The Last Words of the Crucified Word (continued)

Do you understand who is crying out

About being forsaken by the Father?

Immanuel—God with us 

Does not feel like God is with Him

Yeshua is the very Alpha and Omega 

Who: 

Ate with anyone

Answered with authority 

Attracted the abandoned

Aided the abused

Blessed the babies

Cherished the children

Commended the Centurion

Delivered from demons

Discipled the disciples

Explained the end-times 

Fed the Five Thousand

Forgave Freely

Granted Grace

He is the Alpha and Omega who:

Hated hypocrisy

Healed the Hemorrhage

Humbled the haughty

Helped the helpless

Innocent of Israel

Journeyed to Jerusalem 

Knew the Kingdom

Loved the lowly

Led the lame to leap

Lifted Lazarus to life

Mended the men dead

Man among men 

Mesmerized the masses

Noticed the nobodies

Obeyed Outright

Preached in parables

Prayed Persistently

Pardoned the paralytic, the 

Prostitute, the poor 

Quelled the Quarrels 

Righteous rock

Riled up the religious rabbis 

Revealed redemption

Saved sinners

See! He Saddened the Sadducees

Silenced the scribes

Slept in the storm

Stilled the storm

Spoke Scriptures in the Synagogue 

The Alpha and Omega who

Taught Torah

Tempted and triumphed

Turned the tables

Unburdened the unclean

Vine of Vines

Walked on water: Divine

Worked the Water to wine

Wept with the weeping

eXperiencing his eXodus

Yielding to the Yoke

Why? Because He was:

Zeroed in on Zion!

Alpha and Omega!

First and the Last!

Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews!

Some, like the Jehovah’s Witnesses 

They say: Jesus is Good. But God? Oh no!  

They refuse to agree

With Jehovah’s own witness

That the child to be born will 

Not only be called 

Wonderful, Counselor

But he will also be

Prince of Peace 

Mighty God

And even though He is God

He did not count equality with God

A thing to be grasped but my God

Yes—my God—emptied Himself

And took on the form of a servant

Who was obedient even to death

Death on a cross 

Then, It did not cross 

The minds of the 

Writers of the Quran 

Who claim that 

Our Christ was just a man

Who never actually died 

It did not cross their minds, I say

That the torture He faced, 

Could never be survived, 

See the spear in his side!

“Oh, he only swooned,” others say

Isa did not die on that day

Issa grave sin what they say with their breath

Isaiah spoke of His grave and His death

The mockers mocked:

He sparred with the Pharisees

And held his own 

So far see how 

God has forsaken Him; 

He will die alone

Many of the multitude watched

At the cross and lamented for him

Sorrowing for the one who they love

The women who watched

Wailed in great woe:

“Oh! How he 

Wowed the world 

With wonderful words so witty!

How he cared, how He served!”

Meanwhile,

The crass cacophony of the other crowds

As they rush on cursing and chanting 

Raspy husky rowdy unruly

The curses of the raucous rabble 

Seeking to crush him,

They bellowed aloud

Their words sharp 

Like the sword soon to pierce

The side of the One who would bleed blood

And water…

Water…

Speaking of water… Jesus, 

Knowing that

All was now finished, 

To fulfill the Scripture

Said:

I THIRST

The eternal Son who 

Hung the stars above

The God who separated 

The waters of the earth 

At creation’s birth

Now hangs beneath 

The stars of the sky

Separate from sinners

Yet sin appearing–for now–as the winner  

The living water; the Word

Is poured out like water

Leaving the world

Thirsting for water

Leaving, a lamb led 

To the slaughter

Behold the Man lifted

Branded a criminal: convicted

He who from of old

Upholds the universe 

Now upheld by nails so cold

Pressed against the very tree

That He spoke to be.

The one who walked on water 

Now drowns in his tears and utter shame

He who parted the Red Sea

Hangs uneasy and parched

After receiving sour wine,

He said:

IT. IS. FINISHED

He who commanded the morning 

From Ancient Days

And caused the dawn 

To know its place 

Now has his people in mourning

As they behold his marred face

But,

All the ends of the earth shall remember

And turn to the Lord,

And all the families of the nations

Shall worship before you.

For kingship belongs to the Lord,

And he rules over the nations. 

Posterity shall serve him;

It shall be told of the Lord 

To the coming generation;

They shall come and 

Proclaim his righteousness 

To a people yet unborn,

That he has done it. 

No doubt His Disciple Peter 

Yeah that same Peter

Outspoken Peter 

Who petered out

In Jesus’ time of trial 

Failed him through his denial

Post-Pentecost Peter

After being restored 

By the Lord

Must have eventually heard

Of what the LORD had said

Even in the midst of horrendous evil

Later, Peter tells those who suffer unjustly 

To entrust their spirit 

To a faithful Creator 

While doing good

It must have been because

He heard that, 

Dying, weak, in pain, 

Empty of strength 

But full of faith:

Jesus cried out in a loud voice:

FATHER, INTO YOUR HANDS 

I COMMIT MY SPIRIT

The curtain is torn

The people mourn

The Son’s life is gone

But hey…

It’ll soon be Sunday morn.

THE END.