All

 

“All” have sinned,

The Bible points out,

None of us has anything personal

About which we can shout.

 

In Romans 3:23

It is clear to see,

To sin we were all slaves;

Not one of us was free.

 

No golden spoon in the mouth

Is another way to put it,

We were born in sin

And its practice is habit.

 

We’ve “All” fallen short

Of the glory of God

Our actions, attitudes and aspirations

Are shaped by Satan, aka Fraud.

 

Keeping God’s perfect Law

Is impossible for us,

Only one achieved this

And that was Jesus.

 

How could imperfect man

The perfect Law keep?

Whether Jew or Gentile

“All” were wandering sheep.

 

Hence,

“All” have broken God’s perfect Law

And even in our pious religiosity

We are still flawed.

 

Without exception

“All” need a Saviour,

None can save himself

Even on his best behavior.

 

“All” are condemned,

That is how we start

And the only way to change

Is with a change of heart.

 

Only the Lord Jesus

Can perform such a work

If you are hearing the Spirit now,

Heed his alert

 

The Lord Jesus is the one

And only righteous man,

It is through him

That we have salvation’s plan.

 

He is the one

And only Saviour of the world

“All” must come through him

As instructed in God’s Word.

 

None can enter in

Except he be born again

“All” must come by the Cross

Is one hymn’s refrain.

 

The way of the cross leads home,

 “All” must pass this way

And like another song instructs,

Be saved today!

 

Stewart Russell © February 2020

 

The Divine Pulpit

 

 

A caution to the wise

And a warning to the foolish,

Ignore it or accept it

Just as you wish.

 

Thanks for taking note,

I mean no offense

But the pulpit has become sacred

In a peculiar sense.

 

Especially regarding

Its divine pulpiteers

Who expound extemporaneously

And are by many revered.

 

Their several titles

Gaining them great respect

Even when portions of the Word

They blatantly reject.

 

Mounting the pulpit

With their expressive pride

And in the abundance of rhetoric

God’s Word, they hide.

 

Announcing a text

To support their pretext

And then eisegeting the reference

Void of its context.

 

Matthew 27:5; Luke 10:37; John 13:27

 

Judas went out

 And hang himself.

Go and do likewise!

That thou doest

Do quickly!

Ignoring the context

Is not wise.

 

All three listed above

Are scriptural texts

But if ever they are strung together,

Be sure to reject.

 

 

Don’t be taken in

By the divine pulpiteer

That stands in his divine pulpit

And whom many cheer.

 

The clapping of hands,

And the peals of laughter

That in a relatively small church

Would lift its rafters.

 

Be wary, I reiterate,

Of the divine pulpit

Made divine by these pulpiteers

With their rhetoric.

 

Exacting from many

In their dire circumstances

Millions and millions of dollars

In extravagances.

 

All in aid of the church

And the gospel propagation

Supposedly reaching the lost

With needed salvation.

 

 

But living in opulence

And travelling first class,

Oblivious to the needs of others,

They get what they ask.

 

Only an exclusive few

Can fill their pulpits

And all that’s declared therefrom

Is Holy Writ.

 

Whether or not

This is really so

Is not of critical importance

Compared to the show.

 

Behind the divine pulpit

Is the self-made star

From whom his adoring subjects

His bodyguards bar.

 

Behold the divine pulpit

Where stands the divine!

Surely in the eyes of his subjects

And in their mind.

 

It really matters not

What the Word truly says,

The divine pulpit and its pulpiteer

Always hold sway.

 

 

 

Sir, we would see Jesus,

Hold the placard aloft

And be mindful only antichrists

Deny the cross.

 

I’d rather the cross

Than your divine pulpit

For in the Christ of that cross,

In heavenly places I sit.

 

Stewart Russell © March 24, 2025

 

Away From Me

 

 

Get away from me

You vile being

Bringer of evil and gloom,

For me there’s hope

For you there is none

Your days are numbered,

You are doomed.

