Clothed with the sun
The radiant bride
Her tiara twelve stars
She stands at God’s side
The moon at her feet
Eyes soft as a dove
She looks at her Bridegroom
In worship and love
She portrays His reflection
In her eager face
Shining in beauty
In love, peace and grace
We were made righteous when Jesus was made sin.
On that memorable day, while our Saviour hung on the cross in agony, His body wracked with pain and weakened by the terrible torture and blood loss, the skies darkened as fallen angels filled the air. Every demonic force in the universe congregated above Golgotha and the surrounding areas. Each one of them was excited, eager and willing to bombard the holy, sinless body of Jesus with their filth of sin. They knew that He was exhausted and in acute pain, thirsty and sapped of physical strength. They had waited to destroy the seed of the woman for four thousand years. They had killed all the prophets in an effort to get rid of the Chosen One. Now was their time, they reasoned among themselves. Surely with such a brutal attack they would cause Him to sin. Surely He would curse GOD and die. After all, how could one man stand against the entire kingdom of Hell, especially in such a weakened state?
For three hours they bombard Jesus. Sin, condemnation, selfishness, covetousness, idol worship, foul language, lies, deceit, adultery, theft, murder, hatred, confusion, gossip, backbiting, pride, death,………The attack went on for what must have seemed like an eternity to Jesus, until He cried out in despair, “My GOD, My GOD, why have You forsaken me?” For the first time in His life, He couldn’t address GOD as Father. He had taken our place, taken all of our sin upon Him. He could no longer feel the presence of GOD, because the thick, evil darkness covered Him. He was experiencing separation from GOD. This was something Jesus had never before experienced. He and His Father had always lived in complete unity. Jesus had never sinned. Hell was incapable manipulating Him to sin, but the punishment for our sin was upon Him. After the demons had poured out every conceivable sin within them upon Jesus, the demons left, and the skies cleared.
Jesus then shouted with a loud voice, “It is finished! He was proclaiming that the debt had been paid in full. Immediately after, Jesus bowed His head and said, “Father, into Your hands I commit my spirit.” and died. Jesus couldn’t die by human hands, as He had never sinned and the punishment for sin is death. He had to choose to lay down His life.
We cannot become more righteous than we are by works. We cannot add to the finished work of the cross. We are already made the righteousness of GOD and that not of our own effort. The closer we draw to Jesus, the more our righteousness becomes visible, as it begins to shine more brightly through the veil of our flesh. We will continuously go from brighter to brighter, from strength to strength and from glory to glory as we keep our eyes and hearts on the precious, unadulterated Word of GOD until His perfect image is fully revealed in us. All glory, honour and strength be to our GOD forever and ever. Amen.
We speak as men approved of God
And trusted with His Word
Not trying to please men, but God
By Whom our hearts are stirred
We do not speak with flattery
And neither wear a mask
To cover greed or any sin
Your praise we do not ask
We encourage, comfort, urge you
As a father would his child
To live holy, righteous, blameless
To live worthy, undefiled
We thank God that you received
The Word of God within
That through trials and persecution
You stood steadfastly in Him
I know that You shake all that can be shaken
That only Your Kingdom will stand
When sin reached her fullness, the old world was shaken
And only eight people remained
Once more You are shaking the earth and the heavens
World systems are taking a dive
Economies fall, many countries are desolate
And many on debt now survive
No longer is gold the foundation of revenue
And oil rules the world in this day
Compromises are made with the enemies of Israel
And recompense is on its way
Earthquakes increase in size and in number
Also floods, tornadoes and storms
Hurricanes’ devastating aftermath
Constantly leave many victims forlorn
Crime and corruption are found in high places
Wrought by presidents, politicians and kings
Streets stained with blood by activists and rebels
And evil has spread out her blood stained wings
Millions of babies will never see daylight
They’re killed in the wombs by their mother’s choice
None classifies this as the murder of innocents
None of these babies are given a voice
Drug trafficking now has been outclassed by traffic
Of infants, children, women and teens
Slavery is more common this century
Than in any previous century seen
Crime invades homes in unfathomable numbers
Murders and thefts hardly make the news
Unless the victim is wealthy or famous
Criminals happen to do as they choose
Creation’s travailing as one that’s in birth pains
Under the onslaught of man’s cruel attack
Desperately waiting to be liberated
Wanting her glorious freedom back
Clothed with the sun
The radiant bride
Her tiara twelve stars
She stands at God’s side
The moon at her feet
Eyes soft as a dove
She looks at her Bridegroom
In worship and love
She portrays His reflection
In her eager face
Shining in beauty
In love, peace and grace
Give thanks to the Lord and call on His Name
Make known what He’s done, spread abroad His fame
Sing to the Lord and lift up your voice
And glory in His holy Name
Tell of God’s mighty and wonderful deeds
Children, glorify His holy Name
Look to the Lord and the Word His power
Eternally our God will reign
Remember the miracles that God has done
When the mountains seem too high to climb
When the battle is raging just trust in His love
And He’ll give you the victory each time
God remembers His covenant eternally
He’s unchanging and He won’t renege
He has saved us in love that surpasses all things
And He cherishes all He has made
From one man God created all nations
To inhabit the whole of the earth
He also determined the times set for them
The exact places where they should live
God did all this so that men should seek Him
And that those who sought Him would find
So that they might be saved from their sin and sin’s sorrows
And leave all the darkness behind
Yet our God is not a God away
Though He’s ruler of all things that be
He’s as close as our heart beat and if we invite Him
He’ll dwell in us eternally
Don’t darken God’s counsel with words without knowledge
Don’t blame Him when life lets you down
Don’t question His honour, His love or compassion
Our God is a God of renown
His thoughts are not our thoughts and neither His ways
Both surpass all the stars up above
He isn’t a man with man’s many shortcomings
Our God is the essence of love
Ask God for a tongue that’s instructed in truth
Search the Word for the answers to life
Don’t stumble in darkness, step into the Light
And come out of this world of strife
Do not put your trust in idols
They can’t see, nor hear, nor speak
They have no understanding
To provide the peace you seek
Do not put your trust in moon and stars
Though they’re an awesome sight
Nor in the sun which shines by day
To bring us warmth and light
Do not put your trust in prince
Nor in the strong, nor in the brave
Nor in presidents, nor rulers
Of this world that’s so depraved
They’re mortal men who cannot save
Their lives are but a breath
And all their plans will perish
At the moment of their death
Do not put your trust in fortresses
Nor in celestial beings
Creation cannot save us
Nor this world’s material things
But put your trust in God alone
And in the power of His Word
For He is able to deliver you
From every evil work
Blessed are the men and women who reverence the Lord
Who walk daily in His Spirit, delighting in His Word
Their descendants will excel in everything they do
The generation of the upright will be blessed each day anew
Riches and honour reside within their home
Given to them by the Father, all these come from Him alone
Theirs is righteousness forever for the blood has set them free
Even in the darkness, they’ve the Light of victory
They’re people of compassion, they are gracious and upright
They are generous, lending freely, in God’s favour they delight
Their affairs they guide with justice; they’re not shaken in their faith
Their hearts are steadfast when bad news, comes trusting in the Father’s grace