God’s New Thing

 

 

 

“God is doing a new thing

In His church today,”

The number of times I have heard this

I cannot actually say.

 

Neither can I tell you

How long this new thing lasts,

But as soon as another comes along

The other new thing is passed.

 

Over several periods of time

We’ve had more than one new thing

Such that it is even reflected

In the very choruses we sing.

 

“These are the days of Elijah”

Was the title of one of these songs

And it still puzzles me even now

How Elijah actually belonged.

 

What really would be new

That God would do these days?

I desperately need an answer

If God has changed His ways.

 

It is actually definitely true

That God makes all things new

But that this pertains to the believer

Is my considered view.

 

 

The believer is a new creation,

After all, he is born-again

And the fact that old things are passed,

He will never be the same.

 

From death to eternal life

From sin’s darkness to the light,

From no people to be God’s people

Once blind but now having sight.

 

The result of Christ’s coming

Comprises this new thing of God,

Ever since the advent of Pentecost

The Gospel is spread abroad.

 

This is the blessed millennium

That was long ago prophesied:

The preaching of the glorious Gospel

Of the Christ that was crucified.

 

Some view a millennium to come

As in an exact thousand-year reign,

I too once took that position

But I was compelled to refrain.

 

We are in the millennium

Ever since the day of Pentecost

And the whosoever is being invited

To come by way of the cross.

 

The new thing that God is doing

Was prophesied in the Old Testament

And in the words of John, the Baptist,

Calling all people to repent.

 

No special treatment for the Jew

And surely none for the Greek,

So, be like those wise men of old

And Jesus, the Saviour seek.

 

All that seek him will find him

And they will be made anew,

This is the new thing God is doing,

I thought it was time you knew.

 

Stewart Russell © April 28, 2021

 

 

The Kingdom of God

 

 

Is it really worth it?

The preaching of the kingdom?

Over 2000 years since

The coming of God’s Son?

 

The world is getting worse:

The considered view of some

And there’s little or no influence

Re this heavenly kingdom.

 

John the Baptist preached

That the kingdom was at hand

Then Jesus Christ appeared

According to God’s plan.

 

Jesus in assent to this

Said that the kingdom is come

Yet we are still unduly uncertain

And looking for the Son.

 

Jesus the Son shall reign

Until he subdues every enemy;

The last of these being death

Which is still our reality.

 

The King incarnate came

Just over 2000 years ago,

The evidence shows it was Bethlehem

Just as the prophets foretold.

 

Following his ascension

God sent the Holy Spirit

As the born-again believer’s guide

And an assurance deposit.

 

There in that upper room

One hundred and twenty sat

And when the Holy Spirit arrived

Of evidence there was no lack.

 

Like as of flaming tongs of fire

On each believer he lit

And every one of those believers

Received the Holy Spirit.

 

 

 

From thence was the kingdom

And where every believer went,

And the word to all they encountered

Was the message to repent.

 

From very small beginnings

The kingdom grew and grew

To the extent that on this very day,

It includes both me and you.

 

A slow growth at times,

And sometimes with greater speed,

But a significant growth at other times

As sinners see their need.

 

Small, slow and significant

Like the grain of mustard seed,

But having the power of Almighty God

Which no other tree can impede.

 

From darkness to light

In spite of all the naysayers

Thus, trampling sin and triumphing,

Like David the giant slayer.

 

 

For as story-like that event

It foreshadowed the King of kings,

The King of the heavenly Kingdom

Of whom believers sing.

 

That battle was not about David

But of the kingdom plan,

Conceptualized before the earth

About Jesus, the God-man.

 

John saw that Jerusalem

Coming down out of heaven:

The New Jerusalem he called it

Where all are forgiven.

 

The message of so great salvation

From sin to set us free,

Light had come to bring the kingdom

And so too our liberty.

 

For whomever the Son sets free

That one is free indeed,

An heir and joint heir with Jesus:

A done and finished deal.

 

Souls are still being saved,

Even if not in your backyard,

And the Lord daily adds to the Church

Such as are being saved.

 

One day, we know not when,

The final enemy will be conquered

And Jesus will hand over the kingdom

To God, his Heavenly Father.

 

Death will have been vanquished

And eternal life ushered in,

The arch-deceiver will exist no more

And thus, no temptation to sin.

 

 

In the interim we share the Gospel

In whatever way we can,

This is the mandate which Jesus left us

Concerning the redemptive plan.

 

Stewart Russell © March 12, 2023

 

As in the Old so in the New

 

 

She did as she liked

And ruled with an iron hand

And when her husband was depressed

She claimed another’s land.

 

She had him stoned and slain

And boasted about his death

Then she said to her husband

You can add that to your wealth.

