HYMNS THAT DEMAND WORSHIP!
SERMON #2
By Ivan G. Casteel
BENEATH THE CROSS OF JESUS!
Ps 46:1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. (KJV)
Beneath the cross of Jesus I fain would take my stand,
The shadow of a mighty Rock within a weary land;
A home within the wilderness, A rest upon the way
From the burning of the noontide heat, and the burden of the day.
There lies beneath its shadow but on the further side
The darkness of an awful grave that gapes both deep and wide
And there between us stands the cross two arms outstretched to save
A watchman set to guard the way from that eternal grave.
Upon that cross of Jesus mine eyes at times can see
The very dying form of One Who suffered there for me;
And from my smitten heart with tears, two wonders I confess,
The wonders of His glorious love and my own worthlessness.
I take, O cross, thy shadow for my abiding place;
I ask no other sunshine than the sunshine of His face;
Content to let the world go by, to know no gain nor loss,
My sinful self my only shame, my glory all the cross!
INTRODUCTION: This is another hymn that demands worship. When a Christian hears the words to this great hymn a worshipful spirit will swell up inside immediately. Every time I hear this great hymn I want to bow and worship God – Jehovah.
This hymn portrays the cross as a mighty rock, large enough to cast a protective shadow as a shelter from the heat and the burden of the day. This is an unusual image, one not frequently found in hymns or poetry. But what a wonderful thought, to recognize the relief we have from our daily struggles because of what Jesus did for us on the cross that day!
It written by a frail Scottish, Presbyterian woman of the past century, who, despite her physical frailties, was known throughout her community for her helpful, cheery nature. Elizabeth Cecilia Douglas Clephane. Her father was a county sheriff, her mother a descendant of the famous Douglas family.
The reference to "the mighty Rock" is taken from Isaiah 32:2.
The reference to "the weary land" is taken from Psalm 63:1.
The reference to "home within the wilderness" is taken from Jeremiah 9:2.
The reference to "rest upon the way" is taken from Isaiah 28:12.
The reference to "noontide heat" is taken from Isaiah 4:6
The reference to "burden of the day" is taken from Matthew 11:30. Elizabeth Clephane is also the author of "The Ninety and Nine".
I. STANZA NUMBER ONE – DECLARATION OF JOY
Beneath the cross of Jesus I fain would take my stand,
The shadow of a mighty Rock within a weary land;
A home within the wilderness, A rest upon the way
From the burning of the noontide heat, and the burden of the day.
Declaration of Joy:
A. Joy For What God Had Done. (The cross of Jesus) Ps 16:11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. (KJV)
Sin was born in the Garden of Eden – the First Adam chose to sin when God had told him not to and after the sin in the Garden God told the serpent - Ge 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. (KJV)
This brings us to the knowledge of the Second Adam or Jesus Christ. Joh 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: (KJV) Lifted up means to be put on the cross – lifted up on the cross. In the O.T. the Altar is a picture of the N.T. Cross. The message of the cross is always the same. It speaks of death and sacrifice.
Declaration of Joy:
B. Joy For Who God Is. He is our Security. (The mighty Rock) Isa 32:2 And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land. (KJV)
Declaration of Joy:
C. A Home To Rest In. Isa 35:10 And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. (KJV)
1. A place of rest.
Isa 28:12 To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear. (KJV)
2. A time of rest.
Joh 21:4 But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore: but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus. (KJV) There is coming a day (soon I hope) when we will look to the shore and we will see Jesus standing beckoning us to come to Him. What a glad day that will be if you are saved and ready to meet Him. But it will be a very sad day it will be for all who do not know Him.
D. Protection From The Elements. From the burning of the noontide heat, And the burden of the day.
Isa 4:6 And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain. (KJV) God provided a shade from the hot noontime heat.
II. STANZA NUMBER TWO – THE SHADOW OF THE CROSS
(You don’t have this one in your hymn book. Actually there are two stanzas that are not in this hymn book. I do not know why, but there were originally five stanzas.
There lies beneath its shadow but on the further side
The darkness of an awful grave that gapes both deep and wide
And there between us stands the cross two arms outstretched to save
A watchman set to guard the way from that eternal grave.
A. The Shadow Points To The Grave.
1. In the grave would speak of our sins were buried as far as the east is from the west.
2. In the grave the flesh was put to death. The flesh that wants to control each of us and keep us from living for the Lord in victory has been forever defeated, and because of that we can defeat our flesh and live for God daily.
3. In the grave our past is buried. Those haunting experiences that no one knows about but you and the Lord are buried out of our site and our past. Some of you may need to bury your past. There may be some memories that keep haunting your and keeps you from doing what you should do – bury the past.
B. The Shadow Points To The Outstretched Arms Of The Lord.
1. The arms of redemption. I have a wall plaque at home that says; I asked the Lord, “How much do you love me”. He said, “This much!” And He stretched out His arms and died.
2. Those outstretched arms picture His love for each of us.
3. Those outstretched arms portray His willingness to go to the depths of sin to pay your and my debt to God the Father. Each of us owed a debt we could not pay. He paid a debt He did not owe. That’s what He has already done for us.
4. Those outstretched arms say to every sinner worldwide that Jesus Christ died for every person, and each one can be saved.
