THE OLD RUGGED CROSS
So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness... When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. Colossians 2:6-7, 13-15
Never forget the cross that Jesus Christ died on. There was victory on that cross. Do you remember the song, The Old Rugged Cross written by George Bennard? How many of us were raised singing that song for so many years? As we prepare our hearts for Resurrection Sunday, may we never forget the huge suffering and sacrifice that Jesus Christ paid on the wooden cross.
I have a special book called, The One Year Book of Hymns which give you the words to hymns and a small story of how the hymns were written by the author/song writer. George Bennard had been with the Salvation Army before he was ordained as a pastor. Mr. Bennard was staying in Albion, Michigan when he wrote the words to The Old Rugged Cross first and then the melody. Then he rewrote the words after the Lord put new words into his heart after his own special need. A little while later, The Old Rugged Cross was introduced at a special meeting in Pokagon, Michigan, on June 7, 1913. Mr. Bennard was putting on revival services in the Midwest. After the song was sung at an evangelistic convention, the people took the song back to their homes throughout the country. The Holy Spirit blessed the song from those services to the present. How amazing when they did not have the Internet!
Let me share the words of The Old Rugged Cross and you can read it or sing it out loud as it brings back many memories to your own heart or go to You Tube and listen to it:
The Old Rugged Cross
On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross,
The emblem of suffering and shame;
and I love that old cross where the dearest and best
for a world of lost sinners was slain.
(Chorus)
So I'll cherish the old rugged cross,
‘Till my trophies at last I lay down;
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
and exchange it some day for a crown.
O that old rugged cross, so despised by the world,
has a wondrous attraction for me;
For the dear Lamb of God left His glory
above to bear it to dark Calvary.
In that old rugged cross, stained with blood so divine,
A wondrous beauty I see, for ‘twas on that old cross
Jesus suffered and died, To pardon and sanctify me.
To that old rugged cross I will ever be true,
its shame and reproach gladly bear;
then He'll call me some day to my home far away,
where his glory forever I'll share.
Words and tune by George Bennard, Copyright 1913
Copyright Renewed 1941 The Rodeheaver Co.
Used by permission - CCLI#1273562
When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls. 1 Peter 2:23-25
Peter had no idea what God's assignment and the ultimate purposes were for Jesus and for his own future. You need to always seek the Lord's will and way in your prayer closet before you allow others to direct you on to a detour road toward separation, divorce or giving up standing for your marriage being restored in God's perfect timing.
“But what about you?â€he asked. “Who do you say I am?â€Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.†Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.†Matthew 16:15-18
Are you willing to choose to pick up your cross and follow your Lord Jesus Christ? Let's read the passage in Matthew 16:
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.†Matthew 16:24-27
God's way is definitely not going to be the world’s way. I pray you will not listen to other people's opinions, but seek and grow in the Lord with new fervor and with a tenacious spirit of perseverance, wanting to do only God’s will and His way for your marriage that is being destroyed due to many difficult circumstances.
I pray you will surrender your heart, life and marriage to the Lord. He is the only One who can change your current circumstances by rebuilding and restoring your marriage. The Lord is the only One who can touch and change your spouse's heart. The secret in our marriage restoration was that I chose to seek the Lord after our divorce, to rebuild our marriage starting with the Lord changing me first. I also knew that I was to wait forever for my one flesh covenant marriage to be resurrected from the dead and restored. Never stop praying and believing for your spouse's salvation.
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:... taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross! 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 confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:5, 7b-11
May you never forget for yourself and for your husband or wife that there is freedom in Jesus Christ. Yes, it may take time. You will have to pick up your cross, choosing to follow your Lord Jesus Christ every day, saying “No†to the world’s way and your flesh.
For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1 Corinthians 1:17-18
We as believers need to know who we are in Christ. As Liberty Bible Commentary says it so well: By Jesus’ death, Christ conquered His enemies, stripped them of their power, exposed them to public disgrace, held them up in contempt, and led them captives in His triumph.
Your Lord wants to have your spouse set free from all the bondages of sins that they have opened up in their lives. Our Lord God wants everyone to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ first in their lives. This Lord's Day pray that your husband or wife's spiritual eyes, that are blinded by the world and Satan, will be opened to see God's truths. Jesus Christ is alive! Your marriage that appears to be dead, will come back to life again!
Have a blessed day,
Charlyne Steinkamp
Rejoice Marriage Ministries, Inc.
