I can’t imagine a better way to end the Lord’s Day. The air hung heavy and thick with the residue of afternoon thunderstorms as the saints of God gathered Sunday evening at the Old Church on the river. The front door had been left ajar, so the melodious strains of the saintly choir wafted down the road and over the river.
“One was a solider, and one was a priest. One was slain by a fierce wild beast …”. My voice catches in my throat every time I sing those words. How does such a simple children’s song bring forth in me such an emotional response … every time?
That song is all about the kingdom of God. And how very ordinary that extraordinary kingdom can appear to be. It is filled with caring doctors, regal queens, humble shepherdesses on the green. Brave soldiers, humble priests, and faithful martyrs slain by fierce wild beasts. The saints come in all shapes and sizes. Big and small. Smart and simple. Wealthy and poor. And the one thing that binds the saints of God together is the life of Jesus. Last Sunday as we gathered for a Night of Worship, we beheld with our eyes and perceived with our ears all the shapes and sizes of the saints (except maybe the queen) as we sang praises to God — the ordinary people of The Church of the Cross proclaiming with our voices the extraordinary nature of Our King and His Kingdom.
They were all of them saints of God, you see? Why shouldn’t you be one, too?
Pastor Josh+
