At the Cross (Love Ran Red)

The next entry for my Blog is At the Cross (Love Ran Red), which was written by Matt Armstrong, Ed Cash, Chris Tomlin, Matt Redman, and Jonas Myrin and released by Chris Tomlin in 2014. A link to Chris Tomlin singing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

At the Cross (Love Ran Red)

There’s a place where mercy reigns
And never dies
There’s a place where streams of grace
Flow deep and wide
Where all the love I’ve ever found
Comes like a flood
Comes flowing down

At the cross, at the cross
I surrender my life
I’m in awe of You
I’m in awe of You
Where Your love ran red
And my sin washed white
I owe all to You
I owe all to You, Jesus

There’s a place where sin and shame
Are powerless
Where my heart has peace with God
And forgiveness
Where all the love I’ve ever found
Comes like a flood
Comes flowing down

At the cross, at the cross
I surrender my life
I’m in awe of You
I’m in awe of You
Where Your love ran red
And my sin washed white
I owe all to You
I owe all to You

Here my hope is found
Here on holy ground
Here I bow down
Here I bow down
Here arms open wide
Here You save my life
Here I bow down
Here I bow

At the cross, at the cross
I surrender my life
I’m in awe of You
I’m in awe of You
Where Your love ran red
And my sin washed white
I owe all to You
I owe all to You
I owe all to You
I owe all to You, Jesus, Jesus
Your love ran red
Your love ran red

Can you imagine what our life would be like if we were punished for every wrong, aka sin, that we committed? Maybe our sin was a lie, maybe saying something we shouldn’t have said, maybe it is what we watch on TV or at the movies, maybe we cheated in our marriage; I think you get the point. The net is we would live a life of doing wrong, as we do today, and receive immediate and ongoing punishment. What kind of life would that be? Jesus commanded us to obey his commands and since God is our creator, why wouldn’t he punish us for wandering away from him? The good news is that our God is a merciful and loving God, who cares for his family, his children. Because of his love, he is willing to give us mercy, which is basically a continual wipe the slate clean get out of jail card on a permanent basis. Mercy is when God doesn’t give us what we deserve. God never gives up on us and never turns his back on us, his mercy is always flowing. No matter the magnitude or our sin, his love is deeper and wider than we could ever imagine. I compare his love and mercy to a massive waterfall that washes away everything in its path. Just as the waterfall ultimately ends in a flowing river, such is the love of God that washes away all of our sin and brings peace to our life. This love and mercy far exceed what we can find with anyone or anything else.

This mercy came to us via the cross, the son of God dying for each of us as individuals and as the children of God. As Jesus hung on that cross, he had blood flowing from the beatings he was subjected to, the nails in his hands, the nails in his feet, the wound in his side, and the crown of thorns on his head. Greater than the flow of blood was the flowing of his love for us. Because of the death and outpouring of the blood of Christ on the cross, God gives us perpetual love and mercy that never ceases. All that is asked of us is that we accept Christ as our savior, and recognize that he died for us. If we do not accept him, then he died in vain and we trade our heavenly home for an eternity in hell. We should all be in awe of what Christ was willing to do for us, even though many of us may never accept him as our personal savior. What can be more important in our lives than recognizing what Jesus did for us, the courage it took, and the pain he endured? His flowing blood and his love washed all of our sins away and we have become white as snow since we will no longer have the blackness of sin; he forgave us all of sins we have committed and will ever commit while he hung on that cross. It is so easy to surrender our life to Jesus and he asks so little of us. Most of us are focused on today and our narrow view of tomorrow, whereas with Jesus; we can focus on eternity.

Any hope we have in life is misplaced if it is not in Jesus. Jesus is the only being worthy of our worship, nothing we strive for or attain in our life is greater than eternal life that only he can offer. Without Jesus, what do we have to live for? I recently read a devotion by Max Lucado which stated that suicide rates were up and that perhaps it is due to the fact that people without Jesus in their lives have no hope beyond their time on this earth. Hopefully you have surrendered your life to Jesus, have kneeled at the foot of the cross, and have let the love of Christ flow over you and wash away all of your darkness.

Click to Hear Chris Tomlin Sing At the Cross (Love Ran Red)

Here I Am To Worship

The next entry for my Blog is Here I Am To Worship and was first released in 2001.  The original lyrics were written by Tim Hughes.  A link to Chris Tomlin performing the song is at the bottom of the Blog.

Here I Am to Worship

Light of the world
You stepped down into darkness
Opened my eyes, let me see
Beauty that made this heart adore You
Hope of a life spent with You

Here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that You’re my God

You’re altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me

King of all days
Oh so highly exalted
Glorious in heaven above
Humbly You came to the earth You created
All for love’s sake became poor

Here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that You’re my God

You’re altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me

Well, I’ll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross

Well, I’ll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross

Well, I’ll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross

Well, I’ll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross

Have you ever stopped for a while and just thought about all of the things going on around you, across the country, and around the world?  It is sort of scary living in a world that puts “ME” first.  It is almost as if people are shifting from a focus on family and others to an “It’s all about me” mentality.  The more we adopt this philosophy, the farther we get from God, what he wants and expects from us, and the blessings only he can provide; the darker the world becomes.   There is no true happiness in a dark world without the light and love of Jesus.

He showed us that light some 2000 years ago, when he humbly set foot on this earth and let us see him, touch him, and feel the light and love that no one else can offer.  Jesus gave up the perfect peace of heaven to come to this dark and troubled world. Imagine the shock if you had to give up everything and then sacrifice yourself for those who might even hate you.  He came as a simple man and walked in our sinful world and the people did not realize his true power until he arose from the grave and then ascended into heaven.  For those who believed then and believe now, we have his love and his promises inside us; we just have to reach out to him for peace.  Jesus is the only one who can show us the real beauty of what life can be and how he wanted it to be.  He only asks that we accept him as our Lord and Savior and he committed to giving us eternal life.  We just have to survive our few short years on earth to live an eternity with him.

