Glorified, Honey and Newton...
Glorified
As far as any eye could see
There was no green. But every tree
Was cinder black, and all the ground
Was grey with ash. The only sound
Was arid wind, like spirits' ghosts,
Now gasping for some living hosts
In which to dwell, as in the days
Of evil men, before the blaze
Of unimaginable fire
Had made the earth a flaming pyre
For God's omnipotent display
Of holy rage. The dreadful Day
Of God had come. The moon had turned
To blood. The sun no longer burned
Above, but, blazing with desire,
Had flowed into a lake of fire.
The seas and oceans were no more,
And in their place a desert floor
Fell deep to meet the brazen skies,
And silence conquered distant cries.
The Lord stood still above the air.
His mighty arms were moist and bare.
They hung, as weary, by his side
Until the human blood had dried
Upon the sword in his right hand.
He stared across the blackened land
That he had made, and where he died.
His lips were tight, and deep inside,
The mystery of sovereign will
Gave leave, and it began to spill
In tears upon his bloody sword
For one last time.
And then the Lord
Wiped every tear away and turned
To see his bride. Her heart had yearned
Four thousand years for this: His face
Shone like the sun, and every trace
Of wrath was gone. And in her bliss
She heard the Master say, "Watch this:
Come forth all goodness from the ground,
Come forth and let the earth redound
With joy." And as he spoke, the throne
Of God came down to earth and shone
Like golden crystal full of light,
And banished once for all the night.
And from the throne a stream began
To flow and laugh, and as it ran,
It made a river and a lake,
And everywhere it flowed a wake
Of grass broke on the banks and spread
Like resurrection from the dead.
And in the twinkling of an eye
The saints descended from the sky.
And as I knelt beside the brook
To drink eternal life, I took
A glance across the golden grass,
And saw my dog, old Blackie, fast
As she could come. She leaped the stream-
Almost-and what a happy gleam
Was in her eye.I knelt to drink,
And knew that I was on the brink
Of endless joy. And everywhere
I turned I saw a wonder there.
A big man running on the lawn:
That's old John Younge with both legs on.
And there's old Beryl, and Arnold too,
Still holding hands beneath the blue
And crystal sky: No stoop, they stand
Erect. No tremor in their hand.
The blind can see a bird on wing,
The dumb can lift his voice and sing.
The diabetic eats at will,
The coronary runs uphill.
The lame can walk, the deaf can hear,
The cancer-ridden bone is clear.
Arthritic joints are lithe and free,
And every pain has ceased to be.
And every sorrow deep within,
And every trace of lingering sin
Is gone. And all that's left is joy,
And endless ages to employ
The mind and heart to understand
And love the sovereign Lord who planned
That it should take eternity
To lavish all his grace on me.
O God of wonder, God of might,
Grant us some elevated sight,
Of endless days. And let us see
The joy of what is yet to be.
And may your future make us free,
And guard us by the hope that we,
Within the light of candle three,
Your glory will forever see.
-John Piper, 2003
-----------------------------------------------------------
"As honey tasted, seems to make all other things seem to have no taste at all; so does the cross seen by faith,take all the sweetness out of the pleasures of the world." -J.C. Ryle (The Cross of Christ)
------------------------------------------------------------
What a poor, uncertain, dying world is this!
What a wilderness in itself! How dark, how
desolate, without the light of the Gospel and
knowledge of Jesus!
It does not appear so to
us in a state of nature,
because we are then
in a state of enchantment,
the magical lantern
blinding us with a grand delusion.
It is a great mercy to be undeceived in time;
and though our gay dreams are at an end,
and we awake to everything that is disgustful and
dismaying, yet we see a highway through the
wilderness, an infallible guide at hand to conduct
us through; and we can discern, beyond the limits
of the wilderness, a better land, where we shall
be at rest and at home.
What will the difficulties we met by the way then
signify? The remembrance of them will only remain
to heighten our sense of the love, care, and power
of our Saviour and Leader. O how shall we then
admire, adore, and praise Him, when He shall
condescend to unfold to us the beauty, propriety,
and harmony of the whole train of his dispensations
towards us, and give us a clear retrospect of all
the way and all the turns of our pilgrimage!
In the meanwhile, the best method of adorning
our profession, and of enjoying peace in our souls,
is simply to trust Him, and absolutely to commit
ourselves and our all to His management.
By casting our burdens upon Him, our
spirits become light and cheerful; we are freed from a
thousand anxieties and inquietudes, which are
wearisome to our minds, and which with respect
to events, are needless for us, yes, useless.
But though it may be easy to speak of this trust,
and it appears to our judgement perfectly right
and reasonable, the actual attainment is a great
thing; and especially so to trust the Lord, not by
fits and starts, surrendering one day and retracting
the next, but to abide by our surrender, and go
habitually trusting through all the changes we meet,
knowing that His love, purpose, and promise are
unchangeable.
Some little faintings perhaps none are freed from;
but I believe a power of trusting the Lord in good
measure at all times, and living quietly under the
shadow of His wing, is what the promise warrants
us to expect, if we seek it by diligent prayer;
if not all at once, yet by a gradual increase.
May it be your experience and mine!
