt,
the Romans mocked the King,
but Jesus chose to die.

I praise Him with my heart,
I choose Him with my soul.
I believe Him with my mind,
I serve Him with my strength.

Peter denied his Lord,
disciples ran away,
they left Him all alone
while Jesus chose to die.

I praise Him with my heart,
I choose Him with my soul.
I believe Him with my mind,
I serve Him with my strength.

Mary stood with her son,
John stood beneath the cross,
some stood close by and mocked,
while Jesus died for love.

I praise Him with my heart,
I choose Him with my soul.
I believe Him with my mind,
I serve Him with my strength.

The soldiers did their job,
cast lots for His dear robe.
Would they call His dear name?
Jesus, the Son of God.

I praise Him with my heart,
I choose Him with my soul.
I believe Him with my mind,
I serve Him with my strength.

 

Jesus surely bore the Cross for me. He just as surely bore the Cross for you. He obediently bore the Cross to set us free from our sin which separated us by our own choice from the perfect Love of God. He bore the Cross in accordance with God’s Eternal Gospel plan. He bore the Cross as He fulfilled the Promise in the Garden that the Seed of the Woman would, indeed, crush the head of the serpent. He bore the Cross to fulfill the prophecies which were written faithfully as the Holy Spirit inspired the Prophets throughout the Old Testament. They pointed their people toward the coming of the Messiah. No wonder believers over the ages have raised their praises to Heaven for such a unique gift shared from our Great God above with us, His children here below.

During March we will examine the seven sayings of Christ on the Cross.  In doing so, we will experience the depth of God’s Love expressed through the Son. In His life, death, and resurrection Jesus never failed to demonstrate the perfect nature of sacrificial love God has for each of us. It is a testimony to the uniqueness of Jesus, as we see Him seeking each of us as lost and wandering sheep without a shepherd. It is a testimony to the compassion of Jesus, as we see Him entering into the midst of our suffering to deliver us. It is a testimony to the power of Jesus, as we recognize His deliverance even when it seems we had no hope.

We first hear Jesus speaking from the cross looking down upon those who have spat out hate-filled mockery, which completely ignored the goodness of all He had done during His miraculous ministry. I have to wonder how many blasphemous conversations were interrupted by His blessed prayer for forgiveness on behalf of these who had not only beaten and taunted him with curses, but had insisted that He be nailed naked to the humiliating torment of the Roman cross. Imagine the broken heart of Him who came from Heaven to deliver us from sin—to hang there and be battered by the ugliness of this vile rejection of His loving intention to deliver. And yet His Words to the Father: “Father, forgive them.”

In the midst of the chaos going on all around Him, Jesus continues to fight for breath. He endures the incredible physical pain He bears due to the nails in his hands and feet, and also from the wounds ripped across His back. And then there is the paint from the crown of thorns crushed down upon his head. And yet even on the Cross he continues to act as the Good Shepherd. One lost sheep cries out to him from a cross next to His own. Jesus listens and answers, assuring him he will be with Him in paradise. Another sheep, lost and found, even as the Good Sherphed lays down His life.

Luke 23:39-43

One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying,
“Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!”
But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God,
since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?
And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds;
but this man has done nothing wrong.”
And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.
”And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

So, first Jesus turned to the needs of the crowd (desperately needing forgiveness), then to the thief begging for Jesus to remember Him in His Kingdom; and then He looks down to His very own mother. And behold, the beloved disciple of John is there with her as she weeps for her son. Does she remember the prophetic words of Simeon at the Temple, warning her that a sword would pierce her heart. Now, she knows that essential pain. How can she bear looking up at His suffering? How can she bear to hear the blasphemous and hateful words hurled from all around her at Him who is the very One the Angel had promised her as the Savior of the world? How will she carry on without Him? Jesus is far from being too far gone to ignore His mother and His beloved disciple:

John: 26-27

When Jesus saw his mother
and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby,
he said to his mother,
”Woman, behold your son!”
Then he said to the disciple,
”Behold, your mother!”
And from that hour
the disciple took her to his own home.

