The Lamb's Exaltation

[babylonsfalling]

The Lamb’s Exaltation

Yea do our souls magnify the Lord,
to rejoice in our Savior and King,
for by his strong arm have all men been restored
whence done unto us a holiest thing.

For He hath regarded our lowly estate,
hath raised us on high,
from our tormented fate,
that none be condemned,
that none be distressed,
that all generations may ever be blest.
He hath shown strength in His mighty arm,
and protected the weak
from the coming of harm.

He which is mighty hath made mighty salvation,
for we which trod blindly
to a lost condemnation.
He shall fill up the hungry to make them as kings,
and empty the wealthy
of their gold and their rings.

He shall raise up the lowly to their greatest hour.
He shall pull down the mighty
from the thrones of their power.
And the proud shall be scattered throughout each generation,
that the meek then be gathered
for the Lamb’s exaltation.

Luke 1:46-55
Revelation 5:13

[MANICHAEAN]

Thanks babylonsfalling, you captured it well. Faith is not based upon logic and you either have it or you don't. Your piece reminded me of those words; "The stars in their heaven's proclaim the deliverence of mankind. As is the will of God in Heaven, so on earth let it be."
Regards
M.

[Jerrybaldy]

Faith, you either have it or you don't. So if you have it then you are destined to follow the religious cult of the land/family background/prevailing belief you find yourself in and deny all others. 'What a crock of horse sh*t' said the elephant in the room.

[MANICHAEAN]

Strange way for an elephant to think. Mind you, how can we ascertain if they can draw a distinction between belief and denial in others.

[Jerrybaldy]

Metaphorical elephants probably don't think so much, but if they did they may wonder as to the use of denial as a chosen description of non-belief.

[MANICHAEAN]

Ha ha. Its so encouraging to come across someone who knows the difference between his elephant and his elbow. In fact it's about as rare as finding humour in The Book of Job.

[babylonsfalling]

Thanks babylonsfalling, you captured it well. Faith is not based upon logic and you either have it or you don't. Your piece reminded me of those words; "The stars in their heaven's proclaim the deliverence of mankind. As is the will of God in Heaven, so on earth let it be."
Regards
M.

Sounds kind of like predestination...which I'm a bit leery of based on the way it gets played out sometimes.

I actually believe everyone has some level of innate faith/knowledge/sense of God, but that some are in their own little hostile denial mode about it. The sense of God exists in all of us, but is not welcome in some. Romans 1:20 says it well.

Almost all those individuals get over their issues though, and when they do, they often end up as more dedicated Christians than most lifelong believers.

Thanks for your generous comments.

[loki456]

Mani.... c'mon, Job is humorous... don't you find it funny that the devil made it his 'job' to destroy a man named 'Job' so much that he would denounce his faith and curse God?

Humorous indeed - what's even funnier, in the end he got more than what he initially had!

[MANICHAEAN]

I’m not sure if predestination is the right word. More “hope,” which to me is an important factor in faith. Perhaps even “acceptance?” The quote actually was from Churchill to the British people at a particularly dark time during the last war. Another story from that time, was when the Archbishop of Canterbury kept pushing the Prime Minister regards air defenses to protect the famous Cathedral. “But what if the bombers still get through?” the esteemed cleric pressed. The reply was “Then you must regard the result as an act of Divine Providence!”

Don’t worry about hostile reactions & the consummate command of the English language in which they are couched. There is no such thing as a negative virtue when it comes to self-expression.

“Born again types” terrify me, but then like the other extreme, I find them good sport.

Sorry for the cross-fire diversions. The poem was well written.

Best regards
M.

Doc
The crux of your ability to get on with people & relate to them is because you "CAN" find humour in The Book of Job. Its that black humour to laugh at the absurd which very likely keeps you so balanced. (Excellent qualities if I might say for one in your profession).

I was just winding the other gentleman up, but then your perceptive eye had most probably already ascertained that.

M.

[babylonsfalling]

I’m not sure if predestination is the right word. More “hope,” which to me is an important factor in faith. Perhaps even “acceptance?” The quote actually was from Churchill to the British people at a particularly dark time during the last war. Another story from that time, was when the Archbishop of Canterbury kept pushing the Prime Minister regards air defenses to protect the famous Cathedral. “But what if the bombers still get through?” the esteemed cleric pressed. The reply was “Then you must regard the result as an act of Divine Providence!”

Don’t worry about hostile reactions & the consummate command of the English language in which they are couched. There is no such thing as a negative virtue when it comes to self-expression.

“Born again types” terrify me, but then like the other extreme, I find them good sport.

Sorry for the cross-fire diversions. The poem was well written.

Best regards
M.

You don't need to apologize for that....it's a public msg board so the flow can go in any direction and it really doesn't bother me anyway.

I think I know what you mean about the born again types...which are often of the same crowd as the predestination types. If you don't agree with them it usually means you are not born again/predestined/saved, and therefore ARE doomed to hell......unless you get saved.....which is always demonstrated by (coincidentally) changing your mind and suddenly starting to agree with them.

[MANICHAEAN]

I'm not sure if I admire or feel sorry for people who quite simply accept the particular faith they are (given?) in childhood. Even to this day, I argue with aspects of my particular faith that I disagree with. No dark nights of the soul, more a case of I'm quite prepared to meet my Maker, whether my Maker is prepared to meet me is another matter!

[babylonsfalling]

I'm not sure if I admire or feel sorry for people who quite simply accept the particular faith they are (given?) in childhood. Even to this day, I argue with aspects of my particular faith that I disagree with. No dark nights of the soul, more a case of I'm quite prepared to meet my Maker, whether my Maker is prepared to meet me is another matter!

I doubt anyone's faith is perfect, not the faith taught by others to us as kids, or the faith that we end up with as adults.

I had lots of bugs about the catholic faith as a kid and ended up in different churches until I found one where God's presence seemed much stronger but even in that church I can list other imperfections and theological disagreements....plus once you're in a totally different church, it's suddenly easier to see the things that were good about the previous church.

The catholic church (in my opinion) has a greater sense of reverence for God, whereas the other churches have a more "best friend" perspective on God, or with women it seems to be a "Jesus is my boyfriend" kind of thing. God is bigger in the catholic church which is good....but along with that correct catholic perspective comes a greater sense of detachment from God. Both perspectives are imperfect and my own imperfection was that I was seeking perfection from churches in the first place.

I like questioning things myself but for a while I think I was doing it just for the sake of being critical.