Thursday, April 9, 2009

Substitute

Substitute.


It should have been I
in the judgement hall
facing the charges brought:
indicted justly for my wrongs
before a righteous Judge.
Yet You stood, instead,
the sinless God
hauled for judgement
before sinful man.
You spoke not
to defend Your innocence
but in silence bore my guilt
and in my place
received the sentence due to me.

It should have been I
whose back was whipped
for beatings
are for the backs of fools,
and I in foolishness
have set before You other gods
of stone, of flesh, of thought,
but mostly of myself,
whilst You
wisdom personified
have brought the truth.

It should have been I
whose hands and feet were nailed
to cruel beams
wrenched
as they shuddered into place
and torn
by the weight of sin’s burden.
For my hands
have often been
the instrument of evil
and yet more often still have failed
to do the good they could have wrought;
my feet have carried me
to places where Your Spirit
could not comfortably rest.
But your hands
brought only life
and Your feet
led you only in the Father’s paths.

It should have been I
whose head was crowned with angry thorns
for thoughts of anger
hatred, envy, lust and greed
are not strangers to its paths
and my mind
in rebellion
has often sought
to raise itself above the throne of God.
But Your mind bowed
before the Father’s will
obedient even
to this ignominious end.

It should have been I
whose heart was pierced
this heart in which
the depths of degradation lurk;
whose motives all
are tainted with corruption
and whose purest thoughts
stink of death.
Instead, Your heart of love
was rent
not by the soldier’s sword
but by my guilt.

It should have been I
who died
exposed in naked shame
before the eyes of all
who cared to look;
screaming eternally
to unresponding infinity
for the just God
who turned His head away.
But You,
the righteous One
received my wages due
and I
walking free and clean
offer my inadequate response:
Thank You.
Thank you.

3 comments:

Kathryn said...

What a thoughtful and grateful poem!

Keith Wallis said...

Amen to what KD wrote

Anusha Atukorala said...

That's beautiful!
Anu

Darkness before the Dawn


We live

In a world

that knows

discord,

& disarray;

a world

where

distress,

& darkness,

reign;

a world that’s

torn apart

by sin,

suffering

and strife.



A world

that has lost it’s way somewhere

along its journey around the

sun.



But….

the light

of the glory

of the gospel

shines

in the darkest of

places.



One fine day,

good

will triumph

over evil;

justice

will prevail over

all injustice;

right

will rule

over all the wrongs

the world

has ever known





Thanks be to Jesus

whose

light

dispels

the darkness;

whose joy

illumines

the darkest

corners;

whose

radiance

is a soft but brilliant

beacon

in a world

that

has forgotten

its Creator.



Thank God

for Jesus;



He is the

Light of

our world!



And He shines brightest

when the night is

at its darkest hour.



Thank God

for

Jesus!



One day the world will

find its light

As it travels

around the Son.



His light

will

never be

extinguished

even

through the darkest night.



His brightness will

illuminate the world;

not just today,

but also

tomorrow &

through all eternity.



Thank God

for Jesus.



He is

the

Light

of the World!