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Jesus Takes The Time

Even on the cross
He bears for you and Me
our devoted Shepherd,
Jesus takes the time
for you and me
and everyone
who sees their need
for a Savior, one
who will hear their cry
and respond to them
in deepest and devoted
dying love.

 

 

 

 

 

What About Married Love?

The Trinity: A Holy Mystery

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The Trinity: A Holy, Loving Mystery

 Who can tell the mystery of a rose
resplendent and so soft
upon a stem studded
with stinging thorns
and yet with softest petals
with such a lovely fragrance
both butterflies and bees
delighted ascend?

Who can tell the mystery of a bee
or a butterfly, who can tell?
One buzzes with his
bustling, busy wings
just to fly to her hive
while one fairly floats
on the air like some
glorious dream?

Who can tell the mystery of a cloud?
Ask a scientist and he will
explain when we look up
in the sky
we are seeing
a mass of water droplets
or frozen crystals
suspended in
the heavens above.

Ask a wide-eyed child or a child grown-up
and they will list the wondrous
images they can see as they
look up while
lounging in the grass:
maybe a hippopotamus
or a rhinoceros
or a moose
or even a goose.

Who can tell the mystery of a gem?
How long does it take to form
their color and their
clarity,
some so clear
and some so deeply
hued they shine
and sparkle
like a star?

Who can tell the mystery of a gem?
How do they become so hard
they remain
beautiful
as they were when they
were cut and
polished
fit for a
royal crown?

Who can tell the mystery of the Trinity?
Only God who is, who was,
who is to come.
Theologians
may do their
best and preachers
give us helpful
hints but never
succeed.

Who can tell the mystery of the Trinity?
God tells us in His Word
what we can now
understand—
He alone is One
but in true
fellowship
He is Three—
He is Love.

Sometimes mysteries seem a bother when we are impatient to get to an easy answer for some vital question; and yet such questions demand much more than simple, easy-to-speak answers. God in His Perfect Wisdom and in His Holy Word often forces us beyond such surface answers, driving us ever deeper in our faith and dependence on Him and only Him. Who can fully describe the beautiful mystery of a rose? Who can fully describe the fascinating mystery of a cloud? Who can fully describe the geological mystery of a precious gem? We can certainly ponder. We can certainly research. We can certainly debate—and in doing these we can discover partial answers—but in the end we simply take and enjoy these mysteries as they are—profoundly beautiful, fascinating, and historical. God alone holds the mysteries of the world in His hands, and these include the mystery of the nature of His Being as demonstrated in the Trinity.

The Trinity is never named in the Bible, and yet the reality of God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit clearly fills the story of God’s Love from the Creation of Heaven and Earth to the Cross and moving forward to the Creation of New Heaven and New Earth. Thousands of scholars and theologians have struggled with the challenge of explaining in human terms the nature of the Trinity, but not one has succeeded. God’s full nature in the Trinity remains a mystery; Most probably this is according to God’s purpose. He is high and exalted and holy (clearly and fully more than we will ever be). He does reveal His nature in Creation. He does reveal His trinitarian nature in His Written Word. He does reveal His trinitarian nature in Jesus, the Incarnation. He does reveal His trinitarian nature in the power and indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the hearts and lives of believers. He has continually throughout history made Himself and HIs power and love known to individuals and nations. Yet, He arranges His relationships with these individuals and nations as He demands faith and obedience while we grow in wisdom and understanding when it comes to heavenly matters.

God is so much greater than are we, He deems best how to reveal Himself to us. We know He is perfect; and so, in history and in the Word, He certainly purposefully and perfectly opens our eyes to His Nature in Creation:

Creation itself witnesses to the mystery of the Trinity. Beautifully, we see God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit united in the act of making the Heavens and the Earth. While no person can presume to understand the divine design and purpose in Creation, we all can agree with Scripture that each of God’s Three Persons shaped and formed and produced our Universe:

From Creation and throughout the working out of His Eternal Gospel Plan, God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, have been active together in moving us as His beloved children toward receiving and being transformed by His Eternal Love. The Son Incarnate as Jesus has lived and died and risen up victorious to establish the gift of mercy and grace revealing eternal mercy. And ultimately the Holy Spirit comes as a gift to empower and direct us as we grow into our relationship daily walking in God’s eternal way for us. 