With the above two paragraphs in mind, it is obvious that our priorities as a civilization are all out of whack.  The chorus of the song basically screams what we need to do.  We need to stop living the ways of the world and start worshipping our God again; make him first instead of an afterthought.  Our heads should be bowing in worship as we cry out to God for help, guidance, and forgiveness.  He is the only one who is worthy of our worship and he is the only one we can depend on every day of our lives.  No one else or anything else is worthy of our praise.  Philippians 2:9-11 delivers this message to us: Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.  Do we spend more time focused on the events of the world than on the expectations of God?  In other words, who or what is your true god and can that god bring you the happiness you want?   The answer is we are all guilty of putting other things/gods before the one God.  We eventually lose our hope in the midst of the noise of the world around us and forget about the only God who loves us and can bring us light.

He is the owner and master of every day of our lives, and has been that way since the day he created us.  He is the almighty God that rules the universe, he is not limited to just our world.  The good news is that he is still in control, we just need to get onboard.  Now and forever is the time to worship, to honor his glory and to him above all else.  He doesn’t fit in an “It’s all about me” world.

We will never clearly understand the suffering and separation that Christ endured while on the cross; he never wants us to endure what he did and that is why he paid the price.  Where is your focus today, is it where it should be?  How long has it been since you have broken down in prayer while asking for forgiveness or for change in your world?  Take time to stop and sing this chorus with feeling and power and I believe you will understand.  Now is the time to worship, now is the time to bow down, and now is the time to tell God how much you love him and want to do what he has commanded.

Click to Hear Chris Tomlin Perform Here I am to Worship.

How Great is Our God

The next song for my Blog was written by Chris Tomlin, Ed Cash, Jesse Reeves and was first released in 2004.  A link to Chris Tomlin performing the song is at the bottom of this Blog entry.

How Great is Our God

The splendor of a King, clothed in majesty
Let all the Earth rejoice
All the Earth rejoice

He wraps himself in light
And darkness tries to hide
And trembles at His voice
Trembles at His voice

How great is our God, sing with me
How great is our God, and all will see
How great, how great is our God

Age to age He stands
And time is in His hands
Beginning and the end

The Godhead Three in One
Father Spirit Son
The Lion and the Lamb
The Lion and the Lamb

How great is our God, sing with me
How great is our God, and all will see
How great, how great is our God

Name above all names
Worthy of our praise
My heart will sing
How great is our God

You’re the name above all names
You are worthy of our praise
And my heart will sing
How great is our God

How great is our God, sing with me
How great is our God, and all will see
How great, how great is our God

How great is our God, sing with me
How great is our God, and all will see
How great, how great is our God

The whole world sings, the whole world sings
How great is our God
How great is our God
How great, how great is our God.

We may often talk about the greatness of God, but have you ever really stopped and thought about what greatness means and how this applies to God?   The writers of this song have done a very good job describing the attribute of greatness as it relates to God.

He has the radiance, magnificence, glory, brightness, and nobility of a king; yet is not defined by a robe or a throne.  He is not the king of a country or the king of just a sect or group of people; he is the king of the world, which he made.  He is a king of love who sent his only son to die for us so that we could have eternal life, so why wouldn’t we rejoice?  The entire world should rejoice because of the love of our king and the future he has prepared for us.

God is described as being wrapped in light.  It is the light of truth, the light of holiness, and the light of absolute power.  The light draws those who want to become part of his kingdom and be with him forever.  Those who only seek to bring darkness into the world and destroy hearts and souls of others cower at his sight and try to hide from him.  Even the most evil beings in the world recognize the glory and power of the one God.

The chorus illustrates the love of those who are drawn to this light.  Let’s all sing together about the love of the one clothed in the light and his power.  As we sing of our God, others will join us and help spread the message around the world of the greatness of not just a God, but our God, the God.  The voices we raise in song of the one God will help to bring love and hope to a dark world.  One day, all will see his power and his glory and his greatness.

He is not just the God of today, he is the God of the beginning and the end.  Only he can see the past and the future and only he, as the creator, knows what the future brings for each of us.  He is more than just the creator; he is the father who created this world, the son who came to this world to die for our sins so we could have eternal peace, and the spirit that resides in us which always reminds us of his love and his promise.  In his role as the son, he was both a lion and a lamb.  He was a lamb in that he was sacrificed for us.  The lamb symbolizes purity, meekness, and forgiveness; all qualities of someone who would lay down their life for us.  

Our God is also a lion, one of the most powerful and fearless animals on the earth.  Proverbs 28:1 references the power and fearlessness of a lion:

“The wicked flee when no one pursues them, but the righteous are as bold as a lion..”

For those who love the Lord and have accepted Christ as their savior, he is the lamb who has given them eternal life.  The power of the lion is there for all who believe and accept and there is no power that can take God’s love away from them.  Satan, his legions, and the world may come after those of us who have God by our side and in our hearts, but they can never win.  God has promised us as his children, an eternal life with him.

His name is above all names because he is above every being and is the master of every living creature on earth.  God is the only being who deserves our praise and our worship.  Too many times we put our lives, our jobs, our personal pursuits, and our money ahead of him; yet only he is eternal and worthy of all praise. 

Our song of praise and worship begins in our heart and rises to our lips as we let everyone know the greatness of our God.  Let your song be heard.

Click to Hear Chris Tomlin Sing How Great is Our God