 

She found it rather strange

That a king could be depressed

And that something that he wanted

Could give him so much stress.

 

 

She even scared a prophet

And made him run and hide,

He had slain her false prophets

That her table had supplied.

 

 

She set a watch upon his life

He must die within a day

And when he heard the dreadful news

He took to his heels and ran away.

 

It still remains a mystery

After his victory at Mount Carmel

How the faith of this great prophet

To such staggering depths fell.

 

Such was the fear for this woman

She could frighten any man,

Even her husband seemed to fear her

Though he benefitted from her plan.

 

Her husband was very wicked

But she was incomparably worse,

To come up on her wrong side

Was to be afflicted with a curse.

 

She stirred the king to wickedness

The description the Bible used

And all who dared to oppose her

Their life they were sure to lose.

 

She even killed some of the prophets

And planned to exterminate more

Such that a hundred had to be hidden,

This queen was vexing sore.

 

But the end comes for all

Whether they be good or bad

And the end for this Old Testament queen

Turned out to be very sad.

 

It was prophesied how she would die

A very horrible death indeed,

How as her body lay in the street

The dogs would on it feed.

 

 

That’s exactly how she died

Confirming the prophecy in full,

All that was left after the dogs did eat

Were her feet, her palms and skull.

 

Let me hasten to establish

As in the Old so in the New,

We shall learn of a New Testament king

That like this queen had a similar view.

 

This king was no different

And ruled with an iron hand

He lived an adulterous life

With the wife of another man.

 

The thing that made it worse

Was that it was his brother’s wife

And the prophet of that time

Rebuked him for this strife.

 

He wanted to kill the prophet

But decided to have him imprisoned,

He feared what the people would do

If such to this prophet should happen.

 

It happened on his birthday

While watching his niece dance

He was so enthralled by her

That he took a reckless chance.

 

He impetuously offered her

Anything for which she wished,

She requested that he give to her

The prophet’s head on a dish.

 

This was her mother’s wish,

She wanted the prophet dead

And though the king showed sorrow

He called for the prophet’s head.

 

 

The prophet’s head was removed

And paraded on a platter,

You could well imagine at that time

The astonishment and the chatter.

 

It was this very same king

Before whom the Lord had stood

That mocked him and arrayed him

In royal kingly duds.

 

He had hoped to see a miracle

Because of the things he had heard

And he questioned him repeatedly

But the Lord answered not a word.

 

This king attacked the fledgling church

At its very early stage,

He was bent on wiping it out

In his anger and his rage.

 

He sought to kill the apostles

And succeeded in the case of one,

Another whom he had imprisoned

Escaped before the light of dawn.

 

So perplexed was he at this

That he left for another territory,

The embarrassment was so much

That it bruised his dignity.

 

 

One day while arrayed in royal apparel

He sat upon his throne

The people regaled him with praise

That should have been God’s alone.

 

They, speaking of this king

Said his was the voice of a god,

He made no attempt to stop them

But basked in the glory like a fraud.

 

Immediately he was struck

By the angel of the Lord,

According to the Word he was punished

For not giving the glory to God.

 

He was eaten of worms

Of such there was nothing to boast

And eventually according to the Word

He had given up the ghost.

 

The word to us all is to remember

We’re not a law unto ourselves,

God is the only sovereignty

Not an amulet on our shelves.

 

This life is not ours forever

Whether king or pauper we may be,

The lesson of these two should teach us

To live life accordingly.

 

Stewart Russell © April 2018

 

Art Thou He?

 

 

“Art thou he that should come

Or look we for another?”

And can you imagine this

John the Baptist a bother?

 

Was it not John that declared

Behold God’s lamb?

So why the sudden doubt

Concerning God’s plan?

 

Was it not the Baptist John

That baptized the Christ?

So why does the witness he had

Not more than suffice?

 

 

The Father’s voice from heaven

The Spirit descending dove-

There was no doubt then

Regarding the witness from above.

 

“Art thou he that should come

Or look we for another?”

In that Roman prison

The Baptist John was in a bother.

 

What better time than this

For Jesus to show his hand

And confound wicked Herod

And his evil plan!

 

And these wicked Romans

With their oppressive yoke-

Wasn’t this the time

Of which the prophets spoke…

 

Of the one that should come

To redeem all Israel?

Surely Israel’s God could see

The plight of His people.

 

That John had had his doubts

I have no doubt

And no doubt John felt

Jesus’ timing was a little out.

 

Here was John the Baptist

About to lose his head

And on the Messiah’s mind

Were other things instead.

 

If indeed Jesus was the one

The uprising should begin,

John had apparently forgotten

The primary matter of sin.