 

 

Paul put it this way in Ephesians 2:18 as He explained we come to the Father through the Son, in the Spirit.

 

His words provide an excellent demonstration of the Trinity at work. All of us do, indeed, have this opportunity: We can, ourselves, enter fellowship with the Father, through the prompting and the invitation of the Holy Spirit, because of what Christ the Son has done for us in His sacrificial death on the Cross, and in his Victorious Resurrection—the two together defeating the power of sin and death over us. 

How fitting it is when we pray this blessing upon each other as we conclude worship together.Here is such a beautiful summation of the mysterious but eternally actual reality of God graciously interacting with us as His children in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Jesus voices for His disciples, then and now, the ultimate task we are given—going among all nations, sharing with His Eternal Gospel Plan, and baptizing them because of their faith, into His Kingdom in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

T

May we each and every one of us, individually, yet united mysteriously in the perfect Love of Father, Son, and Spirit, faithfully and obedient live for Him.

God’s Perfect Agape Love

GOD’S LOVE

 

 

God’s Love

1 John 3:1-3

“See what kind of love the Father has given to us,
that we should be called children of God; and so we are.
The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him,
because we shall see him as he is.
And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.”

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God’s LOVE

Here is the fundamental reality
and at the same time
the elemental mystery—
God’s Love.

How does a human heart and mind begin
to wrestle with so
mighty a sacred
Gospel Truth . . .

. . . and so beautiful a miracle lovelier
still than a rainbow
shimmering in
a waterfall?

Only the Holy Sprit can inspire words
stretching a human
heart or mind
to comprehend . . .

and portray in a portrait or compose a poem
profound capturing
such wonder
from God’s heart;

and only in the Incarnate Loving Son
can there be found
perfect Love
renowned.

I John 4:9-10

“This is how God showed his love among us:
He sent his only Son into the world
that we might live through him.
This is love:
not that we loved God,
but that he loved us
and sent his son
as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”

************

Brennan Manning had his life saved by a friend who threw himself on a grenade as they fought together in the Korean War. That gift of sacrificial love led Brennan to Christ and, as we read above, to his life-long astonishment at the goodness and love of God. His Christian writings deeply impacted Rich Mullins, whose music also emphasized the greatness of God’sLove so amazing in the face of humanity’s sinfulness.

************

I Walk In Wonder Surrounded By His Love

I walk in wonder surrounded by His Love,
He who created this world I live upon
as I look above me and around me
and beneath me and see
such glory as fills my  whole heart and mind
with delight at all the beauty with which
He blesses my sight—and as I listen
to the songs all nature sings
as praise to Him who is my loving Maker,
as praise to Him who is my loving Savior,
as praise to Him the Holy Spirit,
my Counselor and my Sustainer.

 

Romans 5:8

But God shows his love for us
in that while we were still sinners,
Christ died for us.

************

John Chrysostom served as the Archbishop of Constantinople  toward the end of the fourth century. He is remembered as one of the greatest preachers, proclaiming the Gospel wherever he went. He spent a long life of Christian service, emphasizing the plain truth of the Bible. No wonder, in the midst of all of his teaching and preaching and serving the poor, he declared clearly, it was on the cross where God spoke most directly, demonstrating His Love for us. The power of His Love should inspire us to lives of godly love. It does not matter where we are or what people we are serving.

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God’s Sacrificial Love

All those years Abraham,
Isaac and Jacob
wandered searching
for God’s Promised Land
they offered animal
sacrifices as
God covered their sin
with atoning blood—
always the perfect one
laying down his life
for hearts besmeared,
shadowed within.

