In Christ Alone....

Ahh yes, my favorite song:

In Christ alone my hope is found

He is my light, my strength, my song

This Cornerstone, this solid ground

Firm through the fiercest drought and storm

What heights of love, what depths of peace

When fears are stilled, when strivings cease

My Comforter, my All in All

Here in the love of Christ I stand

In Christ alone, who took on flesh

Fullness of God in helpless babe

This gift of love and righteousness

Scorned by the ones He came to save'

Till on that cross as Jesus died

The wrath of God was satisfied

For every sin on Him was laid

Here in the death of Christ I live

There in the ground His body lay

Light of the world by darkness slain

Then bursting forth in glorious Day

Up from the grave He rose again

And as He stands in victory

Sin's curse has lost it's grip on me

For I am His and He is mine

Brought with the precious blood of Christ

No guilt in life, no fear in death

This is the power of Christ in me

From life's first cry to final breath

Jesus commands my destiny

No power of hell, no scheme of man

Can ever pluck me from His hand

'Till He returns or calls me home

Here in the power of Christ I'll stand

I don't have to write another word. The song says it all. But, I do want to write some thoughts. I get so excited every time we sing this song because of the truths it communicates. In a moment I want to share about just the first few words and what they mean to me, but first I must climb up on my soapbox and tell you guys what verse I think needs to be repeated every time we sing it and why.

I'm sure E Hughes is tired of me saying this, but I absolutely love verse 3. There is something about the progression of the verse that gives me the chills every time we sing it. It starts off a bit somber, talking about his body in the ground, light of the world by darkness slain. There almost seems like there needs to be a But at the beginning of the next sentence. I love buts. (No not butts, buts, the kind that you know that a complete change of thought is coming, kind of of like in Ephesians 2 where Paul was talking about us being dead in our sins, and then he says BUT God, being rich in mercy....anyways, i digress) Our faith, though, does hinge on the next two lines. Because, as Paul said somewhere in 1 Corinthians 15, if Christ wasn't resurrected from the dead, we should be pitied among ALL men.

Can you feel the excitement build with the next couple words... Then BURSTING forth, in GLORIOUS day, UP FROM THE GRAVE HE ROSE AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WAHOOOO!!!!!!!! I'm pumped just writing this.... We have hope because Jesus paid the price and defeated death. Sins curse has lost its grip on me because he defeated death and rose again!!!! If death couldn't hold him down, and we are in Him, what will hold us down? Can we please sing the verse again?? I want that excitement again.... death had seemingly won, BUT then, BURSTING forth in GLORIOUS day...HE ROSE!!! HE ROSE AGAIN!!! and He STANDS IN VICTORY!!!!!! and because he's victorious, SINS CURSE HAS LOST ITS GRIP ON ME!!! Are you serious???? How utterly amazing is that?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! I am HIS and he is mine...BOUGHT with the precious blood of Christ!!!! the great thing about this verse is that its not about me!!! Its stating the facts about what Jesus did! HE rose, He stands victorious, because He's victorious sins curse and lost its grip on me, and finally because I am his and HE bought me with HIS blood, i am HIS!!!!

So that's my soapbox of why verse 3 is sooo rocking and why I think it needs to be mandatory that every time we sing this song verse 3 must be repeated and I think we should all get ruckus (as Keith would say) because wow, history hinged on Christs finished work on the cross. We can't separate Christs death from his resurrection. If Christ wasn't raised from the dead, we would have no hope because we wouldn't have a living savior, interceding for us on our behalf. We couldn't pray to someone who isn't glorified, standing before God complete. If Christ wasn't resurrected, our faith is no different than that of Islam and Buddhism. Jesus is the way because his life paid the penalty and opened the way through us by defeating death and cancelling the sin debt that was against us (sounds like something from Colossi ans 1 or 3).

So i wanted to write about the weight of the statement In Christ Alone... however, I think my excitement got the best of me in that post. I'll leave my musings about In Christ Alone to another post. I hope you are encouraged and excited about this song, because WOW, its powerful. ALL 4 verses are (even though 3 is my favorite!)