Like a disease with no known cure
and a crippling wound that will not heal,
thrives the endemic curse of sinfulness;
the rebellious spirit, which shuns the light
of God and festers in empty darkness;
the self-destructive and ever-widening road
strewn with the carcasses of the slow,
the unsuspecting, and the innocent.
Ever in search of a willing host,
investing its prey at the onset of life,
the parasite called "sin" feeds upon desire.
Worming its way to the innermost parts,
the Destroyer finds residence and refuge.
Prolonged and persistent inhabitance corrupts
the flesh and debilitates both mind and soul,
enslaving each inhabitant its only goal.
From this leeched condition, evil rises
to ensnare and oppress each victim;
the barbs and tendrils sink deeper still,
where fear and pain form partnership.
Eyes become blind, ears turn deaf,
and paralysis seizes control in due course.
Unchecked, the nature of sin brings death:
physical, spiritual, and eternal.
The stinging salve of God's atonement,
Christ Jesus crucified and poured out,
like a sharpened surgeon's scalpel
excises the darkness of persistent sin
and fills believers with light and healing.
Though the body shall perish in time,
the soul shall be released from Death,
just as Christ Jesus has risen in glory.
The Gadfly
|
Submission Name: The Stinging Salve