And then when Jesus
obeyed God’s Perfect Will
and accepted the Cross
as atonement for us
He took upon Himself,
His perfect heart, free
of all shame, and free
from any of sin’s stain
bled out for our own;
and He proved there
and then, God’s Love for 
 every precious one of us.

John 3:16-19

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son,
that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but in order that the world might be saved through him.
Whoever believes in him is not condemned,
but whoever does not believe is condemned already,
because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world,
and people loved the darkness rather than the light
because their works were evil.

************

Rick Warren has stood firm on the Bible throughout his ministry. Often he has been ridiculed by popular culture for being old-fashioned and out-of-step with modern ways. That has never intimidated him or kept him from proclaiming salvation in Jesus as the central truth of the Bible, and also, the Way to Salvation. In that call he has always emphasized God proving His desire to have us as His children, by giving Jesus, the Son, to pay for our sins. In applying that love, Warren has been questioned within the faith for reaching out to non-Christians—but what else did Jesus do, and command us to do?

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What Else Can I Do?

What else can I do
when the great God
of all Glory
reaches down to me
in His perfect Love
through the life and
the death and His
ressurection
of Jesus declaring
to me, “I want
your love and the
whole of your heart
and all of your mind?”

What else can I do
but surrender
my heart and my
 mind and accept
His Gospel plan
for rescuing me
from my sin and
my penalty
as He pays for
me the price
and from death
sets me free?

Romans 8:38-39

For I am sure that neither death nor life,
nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come,
nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation,
will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

************

Hannah Whitall Smith emphasized throughout her lifetime and in her writings a deeply personal and deeply devotional relationship with God.  She expressed her view of such a close walk in faith with Christ in her book, The Christian’s Secret Of A Happy Life. In this book she presents simple truths, God’s Love, our sin, Christ’s death for us, and forgiveness of sin. She certainly celebrates the Love of God for us and the perfection of His expressing that Love no matter how the Enemy may attack us. Praise God! Nothing can separate us from the Love of God.

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When I Gaze Upon God’s Loving Faace

When I gaze upon God’s loving face
I fall upon my knees
and confess how unworthy
I kneel before Him
who is the Holy Creator of the Universe,
the Maker of the sun, the moon and the stars,
the One who formed the mighty oceans
and sculpted the magnificent mountains,
and I am amazed as He looks
upon me with redeeming love
and holds out His hand and bids
me come as His child set free
from all the despicable things I have done,
from all of the ugliness I have imagined,
from all of the blasphemies I have spoken—
and replaces it all with His own perfect Love.

Ephesians 2:8-9

For by grace you have been saved through faith.
And this is not your own doing;
it is the gift of God,
not a result of works,
so that no one may boast.

************

C.S. Lewis and his writings have stood strong for seventy-five years as a bold declaration in the midst of modern humanity, that true fulfillment and joy in life comes only through faith in Jesus; and God rules all—as in perfect Love He calls us to Himself. Lewis’ portrayal of the Christ-like Jesus in The Chronicles of Narnia, makes it clear, that we depend on Aslan in Narnia, and God through Jesus in our world, for the gift of salvation from the evil forces of sin and selfishness and ultimate self-destruction. We must be rescued. So God, by His Grace, sends us His gift, Jesus, to set us free.

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His Own

He graciously
and miraculously
call in us in
this world
from the eternal
darkness covering the glory
of His Promise
every morning
in the sun reclaiming
from the night our
souls reborn brand new
in His Love
which dared the gates
of Hell and Sin and Death
resurrecting
His own.

 

John 13:34-35

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another:
just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.
By this all people will know that you are my disciples,
if you have love for one another.”

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Though Julian Of Norwich lived most of life in isolation as an anchoress in the late 1300’s, her writing powerfully inspired many because she emphasized so passionately the Love of God, which she considered the essential gladness, the absolute meaning and center of life. Her message brought hope to many in a turbulent time filled with wars and terrible plagues destroying many lives. She pointed many hopeless people, then, to the absolute hope of the Love of God as expressed through Jesus.

