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Heavenly Love
"So heavenly love shall outdo hellish hate." May that very "heavenly love" be reflected (maybe even magnified) in our lives this week - light in darkness. Have a great week, Chip Stam =======CAUTION======== What follows is only for lovers of poetry. It places the above line of poetry in its proper context. =======CAUTION======== In this scene from the counsel of heaven, the poet expands on St. Paul's teaching from places such as Philippians 2 and 1 Corinthians 15. God is revealing the plan of how sinful mankind can be brought back into right relationship with a holy and just God through the redeeming work of God Incarnate. Be careful, "man" sometimes refers to Christ and sometimes refers to Adam. ////////// YOU MAY NOW PROCEED WITH CAUTION //////////// As in him perish all men, so in thee As from a second root shall be restored, As many as are restored; without thee, none. His crime makes guilty all his sons; thy merit Imputed shall absolve them who renounce Their own both righteous and unrighteous deeds, And live in thee transplanted, and from thee Receive new life. So Man, as is most just, Shall satisfy for Man, be judged and die, And dying rise, and rising with him raise His brethren, ransomed with his own dear life. SO HEAVENLY LOVE SHALL OUTDO HELLISH HATE, Giving to death, and dying to redeem, So dearly to redeem what hellish hate So easily destroyed, and still destroys In those who, when they may, accept not grace. Nor shalt thou by descending to assume Man's nature, lessen or degrade thine own. Because thou hast, though throned in highest bliss Equal to God, and equally enjoying God-like fruition, quitted all to save A world from utter loss, and been found By merit more than birthright Son of God, Found worthiest to be so by being good, Far more than great or high; because in thee Love hath abounded more than glory abounds; Therefore thy humiliation shall exalt With thee thy manhood also to this throne; Here shalt thou sit incarnate, here shalt reign Both God and Man. Son both of God and Man, Anointed universal King. All power I give thee; reign for ever, and assume Thy merits; under thee as Head supreme Thrones, Princedoms, Powers, Dominions, I reduce. (It goes on) John Milton Paradise Lost (Book III, starting at line 287) |