 

An opportunity you had

In heaven

But overcome with pride,

“I will raise my throne

On par with God.”

But down

You were cast

And heaven denied.

 

In the Garden of Eden

You tried again

And deceived Mrs. Adam,

But God

Set you up

And crushed your head

As he revealed  

In redemption’s plan.

 

Not long after

Things got bad

As bad as things could be,

There was a flood

And mankind was drowned

But Noah was saved

And his family.

 

You are as persistent

As a mosquito

Or the flies we often see,

But with

Submission to God

In James we’re told

Resist you

And you will flee.

 

That is the key

In dealing with you

Whenever temptation you bring,

Get thee behind me

You destroyer of life

I will live

For Christ

And of Him I will sing.

 

You wanted King Herod

To kill the Christ Child

But nothing takes God by surprise,

Your plan was thwarted

And you were denied

For sure

The wise men

Were really wise.

 

I will not indulge you

In conversation

Whenever you come to me,

I have better things

With my life to do

So away with you

And that I mean

You evil adversary.

 

With Jesus on the cross

And then in the grave

Perhaps you thought you had won,

But the stone

Was rolled away

From before the tomb

And triumphantly

Rose God’s Son

 

One final thing

I will mention here

And it has to do with the end,

You’ll go to hell

With your demon crew

And I will be

With Jesus

My Savior and friend.

 

Stewart Russell © October 2017

 

A Feeding Trough

 

 

Just a feeding trough,

Nothing glamourous

And in my immediate environ

The smell is obnoxious.

 

I attract animals

Only by what’s in me

And if you said their feed,

I’d say exactly.

 

You could well imagine

My great surprise

When I was the one chosen

To hold a child.

 

A special child

I soon came to find out,

As the Saviour of the world

I had no doubt.

 

 

I felt humbled,

As I was only a manger

And they selected lowly me

To bear the Saviour.

 

 

Crudely fashioned

Just like that cruel cross

That he would be crucified on

To pay sin’s cost.

 

Sin’s wages, his death,

Man’s redemption

Through Jesus’ death, burial

And resurrection.

 

 

And I, his birth,

The cross, his death,

Both of us playing a part

In God’s rest.

 

A rest for all

That trust in God

For their eternal salvation

After Adam’s fall.

 

 

I was transformed

Just like the cross

And elevated to much more

Than a feeding trough.

 

Most had their day

And so did I

On that first Christmas Day

When God drew nigh.

 

Stewart Russell © December 11, 2024

 

A Strange Tree

 

 

 

It was a Christmas tree

In the shape of a cross

As though beckoning life’s traveler,

The weary and lost.

 

A red ribbon hung

From its spread-eagled beam

And its colour was brown,

Not the usual green.

 

It stood out among

Some other Christmas trees

And it attracted more attention

Than all of these.

 

There were no bells or balls

And no star on the top,

No candy cane or tinsel

Nothing from that lot.

 

 

But it had an appeal

That was unmistakably clear,

Jesus came that first Christmas

For a cross to bear.

 

The ribbons on the beam

Were the blood from his hands

Resulting from those nails

That were bored in his palms.

 

The single light

Where the two beams crossed

Was the light of God’s love

Showing sinners the cross.

 

 

I guess such a tree

Does not fit this festive season

But Jesus came to earth

For this very reason.

 

So, somewhere on your tree,

For a cross find a space,

At the top where you put your star

That would be a good place.

 

Christmas is about a cross

And less about a Christmas tree,

See the blood from his head and hands

That flowed for you and me.

 

And then you will see

The cross is not out of place,

Especially upon the Christmas tree

For it you must find a space.

 

 

On your tree this Christmas

For the cross please make space,

Give it star position at the top

For there is no better place.

 

Stewart Russell © December 12, 2021

 

 

What a Mix Up!

 

 

I heard something recently

I believe was meant to confuse,

It was about the Gospel message

I was not at all amused.

