If not Jesus, Who?

 

 

If Jesus cannot save his sheep

Tell me, who can?

Doesn’t it sound a little ludicrous

Considering salvation’s plan?

 

The preacher certainly can’t

Nor the dedicated pastor,

The evangelist can preach forever

But he is not the Saviour.

 

The prophet can prophesy

And the counsellor can assure,

The apostle may stir the people

But can’t open heaven’s door.

 

It is true Jesus waits to enter

And the sinner must open the door,

But it is the Father that draws:

No less and no more.

 

It is the Saviour, Christ Jesus,

That effects our salvation

And in concert with God and the Spirit

Completes our redemption.

 

None can come to the Father

Except through the Son

And them that come to the Son,

The Father draws every one.

 

 

 

So, if Jesus cannot save,

Tell me in all seriousness, who can

When it is Jesus that died

To effect redemption’s plan?

 

Nothing is impossible with God;

That is, nothing that He wills,

And anything that He has done

He is able to do still.

 

None that comes to Christ

He will ever cast out

And His word is eternally reliable

And this is without a doubt.

 

None that Jesus saves

Can in no wise be lost,

He paid sin’s price on Mount Calvary

On that middle cross.

 

There were other crosses too

One to the left and to the right

And one of the thieves hanging there

Received his spiritual sight.

 

 

Imagine him calling on Jesus

Minutes before Jesus died

And there receiving eternal life

From Jesus, the crucified.

 

If not Jesus, who can?

There is none other who can,

Only Jesus can unlock the gate

To let in a penitent man.

 

Such a one shall not perish

But has everlasting life

And the Father gives this assurance

On account of Jesus Christ.

 

  

Stewart Russell © February 12, 2022

 

Rain this Christmas

 

 

 

I am forecasting rain,

Rain this Christmas

Hence, consider this forecast

In all of your fuss.

 

I remember once

When it rained,

It rained the entire Christmas

And that was a strain.

 

Indoors for the day,

I was a boy back then

And though it was a light rain,

It posed a problem.

 

Getting together

To have some fun

Was definitely not possible

Without the sun.

 

All year this year

We were getting rain

This Christmas will be the same,

It will rain.

 

 

Early morning church?

Carry your umbrella,

I am definitely forecasting

Rainy weather.

 

Going in Queen’s Park

After church?

Ladies, take your parasol,

Don’t make sport.

 

Don’t be vexed with me,

I am not to blame

But believe you me, I tell you,

Christmas, it will rain.

 

Cold and rainy

On Christmas morning,

Rather than get annoyed with me

Take my warning.

 

 

I am no prophet

Or even a meteorologist

But if it doesn’t rain on Christmas,

It’ll be a welcome twist.

 

Hopefully, not much

But it will definitely rain

So, I hope you don’t overspend

For then, it’ll be in vain.

 

It should be a good day

Whether rain or sun

For a good Christmas depends

On God’s only Son.

 

My forecast is rain

And cloudy skies

But those who know the Christ

Will radiate smiles.

 

 

For it will be Christmas,

Commemorating his birth

And that very first Christmas

When he came to earth.

 

Joy to the world,

The Lord has come

And with this thro’ the ages refrain

It won’t matter if it rain.

 

Stewart Russell © December 7, 2024

 

A King Second to None

He was a wicked human being

As a king he had no match

His wife was even more wicked

And on to her he latched

Whatever he wanted

With his wife’s help he attained

Once she had a man killed

And his land her husband claimed

The prophet gave a prophecy

Of his family’s extinction

However when he repented

God granted a temporary pardon

His wife was not so fortunate

For she suffered a terrible fall

And dogs fought to eat her flesh

At the foot of Jezreel’s walls

This king’s time soon came

And he died in Ramoth-Gilead

A prophet prophesied his death

But this he did not believe

As he went to battle that day

He went out in a disguise

His plan would fail, however

For he still met his demise

Dogs would feature once again

This time they licked his blood

Thus this king of the Northern Tribes

Did far more evil than good

Stewart Russell © March 2019

Swallowing Pride

 

Mistake number one

He sent someone to me,

Mistake number two

It was a maid; that was funny.

Mistake number three

You wouldn’t believe,

It was the awful instruction

That I received.

Me, second to the king only

Can you dig this?

Dip in Jordan?

There must be something I missed.

And that wasn’t all

There was mistake number four:

Dip not one time

But six times more.

Back home in Damascus

We had Abana and Pharpar,

Compared to the River Jordan

These were cleaner by far.

I was so angry

That I just turned away,

I had come with hope

But it wasn’t my day.

