It’s Happening Again

 

 

Here I am again

With this longing to write

But as has happened before

Nothing’s in sight.

 

Nothing on the horizon

Or even beyond,

Maybe I should stop here

And be gone.

 

But it’s a challenge

That I must overcome,

Some idea will come along

Before I am done.

 

Writer’s block?  Nah!

There are so many topics,

I just want to move away

From what is habit.

 

 

I just came on an idea

Let me see if I can work it,

When I have expressed it

Then you can edit.

 

Is God still doing

Or has God already done?

I’d love to have your thoughts

On this precise one.

 

God is a planner

All can see this is a fact,

Having set things in motion

Why would He look back?

 

As though He is man

And does not know in full

Thus, has to make adjustments

Like ordinary people.

 

God who is proactive

Has put everything in place,

No fallaciousness in Him

No, not a trace.

 

 

God’s will be done

As the prayer clearly states,

He alone already knows

What is our fate.

 

As said in another place

All’s history in God’s eyes,

That He knows everything

Is no surprise.

 

God doesn’t have to do

Having already done,

Battles past present and future

He has already won

 

The doing is the Spirit’s

As he directs to the cross,

Another tick in the Book of Life

For no longer lost.

 

It is happening again

Across the whole wide world,

Not my occasional block

But the Gospel is heard.

 

 

Another checked off

That has come home,

Calling safe and election sure;

Nevermore to roam.

 

Stewart Russell © January 16, 2024

 

There’s No Impossibility

 

 

Someone said,

God does the impossible,

But if God can do the impossible

Then it is possible.

 

It’d be impossible

To achieve the impossible

If the impossible

Were in fact, impossible.

 

All things are possible

With Almighty God

And with Him nothing is impossible

Nothing at all.

 

God does not do

The impossible,

For nothing is impossible

With God.

 

 

 

With Almighty God

There’s no impossibility

For the Creator of all that is

Sits on eternity.

 

Creating the world

And the virgin’s birth,

The incarnation of His Son

In coming to earth.

 

 

 

The sun standing still

The sundial going back,

Earth’s history clearly shows

These are all facts.

 

 

Considered impossible

But alas, they were not,

With God all things are possible:

The whole lot.

 

With man

Some things are possible

But with God

Nothing shall be impossible.

 

Can God do the impossible

Many have asked,

He doesn’t need to, my friend,

It’s not even a task.

 

 

 

There is nothing

That God cannot do,

You can ascertain in His Word

That this is true.

 

With Almighty God

There’s no impossibility

For He is the only one that is one

With eternity.

 

And with Him

The Spirit and the Word:

Coessential, Coeternal, Coexistent!

All three are one.

 

‘Tis mystery indeed

But not impossible,

The very fact we came to be 

Says it’s possible.

 

 

 

There’s no impossibility

With Almighty God,

Nothing is impossible with Him:

Nothing at all.

 

Stewart Russell © January 3, 2026

 

How Do We Judge?

 

 

How do we judge?

Notice I said we

For I am also including myself

In this company.

 

The company of believers

That is: the born again

That’s been wonderfully saved

In Jesus’ name.

 

Not the world at large

So, don’t be confused,

Thus, bear in mind my gravity;

I don’t mean to amuse.

 

 

Everybody judges:

Both saved and unsaved,

This is naturally human beings

And how we behave.

 

But the born again

Is where my focus is at,

How do we judge, I ask again,

Can you tell me that?

 

Notice I said judge,

You may say assess

But if you make them synonyms

You’ve flunked the test.

 

We do not assess,

We are jury and judge

And when we give our verdict,

We do not budge.

 

 

 

Clearly the above

Does not spell assess

And what is even more, we judge

According to the flesh.

 

How is it possible, you ask,

Being in the Spirit

But the flesh is still very present

And shows up as a habit.

 

Let us be honest

As we are expected to be,

The flesh wars against the Spirit

Whenever we are angry.

 

None of us is perfect

On account of the flesh

And sometimes we fail miserably

When facing a test.

 

Sometimes in a dispute

We tend to take a side,

As in a friend or family member

Whose guilt we try to hide.

 

 

We jump to conclusions

With little evidence

And often the first side we hear

Determines our bent.

 

Prejudging is prevalent,

One look tells me so,

I can see that he is the guilty one,

Just by looking, I know.