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We Have A Suffering Yet Triumphant Savior

Praise be to our Almighty God!
Praise be to His Holy Name!
Praise be to our suffering Savior!
Praise be for His Empty Tomb!
Praise be to the Holy Spirit!
Praise be for His loving Presence!

Praise be to our Almighty God!
Praise be to His Holy Name!
Though He made the stars,
Though in power He named them,
He calls us His own, His precious,
His blessed, His blessed children.

Praise be to our suffering Savior!
Praise be for His empty tomb!
Though the Enemy pursued Him
and though He was beaten,
He rose up victorious
over all sin and all darkness.

Praise be to the Holy Spirit!
Praise be for His loving Presence!
He cleanses, He fills, indwells
us with His heavenly power.
We are never, never alone,
we are blessed in His Presence.

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Living Witnesses To The JOY Jesus Brings

Living Witnesses To The JOY Jesus Brings

There is no doubt about it. Jesus is the foundation and the reason for JOY in my HEART. He walks with me through the ups-and-downs of everyday life. He shares with me His victories, He constantly points me to His witnesses in the Bible. He surrounds me with living witnesses wherever I go and whatever He has me doing. This week I want to share with you some modern day saints who have ministered joy to me throughout my life. The world calls these kind of folk “really happy,” but I know them well enough to know, they have JOY so much deeper and richer than happiness. How blessed I am to have known their JOY in Jesus, for they have been His vessels for leading me to faith in Jesus and also keeping me hungry for more and more of His Good Way in the JOY only He supplies.

A Couple Of Notes Before I Begin: First, I have to point out that Jesus, Himself, is the chief JOY in life. Without Him, I would have no reason, no JOY to write about, no purpose to live.  Second: My wife Becky is His most perfect gift to me from His gracious Hand. She daily teaches me how real and how deep His JOY is.

PaPa Stonecypher
My Grandfather

Philippians 4:4
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.

Most folks called him Dewey, some called him Mr. Stonecypher, but the seven of us blessed to enjoy him as our grandfather always called him PaPa. He definitely worked hard all his life at the local steel plant. When he wasn’t working at the plant, he was gardening and serving as a deacon at Paden Baptist Church, and bringing lots of love and laughter to his grandchildren and lots of other lucky folks.  His faith in Jesus and his gentle teasing and playfulness made knowing him as PaPa a real blessing to the seven of us. The Joy of Jesus in our PaPa was definitely real and contagious. 

Aunt Cordeal
My Aunt

Isaiah 12:3
With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.

To be honest, in my mother’s great big family, I only saw my Aunt Cordeal occasionally, at big family occasions. Still, when I did see her, she was constantly telling delightfully hilarious stories, and shaking with contagious laughter. Most of her stories featured her and Uncle Hobart’s amusing adventures. Once they went to a neighboring county to get a certain liquid ingredient for her fruitcake. Poor Uncle Hobart had to do the “dirty” work while Aunt Cordeal hid in the car down the road from the disreputable store that sold that particular forbidden drink for soaking the cake. They were long-time members serving at New Hope Baptist Church, and in their later years, at Goodyear Heights Baptist. The JOY of Jesus always shone in her eyes and in her life of service for her Lord among her family, her friends and through her church.

Mrs. Culberson
My Training Union Leader

1 John 3:18
Little children, let us not love in word or talk
but in deed and in truth.

Mrs. Culberson was our leader as older children on Sunday nights in Church. She was always smiling, always entertaining us as she taught, always catching us up in the delight and JOY Jesus brings. I never knew as a child how she spent most of her hours every day caring for her son Neal, who had profound developmental issues. She and her husband lovingly parented him with the care only deeply godly parents could give. I did wonder why she only attended church in the evening, while her husband only attended in the morning. My mother explained to me how their care for Neal required one of them to be present at all times. I will never forget the loving encouragement they gave me when I went to Nigeria as a single missionary. During my first homeside assignment she invited me over for lunch, which was delicious, and we had a great time as she asked me how she could pray about my life as a missionary. She did occasionally take time to check on Neal, and I kept the visit short. Now that the three of them are all together, perfected in Heaven, I just know Mr. And Mrs. Culberson and Neal are even now REJOICING together in Jesus.