-John Newton
As far as any eye could see
There was no green. But every tree
Was cinder black, and all the ground
Was grey with ash. The only sound
Was arid wind, like spirits' ghosts,
Now gasping for some living hosts
In which to dwell, as in the days
Of evil men, before the blaze
Of unimaginable fire
Had made the earth a flaming pyre
For God's omnipotent display
Of holy rage. The dreadful Day
Of God had come. The moon had turned
To blood. The sun no longer burned
Above, but, blazing with desire,
Had flowed into a lake of fire.
The seas and oceans were no more,
And in their place a desert floor
Fell deep to meet the brazen skies,
And silence conquered distant cries.
The Lord stood still above the air.
His mighty arms were moist and bare.
They hung, as weary, by his side
Until the human blood had dried
Upon the sword in his right hand.
He stared across the blackened land
That he had made, and where he died.
His lips were tight, and deep inside,
The mystery of sovereign will
Gave leave, and it began to spill
In tears upon his bloody sword
For one last time.
And then the Lord
Wiped every tear away and turned
To see his bride. Her heart had yearned
Four thousand years for this: His face
Shone like the sun, and every trace
Of wrath was gone. And in her bliss
She heard the Master say, "Watch this:
Come forth all goodness from the ground,
Come forth and let the earth redound
With joy." And as he spoke, the throne
Of God came down to earth and shone
Like golden crystal full of light,
And banished once for all the night.
And from the throne a stream began
To flow and laugh, and as it ran,
It made a river and a lake,
And everywhere it flowed a wake
Of grass broke on the banks and spread
Like resurrection from the dead.
And in the twinkling of an eye
The saints descended from the sky.
And as I knelt beside the brook
To drink eternal life, I took
A glance across the golden grass,
And saw my dog, old Blackie, fast
As she could come. She leaped the stream-
Almost-and what a happy gleam
Was in her eye.I knelt to drink,
And knew that I was on the brink
Of endless joy. And everywhere
I turned I saw a wonder there.
A big man running on the lawn:
That's old John Younge with both legs on.
And there's old Beryl, and Arnold too,
Still holding hands beneath the blue
And crystal sky: No stoop, they stand
Erect. No tremor in their hand.
The blind can see a bird on wing,
The dumb can lift his voice and sing.
The diabetic eats at will,
The coronary runs uphill.
The lame can walk, the deaf can hear,
The cancer-ridden bone is clear.
Arthritic joints are lithe and free,
And every pain has ceased to be.
And every sorrow deep within,
And every trace of lingering sin
Is gone. And all that's left is joy,
And endless ages to employ
The mind and heart to understand
And love the sovereign Lord who planned
That it should take eternity
To lavish all his grace on me.
O God of wonder, God of might,
Grant us some elevated sight,
Of endless days. And let us see
The joy of what is yet to be.
And may your future make us free,
And guard us by the hope that we,
Within the light of candle three,
Your glory will forever see.
-John Piper, 2003
-----------------------------------------------------------
"As honey tasted, seems to make all other things seem to have no taste at all; so does the cross seen by faith,take all the sweetness out of the pleasures of the world." -J.C. Ryle (The Cross of Christ)
------------------------------------------------------------
What a poor, uncertain, dying world is this!
What a wilderness in itself! How dark, how
desolate, without the light of the Gospel and
knowledge of Jesus!
It does not appear so to
us in a state of nature,
because we are then
in a state of enchantment,
the magical lantern
blinding us with a grand delusion.
It is a great mercy to be undeceived in time;
and though our gay dreams are at an end,
and we awake to everything that is disgustful and
dismaying, yet we see a highway through the
wilderness, an infallible guide at hand to conduct
us through; and we can discern, beyond the limits
of the wilderness, a better land, where we shall
be at rest and at home.
What will the difficulties we met by the way then
signify? The remembrance of them will only remain
to heighten our sense of the love, care, and power
of our Saviour and Leader. O how shall we then
admire, adore, and praise Him, when He shall
condescend to unfold to us the beauty, propriety,
and harmony of the whole train of his dispensations
towards us, and give us a clear retrospect of all
the way and all the turns of our pilgrimage!
In the meanwhile, the best method of adorning
our profession, and of enjoying peace in our souls,
is simply to trust Him, and absolutely to commit
ourselves and our all to His management.
By casting our burdens upon Him, our
spirits become light and cheerful; we are freed from a
thousand anxieties and inquietudes, which are
wearisome to our minds, and which with respect
to events, are needless for us, yes, useless.
But though it may be easy to speak of this trust,
and it appears to our judgement perfectly right
and reasonable, the actual attainment is a great
thing; and especially so to trust the Lord, not by
fits and starts, surrendering one day and retracting
the next, but to abide by our surrender, and go
habitually trusting through all the changes we meet,
knowing that His love, purpose, and promise are
unchangeable.
Some little faintings perhaps none are freed from;
but I believe a power of trusting the Lord in good
measure at all times, and living quietly under the
shadow of His wing, is what the promise warrants
us to expect, if we seek it by diligent prayer;
if not all at once, yet by a gradual increase.
May it be your experience and mine!
-John Newton
