Victory Through Christ

In Christ alone my hope is found;
He is my light, my strength, my song.
This Cornerstone, this solid ground,
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My Comforter, my All in All;
Here in the love of Christ I stand.

In Christ alone, who took on flesh,
Fullness of God in helpless babe;
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save.
'Till on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied.
For every sin on Him was laid;
Here in the death of Christ I live.

There in the ground His body lay,
Light of the world by darkness slain.
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave He rose again.
And as He stands in victory,
Sin's curse has lost its grip on me.
For I am His and He is mine,
Brought with the precious blood of Christ.

No guilt in life, no fear in death:
This is the power of Christ in me.
From life's first cry to final breath,
Jesus commands my destiny.
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand!
'Till He returns or calls me home,
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand!

He is risen! Hallelujah!
Happy Easter, and many blessings to you and yours.

The Last Supper

There was a body so broken and dead,
Dead for all to see.
He saved my life and my soul, and he said:
"Eat; remember me.

"Remember me, and eat the bread that is giv'n for you;
"Remember me, and know you are with God."

There was a fountain of blood that was shed,
Shed to set me free.
He washed away all my sins, and he said:
"Drink; remember me.

"Remember me, and drink the wine that is giv'n for you;
"Remember me, and know you are with God."

There is one savior, one body, one blood,
For eternity.
He died and rose from the grave, and he said:
"Live; remember me.

"Remember me, and live the life that is giv'n for you;
"Remember me, and know you are with God."

Brilliant Satire with a Chewy Center of Social Commentary

...and a coating of vulgarity. But first, an update.

I know the whole "Martinez is too busy to post" shtick is beyond old, but that doesn't make it any less true. In this case, I've spent the past weeks moving from (1) a detailed analysis of the Gospel of John to (2) cramming for an NT Survey exam to (3) writing a research paper on the angelology of C. S. Lewis's "Space Trilogy." Now I get to work on (4) a detailed analysis of Acts, (5) the revision and improvement of the aforementioned research paper, (6) cramming for the next NT Survey exam, and (7) trying to tie the threads of Metaphysics together in preparation for the midterm. Oh, and lots and lots of reading in there, too. Round Two begins later.

On the positive side, I get Easter Week off, so I should be able to make some good headway then. And now that I'm getting more than 3.5 hours of sleep each night, I'm finally starting to shake off the cold that's been plaguing me for weeks.

So, now that that's out of the way, I'd like to pass along an interesting video that my brother shared with me. I might comment a bit on it, as well.

WARNING: The video linked below contains a veritable landslide of profanity (ranging from the s-, f-, and n-words to the m-f and g-d constructions) and some suggestive images. If you are readily offended by such material, do not follow the link. If your family/friends/co-workers/quilting group are readily offended by such material, do not watch the video in their presence. You have been warned.

Of course, most of you realize (I hope) that I'm not one to encourage profanity for profanity's sake. But sometimes one has to adapt one's message to a particular medium in order to be effective. With that in mind, if you can tolerate some "offensive" material in the name of biting satire and social commentary with claws, then click away:

Read a Book

I'm not a big rap fan, but I've heard enough of it to recognize this as a mighty fine parody. And to accusations of racism, I respond: Nowhere in the content of the song is there any reference to race. If the cartoons seem to portray particular racial stereotypes, it's probably because they represent the typical audience of such music (and that's part of good satire; matching the styles of the subject). In short, a series of worthwhile messages for everyone, despite the crass language.

Oh, and he gets major bonus points for using Beethoven as his musical foundation.

And finally, to close with something less controversial: If you haven't already seen this, prepare to be astounded (if you have seen it, enjoy it again):
Go, Wayne Grudem!
Awesome.

As always, commentary is appreciated and encouraged.