 

She would never do that

But he would for sure,

He’s been in the church for years

But wicked to the core.

 

Most of our judging

Is according to the flesh

Thus, I am guilty and so are you

So, it is here I rest.

 

 

Judge not says the Word

And here’s the reason why:

The flesh will often get in the way

And this we can’t deny.

 

Stewart Russell © October 31, 2024

 

Looking Good and Good Looking

 

 

I bet like I did once

You thought they were the same,

I mean looking good and good looking

But I beg you, please look again.

 

Pretenders and contenders

Are not always the same

Even though in these days we live in

Pretenders get the most fame.

 

There are some things

That you can’t bluff your way through,

Though hypocrites do it every day

Not to mention con-people too.

 

But later, if not sooner,

Their looking good will be found out

And they will be known for who they are

And that, without a doubt.

 

 

You see, looking good is one thing

But good looking is another,

Anyone can be a doer or a mover

But being is a different matter.

 

Now, I am not knocking looking good,

Socially, looking good is important

But what you truly are takes you further

And you don’t have to boast and rant,

 

Often the looking good is a show

And carries little or no depth

But good looking is the genuine thing

And is the safer bet.

 

It is not easy, I will admit

To differentiate between the two

But good looking is really who you are

And looking good is what you do.

 

Let me make the spiritual application

For that is what this is all about,

And I trust when I am finally through

You won’t have a single doubt.

 

The Pharisee focused on looking good

For he needed men’s applause,

The penitent publican on the other hand

Drew on the mercy of God.

 

Looking good is the outward appearance

Good looking is the heart,

And only God can tell the difference

Hence, He is the best place to start.

 

 

For once you are good looking

You will be looking good too,

The Spirit’s transformation on the inside

Will definitely shine through.

 

Use the discernment the Spirit gives

To help you spot the difference:

Whether it is a work of mere cosmetology

Or, in fact, the Creator’s influence.

 

Artificial light will eventually go out

While the Spirit’s light is forever,

Looking good will fluctuate and wane

But good looking is a heavenly treasure.

 

Stewart Russell © February 15, 2021

 

Two Churches Yet One

 

 

 

Only two churches

And these two are one:

The church militant which is now

And those that are gone.

 

The church militant

Is yet here on the earth,

It comprises every born-again believer

Aka of the new birth.

 

Those that are gone on

Are the church triumphant

Who, when they were on earth,

Were the church militant.

 

 

Neither is a dead church;

There is no such church

For the church of the Living Christ

Is a living church.

 

It comprises the born again

Who are infused with new life

That cannot ever be terminated

By this earthly strife.

 

The body will die

But the spirit will live on

As inferred by the Lord Jesus Christ

Regarding them gone.

 

“So that even though one dies

Yet he lives”

Is the assurance of Jesus Christ

That he assuredly gives.

 

Yes, two churches they are

Yet only one:

The saints which are now living

And those already gone.

 

A great crowd of witnesses

And witnesses at present

Summed up in the church triumphant

And the church militant.

 

 

Two churches yet one,

Both witnesses still

And the church militant yet here

Is of the Father’s will.

 

Stewart Russell © April 21, 2025

 

Can We Be Sure?

 

 

Can we be absolutely sure

Concerning what we believe?

If only I could know that

I would be relieved.

 

You believe there is a God

I believe that too

But how can I be absolutely sure

That is really true?

 

If faith is the evidence

Of things not seen

How can I really be sure

God is more than my dream?

 

If I cannot see God

With my physical eyes,

How can I believe

Though the Bible says He is nigh?

 

The just shall walk by his faith:

That’s what I am trying to do

But how can I know for sure

That God is really true?

 

Perhaps you criticize me

And think I am slack

That after all of these years

My faith still has lack.

 

 

But I will tell you this

Whether you believe it or not,

Concerning God’s Word

I believe every tittle, every jot.

 

On this side of Glory

I may be sometimes unsure

But God gives faith for my journey

And He gives so much more.

 

I don’t have to prove anything

Why I believe in God,

But to manifest His love

And to spread Christ abroad.

 

I take great confidence

In what He has said to me

And that becomes my assurance

As I walk with Him daily.

 

He says, “I am with you,

I will help your unbelief,

Continue to walk in My Spirit

And I will bring you relief.