Vicki Whaley
My School Friend

Ecclesiastes 3:12

When I think of Vicki, I remember her for her big smile, her hearty laughter, her teasing banter, the beautiful music she made on her flute or piccolo, or with her voice, and her hard work. She was a great, a very true friend, with an unshakable and inspirational testimony. Growing up in church and school together, we enjoyed life among a group of kids, then teens, from hard-working, faith-based families. Her parents were among the couples who led us in Sunday night discipleship. Vicki did her Christian service as a choir member often featured as a vocal soloist and also, playing the flute. Her merry spirit and her sense of peace in Christ made her a dear friend to many. Years later, as she battled cancer, her faith remained confident and strong. I will always remember sitting at the back of our church after successful surgery, and having her come over and express her concern and prayers for me, even as I knew how seriously she was fighting cancer. When I asked her about herself, she smiled confidently and replied, “The Lord and I have this. Everything will be okay.” Her faith remained strong always. Throughout her lifetime, Vicki definitely exemplified JOYFUL faith before me.

Felicia Butler
My Lifelong Friend

Isaiah 12:2

Richard Hearn
My Bible Teacher

Proverbs 15:13

A glad heart makes a cheerful face,
but by sorrow of heart the spirit is crushed.

Rev. Hearn was never my pastor. He was my Bible teacher. He was the father of two of my students. He was a rock of gentle and exemplary ministry in St. Marys. One of my dearest friends, Carolyn Mock, served as his church secretary. She experienced first hand day after day the depth of His faith and his always true Christ-like love for His people, and his always present grin. When he taught the Bible, his calm demeanor and his deep conviction testified to the power of God through Jesus and through the Word to bring JOY to even the most desperate of lives. His teaching arose out of a heart that was always speaking out in the midst of lives which desperately needed what Jesus had in store for those who responded to His offer of salvation and new life. In Rev. Hearn I learned in my two brief years in Ludowici how the genuine witness of a JOYFUL servant of Jesus accomplishes mighty works in the power of our Lord Jesus.

 

Jane Ellen Gaines
My Missionary Mentor

Psalm 16:11
You make known to me the path of life;
    in your presence there is fullness of joy;
    at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

 

Now, fullness of JOY, that is exactly what Jane Ellen Gaines brought to life every single day. I cannot recall anytime with her not bringing me a smile, laughter, and encouragement—always in the Lord. She was always declaring God’s Truth as she rejoiced in His Goodness. She often proclaimed and acted out in faith the power of His Goodness. During my first missionary term, she insisted the two of us meet for prayer each week, which was great; but she also insisted we eat lunch because she felt I needed encouragement for eating more as I battled to hold onto my weight. So, we prayed and ate lunch once a week. She proved to be an excellent model for both; she prayed heartily, with great enthusiasm and conviction; and she did the same with eating. Her lively love for Jesus and people made her irresistible. Students loved her. Teachers loved her. Parents loved her. Everybody loved her. She definitely taught me to trust Jesus with everything and to experience JOY as I followed Him.

Sonny Stewart
My Coach

Psalm 40:8
I delight to do your will, O my God;
    your law is within my heart.”