 

 

The lamb of God

For the sins of the world!

But can you blame John

If his head was in a whirl?

 

The greatest of prophets

That was born of a woman

But human nevertheless

Was his biggest problem.

 

“Art thou he that should come?”

A reasonable question indeed-

“Or look we look we for another?”

Of assurance he was in need.

 

 

Not only John’s misgiving

But the disciples’ at that time,

The yoke under Roman rule

Dominated their mind.

 

Sure, Jesus said many things

Which they would later recall

But this Roman oppression

Was of the bitterest gall.

 

And that first Good Friday

Would severely ram it home

When with Jesus on the cross

They were all alone.

 

And as their question too

This would become their bother,

“Art thou he that should come

Or look we for another?”

 

Stewart Russell © April 2, 2021

 

Know Your Place

 

 

 

He got into a conversation

That was between two adults

Straight way he was rebuked

And in his place, he was put.

 

“Know your place,” said one,

“This is none of your business.”

“You are a child,” said the other,

“You have no say in this.”

 

I can well recall

Having been told that too

And I have not the slightest doubt

That so have you.

 

John 3:23-31

 

There is passage of Scripture

Found in the Gospel of John

Involving John’ disciples

Relative to what was going on.

 

When it was reported to John

That Jesus was baptizing

John gave them a rebuke

As well as a warning.

 

He reminding them succinctly

Of his place and theirs,

In essence “Know your place,”

Is what we would say.

 

John’s disciples had the idea

That only John should baptize

And since they were John’s disciples

They had the right to criticize.

 

But the Baptist knew his place

And that of his disciples,

“I must decrease,” he told them,

It’s the know-your-place angle.

 

There are many leaders today

That need similar advice,

Not in the way our parents did it

John’s way should suffice.

 

 

They become men like trees

And block their parishioners’ view,

And they can’t see Jesus

Like some others do.

 

“Know your place,” applies here

If you see what I mean,

Move out of the way

Let me see what’s to be seen.

 

I would see Jesus

That’s who I came to see,

Just like Zaccheus of old

When he climbed that tree.

 

Let’s all remember our place

And not vaunt ourselves,

Let us give God all the glory

And promote spiritual health.

 

 

Know your place

Is not meant to be a put down

But put in right perspective

As we move along.

 

Stewart Russell © June 2020

 

None Greater But One

And Jesus questioned them

What went ye out to see?

A prophet? More than a prophet

More than a prophet he be.

He was a wild man

So the religious clergy thought

And when in his company

They felt distraught.

But he was a great man

The greatest born of a woman,

To this testified Jesus

He was fitted for the Master’s plan.

He was God’s messenger

To announce the Christ,

His identification of the Messiah

Was what then sufficed.

“Behold the Lamb of God

That takes away the sins of the world,”

He was a strict adherent

To the Father’s Word.

He stood for truth

Even at the risk of his head

And Herod did not rest

Until he saw him dead.

Herod was a rogue

No two ways about that,

He took his brother’s wife

And that is a fact.

John pointed him out

For the rogue that he be;

The Baptist’s head on a platter

Was for Herod his fee.

Sometime before that

In prison he was placed

And O how he longed

To see Jesus’ face.

  

Being a little uncomfortable

In his troubled mind

He sent two of his disciples

To see what they could find.

His message to Jesus

Was straightforward and clear,

He wanted the Master

To dispel his fear.

“Are you the one? He asked,

“Or should I look for another?”

From the reply that came back

There was no need to bother.

“Go and tell John

Of the things you see and hear.”

Jesus sent this word back

So John wouldn’t have to fear.

“The blind see, the lame walk

The Gospel is preached to the poor,

The lepers are cleansed, the dead raised,”

And there was even more.

He must increase but I must decrease

John said this would be so

Hence Jesus’ appearing on the scene

Meant John would have to go.

In a moment of doubt

John may have forgotten

And so to him

This message was given.

Yes, John was great

But a greater than John had come,

In the flesh was the King of kings

Who came from the eternal kingdom.

John came neither eating nor drinking

But a devil he was called by some,

Jesus came both eating and drinking

And they called him winebibber and glutton.

There’s none greater than the Son

Who came down from above,

His ultimate sacrifice was the cross

On which he demonstrated his love.

Today we have a privilege

Which John the Baptist never had,

He announced the coming kingdom

But as its citizens we should be glad.

Thanks to a greater than John

And a greater than Solomon,

Jesus our redeeming Saviour

Is that eternal one.

Is he your Saviour and Lord?

Are you a child of his kingdom?

If not he is offering you a place

And says to you to come.

Stewart Russell © February 2018