 

And when the moments come

That doubt clogs up your mind,

Continue believing my child,

I have been there all the time.

 

There’re times you will feel me

And there’re times you won’t

But don’t go by your feelings,

My child, please don’t!

 

All I ask is that you trust me

Even when there appears no trace

And you’ll be absolutely sure

When you see me face to face."

 

Stewart Russell © October 2018

 

Reformed Theology

 

 

Reformed Theology

What is it?

Let me state up front

I have my limit.

 

I am not too sure

How salvation works

Since I am neither a Calvinist

Nor Arminian expert.

 

What I do know

Is that salvation works,

I have the witness of the Spirit

Thus, I need no expert.

 

This is not a boast;

Certainly not in myself,

I am totally dependent on Christ

For my spiritual health.

 

It is he that assures

Through the Holy Ghost

That one is saved by grace

With no grounds to boast.

 

If any is in doubt

About God’s saving grace

Just remember troubled one,

Christ took our place.

 

If you have the witness

Of the faithful Holy Spirit

Then the saved life will show

As a daily habit.

 

 

A transformed life

Not of reformed theology

And not of Calvin or Arminius-

Sorry, no apology.

 

It may be healthy

To debate between the two

But both had to be born again

Like me and you.

 

The Nicodemus-lesson

Is relevant to all,

It is a God-given privilege

To receive God’s call.

 

You must be born again

Is the command given,

By faith one accepts Jesus Christ

And that one is forgiven.

 

One is not reformed

Rather, one is transformed

And to the image of the Christ

That one is conformed.

 

Romans 8:29

 

For whom he did foreknow,

He also did predestinate

To be conformed to the image of his Son,

That he might be the firstborn

Among many brethren.

 

“Among many brethren”

Here the elect is the focus;

The first born among the many

Being the resurrected Jesus.

 

The model, if you please,

Not that he was born again

But that we should be like him

And function in his name.

 

If this is reformed theology

I don’t even know,

These days it’s not to theologians

But to the Word I go.

 

Jesus is the Living Word

And the focus of the written,

God’s elect comprises all them

Whose sins are forgiven.

 

 

Neither Calvin nor Aminius

Matters much to me,

My desire is to be like Jesus

Whose face I shall see.

 

And when that time come

I shall see him just as he is,

Now, I see through a glass darkly

But in him I move and live.

 

Stewart Russell © May 16, 2024

 

 

A Fiery Experience

 

 

What a fiery experience!

And who would imagine

Someone could go through such

And still be living.

 

But alas, that one is not

For he has long since passed

However, the example he has left,

For long will it last.

 

 

First, he sat by the fire

On that fiercely cold night

And while trying to keep warm

He had a ghastly fright!

 

“You were with him!”

A voice cried out,

Then another and another,

And that made him shout.

 

“Not me!  Not me!

You are sadly mistaken,

I do not know that man.”

Jesus, he had forsaken.

 

Now, he was in the fire

Having forsaken the Lord,

When he should have stood firm,

He went back on his word.

 

He had made him a promise

But had not followed through,

Now he was in the fire

Yes, he became the stew.

 

 

Not a tasty one though,

For he had denied his Lord,

By the fire then in the fire,

Being burnt by his word.

 

What a stupid cock!

Why did it have to crow?

It appeared there was nothing

That Jesus did not know.

 

Jesus said it would happen

But Peter refused to believe,

By the fire and in the fire

Now no one to relieve.

 

First, trying to find warmth,

Now more than he needs,

Still cold and all alone,

For relief he now pleads.

 

Fast forward two months:

Let’s see what we have here,

He’s not by the fire or in the fire

But on fire without fear.

 

 

The fearful one now fearless,

Is on fire for the Lord

And on the day of Pentecost

He declares the precious Word.

 

“This same Jesus,” he declares,

“Whom you crucified…”

Now on fire he testifies

Of Jesus he once denied.

 

A three-point sermon

That was long ago preached

By a well-known child of God

That we sometimes call “Teach”.

 

That “we” there

Refers to my wife and me,

I call him my mentor

And in a real sense so does she.

 

Before COVID-19 arrived

He was her Sunday school teacher

And in the Lodge Road church

He is a well-loved preacher.

 

By the fire is where Peter sat

In the fire is what Peter got,

But when the Spirit burned within

On fire became his lot.

 

Stewart Russell © April 29, 2021