When I moved to St. Marys on the southeastern coast of Georgia, on the mainland, across from Cumberland Island, I was searching for JOY, and folks who would in Jesus share that with me. I had just been disappointed in being put on hold in my desire to fulfill God’s call on my life for missions service. So, meeting Sonny Stewart the first day of my teaching at St. Marys Elementary School was a Godsend. He was to be the PE teacher for the school, while I was to be the English and reading teacher for the seventh grade. He had served in the Navy, while I had previously taught up the coast a bit, in Ludowici, Georgia. He loved God deeply, and had a “go get them” personality which made for great coaching. We enjoyed the challenge of teaching and reaching our students together. He and his wife Norma both helped to focus me on finding what God had for me to do in St. Marys. Through them and a wonderful group of faithful members of St. Marys Baptist Church, I discovered an exciting calling into a blend of teaching and youth ministry which brought me a tremendous four year time of preparation for my missions service in Nigeria and Niger. Sonny Stewart, from that very first day at school, coached me up, as they say, in knowing and sustaining the pure JOY of serving the Lord.

 

Bro. Mike
My Inspiration

2 Corinthians 12:10
For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses,
insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities.
For when I am weak, then I am strong.

 

One of the first people I met at Baptist High School, Jos, Bro. Mike Abraham, has one of the most JOYFUL faces I have ever seen. Bro. Mike and his discipleship brothers, Ademola, Akinwale, Philip, Shola and Victor, had been discipled deeply by Larry Davis, who was moving into work in  Mubi when I arrived; and so, he graciously handed the group over to me. What a rich blessing! They all loved the Lord and also loved learning more and more about serving the Lord. Among them Bro. Mike backed up his broad smiles with a deep set of convictions about living the Christian life in obedience, always acting with faithful dependence on Jesus. The entire group loved singing JOYFULLY and living their lives to back up their testimonies. To this day I recall with awe how God welcomed me to Nigeria with Bro. Mike’s and his discipleship brothers’ enthusiasm for the Lord.

Samson Adedokun
My Abiding JOY

Psalm 37:3

Romans 5:2
Through him we have also obtained access by faith
into this grace in which we stand,
and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Beverly came to Sahel Academy as the Elementary School Principal, and her JOY in the Lord immediately captivated her students, her staff, and the entire Sahel missionary community. Oh, to hear those elementary students singing and laughing through one praise song or the other. Now, those were moments of JOY. She carried that sense of celebration in the midst of God’s goodness wherever she went, among students, staff, parents and all over Niamey.  And I had the privilege of witnessing the same JOY in her prayer life as she prayed about anything and everything with absolute faith in our faithful God, and His answer to our prayers. No wonder she ended up becoming the Director for the school; and no wonder she did such an amazing job of drawing the entire school together as we worked successfully through the complex task of reaccreditation. No wonder she won the heart of her husband, Stuart. They are blessed. And so are we.

Hadiza
My Godly Example

Isaiah 12:3
With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.

Like so many in this list of JOYFUL people, I cannot recall Hadiza’s face without appreciating her smile so big it stretches her face from side-to-side; and her shining eyes which reflect that same confidence in our Lord. Her vision for providing help to Nigerien children facing overwhelming needs inspires my admiration. Hadiza has no quit in her. Her vision came while she worked as a cook in the hostel for missionary students at Sahel Academy in Niamey, Niger. She also took orders from missionary families in the community, and delivered such delicious treats, she stayed more than busy meeting the demand. She felt called to get a bit of additional land so she could open a center to provide care for Nigerien students with extraordinary needs. She labored on until God fulfilled her desire to make this vision a reality. She sacrificed much, and is now able to minister with the JOY in her heart of knowing she has obeyed, the Lord has provided, and many are blessed. 

People Of Joy In The Bible

Twelve People Of Joy In The Bible 

The Bible pictures many beautiful attributes of JOY as God reveals HIs glory through His people. Just a reminder, JOY in the Presence of God becomes a much richer, a fuller reality than the fleeting sense of happiness we often mistake for JOY in this life on earth. God intends for His people to walk close to Him, even as He walks close to them in the Person of Jesus and in the Presence of the Holy Spirit who abides with us once God’s Grace saves us through the faith He gifts us in Jesus.