 

Christ is the heart of the Gospel

That, I was made to understand,

Now, I am hearing something different

That’s not in accordance with this plan.

 

There seems to be some mix-up

Based on what I have been hearing,

This might not be clear to some

And that is what I am fearing.

 

 

“The Gospel is not about Jesus”

Yes, that came out just right,

Please do not ask me to repeat it

It is a colossal lost of sight.

 

But the preacher did not stop there

He had a little more to add

And, what he added, I must add

Was enough to make one sad.

 

“The Gospel is about the kingdom,” he said,

It is not about Jesus Christ,

It’s the Good News about the kingdom

Hence, why Jesus was sacrificed.

 

 

As a matter of fact, the preacher said

That Jesus did not really die,

The Greek meant something different

As if to dare anyone to defy.

 

I know very little Greek, I must admit

So on that basis I cannot argue

But, he said the word means to expire

And this was strike mix-up number two.

 

Die and expire mean the same

That is how it seems to me,

And particularly so in this context,

I have no doubt you can see.

  

  

Christ and the kingdom are the same

He is and represents the kingdom,

Salvation can be found in none other

Jesus was and is and is to come.

 

This preacher made light of the cross

And also the shed blood of Jesus Christ,

Treat to the problem the person has, he said,

And then born again would suffice.

 

These spiritual idiosyncrasies

Are like the foxes that spoil the grapes,

Depending on who the preacher is

They can be seen as the devil’s bait.

 

Be aware there are other gospels

That are not the Gospel at all

But if the preacher has a lot of clout,

Because of his influence, many will fall.

 

 

His name shall be called Jesus

For he shall save his people from their sin,

Anything short of this Gospel fact

Relates to a light that is misguidedly dim.

 

Stewart Russell © December 2019

 

The Cross

 

Jesus

Crucified

For you

For me

On the cross of Calvary

For wrongs he didn't do

Nailed

To the

Cross

For me

For you

 

In your

Stead

And in

Mine

Jesus

King

And

Lord

Divine

Come

Via the

Cross

Christ

Calls

For you

It’s the

Least

That we

Can do

Come

Today

Do not

Delay

Come to Jesus

The only way

 

Stewart Russell © December 2019

God Knows

 

 

If God knows something

That something must exist

Since nothing can exist

That God doesn’t know.

 

God knows the end

From the very beginning

So, the end must exist

Since God is all knowing.

 

When asked a question

And the answer we don’t know

It is not uncommon to hear

Only God knows.

 

All wise and all knowing

Are two characteristics of God

That cause devils to tremble

Including Satan, the fraud.

 

“God can only know

That which can be known.”

If this is baffling to you

You are not alone.

 

This position is held

By some Pentecostal believers,

I won’t mention the group

But they are deceivers.

 

To tell you the truth

I don’t know what they mean

But I can surely tell you

Their understanding is lean.

 

 

God’s knowledge is infinite

His foreknowledge too,

That is why Bible prophecies

Have always come true.

 

One hundred percent accuracy

Each and every time

Unlike modern day prophets

That are self-opined.

 

They always hear from God

Or so they say

And of the prophecies they declare

I can only say, no way.

 

Excuses and more excuses

When they don’t come to pass

And the others that say nothing

Just disappear from the class.

 

 

But God knows everything,

From Him nothing is hidden

And that is why I am sure

All my sins are forgiven.

 

Whether sins of my past,

My present or my future

I praise God, my Heavenly Father,

By the blood they are covered.

 

Jesus knows who are His,

They have been washed in his blood

From the moment spiritually

Beneath the cross they stood.

 

And since he tells me I am his

You could say what you like,

The battle is not mine

And neither is the fight.

 

Elect according to His foreknowledge,

God knew this all the time

So that His Spirit witnesses to my spirit

That I am His and He is mine.

 

Stewart Russell © February 9, 2021