I had heard about Elisha

A very great man indeed,

I had been convinced

That he could meet my need.

Surely if he had come out

And stood before me

I was definitely sure

He could heal my malady.

How dare he

Insult the second in command,

I can tell you now

That was not my plan.

  

That was it for me

Dip in Jordan?  Not a chance,

A dip in dirty Jordan

Couldn’t my skin enhance.

Just then my servants spoke

It was what they said,

Their words made sense

By them I was led.

One dip in dirty Jordan

But there was no change,

Two dips, three and then four

My skin still looked strange.

Down a fifth time

My skin looked no different,

If only you knew

How much this folly I resent.

I paused before the sixth

Then I took the dive,

My skin was still the same

My healing had not arrived.

Well I had dipped sixth times

Seven?  Why refuse?

I was now dirty all over

There was nothing to lose.

So down again I plunged

For dip number seven

And when I came up

That was like heaven.

I had never seen

Anyone’s skin so clean,

You could just imagine

With delight I screamed.

My pride was messier

Than the Jordan I’m sure

But for such an outcome

I could dip fifty times more.

Stewart Russell © May 2018

What A Man!

He could have taken the route direct

But he had to be different I suspect

Very unlike those of his earthly kindred

He had a totally different life object.

He came to set captives free he said

He even freed some from the dead

Performing miracles of every type

I speak of Jesus our living head.

Departing Judea he left for Galilee

In Judea he was the target of each Pharisee

They despised his teachings and his deeds

And was as hateful to him as they could be.

Well turning his attention to a Gentile

He was now really resisting the Jewish style

They treated the Gentile like a dog

And would distance him by more than a mile.

But Jesus was different from any Jew

He had something far greater in view

Than mere animosity towards a tribe

His was a message that was perfectly true.

His mission was to seek and save the lost

He intended to achieve it at infinite cost

Even the price of his precious blood

As it poured from him on Calvary’s cross.

So directed by the blueprint on his mind

He decided to leave Judea behind

And take the long route through Samaria

Where there a Samaritan he would find.

Keep in your mind that he was different

Passing this way was no Jew’s intent

For they hated Samaritans like the plague

And anything to do with them they resent.

His destination would have been far

But finally he came to the well of Sychar

And there he sat on the side of the well

Knowing well his reputation would be marred.

Not long after a woman came his way

It was around the sixth hour of the day

Jesus asked her for a drink

And this is what she had to say.

 

“How come you a Jew ask of me a drink?

That is very strange don’t you think?

You Jews have no dealings with outcasts.”

Certainly this Jew stepped over the brink.

Jesus’ response was way over her head

Listen carefully to what he said

“If only you knew the gift of God

You would ask and receive living water instead.”

What living water was he talking about?

Why he had nothing to dip it out

“Are you greater than our father Jacob

That gave us this well and had much clout?”

“On drinking this water you will have need

To come back daily and from it feed

But whoever drinks of the water I shall give

Will never thirst again.”  Take heed!

  

Give me this water so I thirst not again

Give me this water became her refrain

Give me water so I won’t come here to draw

Give me this water became her aim.

Go and call your husband Jesus said

Suddenly a thought came into her head

I have no husband she did reply

For the one she had then she did not wed.

In this she had spoken the truth

Five ex-husbands were adequate proof

That none of them now she had

Though she was living under another’s roof.

By now she had another perception

That this man who did not fall for her deception

Must be a prophet she concluded

After much considered reflection.

Jesus moved her from her flawed philosophy

From her slack life and vain religiosity

To an understanding of true worship

Not rooted in the flesh but of spiritual fervency.

True worshippers worship in truth and spirit

They are not obsessed with ritual and habit

Of such the Father seeks to worship Him

And their entire lives to him commit.

Jesus opened her eyes so that she could see

The Messiah had come; Jesus is he

The one foretold that would come to the world

The one far different from any Pharisee.

  

Seeing Jesus with the woman the disciples wondered

But none would say what it was he pondered

To them she would have been a Samaritan

But to Jesus a child of Abraham and he had found her.

This Samaritan woman by all despised

Leaving her water pot behind set off to evangelise

Back to the city from whence she had come

No doubt all that heard her were much surprised.

“Come see a man!” she called out to them

Who told me all I did and fixed my problem

Is not this the Christ?” she asked,

Stirred by her new found passion for evangelism.

Yes she had found the Christ

To her there was nothing quite as nice

Nothing before had satisfied her thirst

Than when for Jesus she had renounced every vice.

Come and see this man I reiterate

Give your life to him and let him dictate

All that concerns you he will direct

And through life’s waters he’ll help you navigate.

Stewart Russell © 2016