ENOCH

Genesis 5:21-24

When Enoch had lived 65 years,
he fathered Methuselah.
Enoch walked with God after he fathered Methuselah 300 years
 and had other sons and daughters.
Thus all the days of Enoch were 365 years.
Enoch walked with God, and he was not,
for God took

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JESUS:OUR JOY PART TWO

BECAUSE JESUS IS MY JOY

Because Jesus is my JOY
I daily and eternally
find in Him so much more
than I will ever need.

Jesus is my JOY, the
Son of Abraham and David,
the Mighty Promised One,
Anointed One of God.

Jesus is my JOY, the
One who makes water into wine,
who miraculously
gives sight to the blind.

Jesus is my JOY, the
Master who kneels to serve,
He alone, the Way to God,
the Truth of God, His Life.

Jesus is my JOY, for
He will judge the Living
and the Dead for He
is the Lord of them all.

Jesus is my JOY, for
He has the Name above
every name; He is the
very Image of God.

Jesus is my JOY, for
through His life and death
and rising again He is
the Founder of our Faith.

Jesus is my JOY, for
eternally He reigns
as the mighty King of
Kings and the Lord of Lords.

JESUS: OUR JOY PART TWO

The Old Testament promises it:
Jesus will be our JOY.
The New Testament confirms it:
Jesus is our JOY:

1. We see this in Matthew 1:1. (“The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.”) The generations of God’s people and their relationship with Him, all point forward to the coming of Jesus, the Messiah, the Promised One.
2. We read this in Mark 1:24. (“What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.”) Even the demons must testify to the Truth: Jesus is the Messiah. They recognize in HIm God’s glory and His power—and their defeat.
3. We note this in John 2:11. (“This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.”) John includes this as one of seven signs that point to the miracle working power so obvious in the life of Jesus. As one who knew Jesus and followed him day—to-day, John recognized Him because He performed purposeful miracles. Each revealed His Loving concern and His unlimited power.
4. We recognize this in Matthew 20:28. (“. . . even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”) Clearly Jesus is assigned the messianic (Promised One of the Old Testament) title, the Son of Man, here. He naturally and constantly reveals His chosen humanity in contrast to His eternal divinity.
5. We read in John 14:6 (Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”) that Jesus is the foundation of all there is know about God and His plan for all people—through Jesus. God presents living proof of His eternal Love and Grace only through Jesus.
6. Then we read this in Acts 10:42 (And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead.) Jesus is the judge of all people appointed by God. Because Jesus is God’s blessed appeal to the lost, our decision in response to God, judges our eternal destiny.
7. Through His life, death and resurrection Jesus reveals that He is the Lord of both the living and the dead. Romans 14:9. (For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.) We are reminded that every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord. (Philippians 2:9)
8. The Apostle Paul also reminds us in Philippians 2:9 (“Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, . . .”) that because of Jesus’ sacrificial humility, His Name is above every other name. It is because of the Incarnation miracle that Jesus bears His unique Name of the Savior of the World.
9. Paul also establishes in Colosssians 1:15 (“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.”) how Jesus is the image of God—all of Him revealed in Human likeness. So, when we look at the life of Jesus, we see all that we need to know about God.
10. Then the writer of Hebrews declares in Hebrews 12:2 (“. . . looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”) Jesus is the founder and perfecter, the author and finisher, of our faith. Everything rests on Him and His sacrificial life, death, and resurrection.
11. In triumph, John testifies in Revelation 19:16 (“On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of Lords.”) that Jesus is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Clearly Jesus is our all-in-all. He is our JOY, the very best of all that God desires for us to experience in Him.
12. Jesus further assures us in Revelation 22:21-22 (He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.) So, we have Jesus’ Promise that He is coming soon. Surely, He is our JOY! Praise God!

Our Joy In Jesus

Our joy in Jesus
is forever, sure and pure.

Our joy in Jesus
is forever, no matter, whatever.

Our joy in Jesus
is always sure, no fear, it’s clear.

Our joy in Jesus,
is much purer, clearer, richer.

Many of these verses were suggested in “Jesus in all of the books of the Bible” jesusplusnothing.com.(December 23, 2025)