Out of the Old Testament into the New

I hope you’ve been following closely, I hope you are aware,

That now comes the transition the New Testament is here;

Beginning with the Gospels and moving through the Acts,

We will follow the Apostles and be guided by their tracks.

In the beginning was the Word and the Word was God,

And his own refused him did not give as much as a nod;

But to all who came to him all that believe on his name,

To them he gave his power for they were the ‘born again’.

This same Word became flesh and resided with man,

Man did not esteem the Master and from him he ran;

Moses gave the law but Christ brought truth and grace,

Thus Jesus Christ is the answer for all the human race.

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John tell the Gospel story,

How the Saviour Christ did come from his throne in glory;

Mary was betrothed to Joseph in the meantime he did tarry,

But then her strange conception stopped his plan to marry.

Then Joseph was told in a dream, “Take Mary as your wife,”

For that which was conceived in her was not an ordinary life;

A virgin shall bring forth a son, did Isaiah the prophet foretell,

His name, meaning God with us, shall be called Emmanuel.

Mary went to visit Elizabeth way up in the hill country,

Elizabeth was excited to hear the salutation from Mary;

Her babe leapt within her and she asked in all her glee,

Why should the mother of my Lord come to be with me?

Zacharias who was a high priest was one day in the temple,

Performing ministrations when appeared the angel Gabriel;

Told that his wife would have a son and that in her old age,

Was struck dumb when he argued, “no, never at her stage.”

Only at the circumcision would he have his voice again,

So on a piece of paper he was forced to write the name;

They called him Zacharias but Elizabeth said he is John,

The name the angel gave before the baby was born

An Extract from The Bible in Poetry

Stewart Russell (c) 2013