So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness... When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. Colossians 2:6-7, 13-15
Never forget the cross that Jesus Christ died on. There was victory on that cross. Do you remember the song, The Old Rugged Cross written by George Bennard? How many of us were raised singing that song for so many years? As we prepare our hearts for Resurrection Sunday, may we never forget the huge suffering and sacrifice that Jesus Christ paid on the wooden cross.
I have a special book called, The One Year Book of Hymns which give you the words to hymns and a small story of how the hymns were written by the author/song writer. George Bennard had been with the Salvation Army before he was ordained as a pastor. Mr. Bennard was staying in Albion, Michigan when he wrote the words to The Old Rugged Cross first and then the melody. Then he rewrote the words after the Lord put new words into his heart after his own special need. A little while later, The Old Rugged Cross was introduced at a special meeting in Pokagon, Michigan, on June 7, 1913. Mr. Bennard was putting on revival services in the Midwest. After the song was sung at an evangelistic convention, the people took the song back to their homes throughout the country. The Holy Spirit blessed the song from those services to the present. How amazing when they did not have the Internet!
Let me share the words of The Old Rugged Cross and you can read it or sing it out loud as it brings back many memories to your own heart or go to You Tube and listen to it:
The Old Rugged Cross
On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross,
The emblem of suffering and shame;
and I love that old cross where the dearest and best
for a world of lost sinners was slain.
(Chorus)
So I'll cherish the old rugged cross,
‘Till my trophies at last I lay down;
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
and exchange it some day for a crown.
O that old rugged cross, so despised by the world,
has a wondrous attraction for me;
For the dear Lamb of God left His glory
above to bear it to dark Calvary.
In that old rugged cross, stained with blood so divine,
A wondrous beauty I see, for ‘twas on that old cross
Jesus suffered and died, To pardon and sanctify me.
To that old rugged cross I will ever be true,
its shame and reproach gladly bear;
then He'll call me some day to my home far away,
where his glory forever I'll share.
Words and tune by George Bennard, Copyright 1913
Copyright Renewed 1941 The Rodeheaver Co.
Used by permission - CCLI#1273562
When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls. 1 Peter 2:23-25
Peter had no idea what God's assignment and the ultimate purposes were for Jesus and for his own future. You need to always seek the Lord's will and way in your prayer closet before you allow others to direct you on to a detour road toward separation, divorce or giving up standing for your marriage being restored in God's perfect timing.
“But what about you?â€he asked. “Who do you say I am?â€Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.†Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.†Matthew 16:15-18
Are you willing to choose to pick up your cross and follow your Lord Jesus Christ? Let's read the passage in Matthew 16:
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.†Matthew 16:24-27
God's way is definitely not going to be the world’s way. I pray you will not listen to other people's opinions, but seek and grow in the Lord with new fervor and with a tenacious spirit of perseverance, wanting to do only God’s will and His way for your marriage that is being destroyed due to many difficult circumstances.
I pray you will surrender your heart, life and marriage to the Lord. He is the only One who can change your current circumstances by rebuilding and restoring your marriage. The Lord is the only One who can touch and change your spouse's heart. The secret in our marriage restoration was that I chose to seek the Lord after our divorce, to rebuild our marriage starting with the Lord changing me first. I also knew that I was to wait forever for my one flesh covenant marriage to be resurrected from the dead and restored. Never stop praying and believing for your spouse's salvation.
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:... taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross! 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 confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:5, 7b-11
May you never forget for yourself and for your husband or wife that there is freedom in Jesus Christ. Yes, it may take time. You will have to pick up your cross, choosing to follow your Lord Jesus Christ every day, saying “No†to the world’s way and your flesh.
For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1 Corinthians 1:17-18
We as believers need to know who we are in Christ. As Liberty Bible Commentary says it so well: By Jesus’ death, Christ conquered His enemies, stripped them of their power, exposed them to public disgrace, held them up in contempt, and led them captives in His triumph.
Your Lord wants to have your spouse set free from all the bondages of sins that they have opened up in their lives. Our Lord God wants everyone to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ first in their lives. This Lord's Day pray that your husband or wife's spiritual eyes, that are blinded by the world and Satan, will be opened to see God's truths. Jesus Christ is alive! Your marriage that appears to be dead, will come back to life again!
Have a blessed day,
Charlyne Steinkamp
Rejoice Marriage Ministries, Inc.