Oh! Hear me this morning – the road to God is open – you can come to Him if you choose. He waits for you.
How foolish for any man or woman to ignore the victory on the cross and go to hell for no reason. God’s wrath has already been satisfied by the Cross of Christ, and now you can be forgiven of any and all sin, if you will accept what Christ did for you on the cross.
But did you know that most all people will reject those outstretched arms of Christ. They will make the decision to go the long dark road by themselves, and end up in eternal judgment which is the lake of fire. What a shame! How foolish! The way has already been paid by Christ. “Would you be free from your burden of sin?” You can be free.
III. STANZA NUMBER THREE – VISION OF THE CRUCIFIED CHRIST
Upon that cross of Jesus mine eyes at times can see
The very dying form of One Who suffered there for me;
And from my smitten heart with tears, two wonders I confess,
The wonders of His glorious love and my own worthlessness.
A. The Vision Brings The Reality Of The Cross.
1. The author could see the dying Christ. He was crucified in public before all to see. His crucifixion was made a spectacle for the critics – those who hated Him – but also for those who loved Him.
2. Dying for our sins. The Creator dies for the creation.
B. The Vision Brings Godly Sorrow.
1. Her heart was broken from conviction.
2. Her eyes were filled with tears. Tears for loved ones that did not make the right decision. Every one of us knows someone that will reject Christ and go to hell. We must be faithful and prayerful witnesses else many loved ones will perish.
Why do we so willingly stand idly by and watch our loved ones and friends go to the place of torment – the place of wrath – the place of eternal damnation? Why? Why? Can anyone tell me why?
C. The Vision Brings Confession. “Two wonders I confess…”
1. God’s glorious love. I do not suppose that anyone can truly understand the love of God.
O love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure
The saints’ and angels’ song.
The love of God for sinners goes beyond His love for His own Son. His love goes farther than can the love of a mother for her baby.
2. Man’s worthlessness. Who could ever define man’s worthlessness? There is no good in man at all. All of our goodness is but filthy rags, Isaiah says. Romans tells us “There is none good, no not one.” All of mankind is wicked in the worst way.
Our confession must always be that we are worthless and of no good to God at all. If you don’t have that evaluation of yourself today then you will never be saved. No one can be saved and value his own life or goodness of any measure. You must have the “Woe is me” vision of yourself.
IV. STANZA NUMBER FOUR – THE CROSS – MAN’S COMMITMENT
I take, O cross, thy shadow for my abiding place;
I ask no other sunshine than the sunshine of His face;
Content to let the world go by, to know no gain nor loss,
My sinful self my only shame, my glory all the cross!
A. Take Up Thy Cross. I take, O cross, thy shadow For my abiding place;
Mt 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. (KJV)
1. It must be done voluntarily. “…take up his cross, and follow me.”
2. It must be done sacrificially. “Let him deny himself….”
3. It must be done repeatedly. No one will make it a permanent commitment. We must do it over and over again. You may take up your cross today, but you will need to do it again tomorrow. Paul said, “I die daily.”
You will not take the cross easily. It will be a great sacrifice. The cross always depicts sacrifice and pain.
Jesus lived a lifetime in the looming shadow of the cross. He was conceived for Calvary. He was born to die. He was begotten for burial and reared for the resurrection. He spent three decades on death row. He was aware of the agony that awaited His body and the anguish that would tear His heart. Why should you and I not surrender our life and will to Him completely? How could we expect to have a care free and burden free expectation from Him after all He went through for us?
B. The Cross Brings Salvation To Man. I ask no other sunshine than The sunshine of His face;
1Jo 5:11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. (KJV)
There is salvation in none other than Christ Jesus. Ac 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. (KJV)
It seems we can never get beyond the cross. Its shadow falls backward and forward across time; we’ll never get beyond it, and we’ll never improve on it. We’ll never plumb its depths fully and say, "We understand the cross now; let’s move on to other things."
The cross represents the center point of all history. Christ is the sum and substance of the whole plan of God, which centers on the cross -- a single, tiny grain of sand in the hourglass of history; and yet, as the hymn writer puts it, "Towering o’er the wrecks of time."
The more we present the cross to the lost world the more that will believe and be saved. Yet, we remember that the preaching of the cross is foolishness to them that perish, but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. So may the preaching of the cross never become secondary in this church. It is the main message, and it must always be preached loud and clear.
C. The Cross Condemns The World. Content to let the world go by, To know no gain nor loss,
1Jo 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. (KJV)
The world is an enemy.
The world will drag you down.
The world will defeat you.
The world will destroy you.
We must be content to let the world go by. It has nothing to offer either you nor I.
D. The Cross Brings The Realization That Self Is Nothing. My sinful self my only shame, My glory all the cross!
Ga 6:14 But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world. (KJV)
The cross before me
The world behind me
No turning back,
No turning back.
Any message on the cross –
Any message about the cross –
Any Scripture about the cross should cause every Christian to surrender self to the complete purpose and cause of Christ.
1Co 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. (KJV)
INVITATION
BETH HAVEN BAPTIST CHURCH MINISTRIES
PO BOX 891523
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK 73189-1523
405-691-8701
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