John Newton, author of Amazing Grace, once wrote:
The day is now breaking: how beautiful its appearance! How welcome the expectation of the approaching sun! It is this thought makes the dawn agreeable, that it is the presage of a brighter light; otherwise, if we expect no more day than it is this minute, we should rather complain of darkness, than rejoice in the early beauties of the morning. Thus the Life of grace is the dawn of immortality: beautiful beyond expression, if compared with the night and thick darkness which formerly covered us; yet faint, indistinct, and unsatisfying, in comparison of the glory which shall be revealed. (The Works of the Rev. John Newton, Vol. 1, p. 319)
The words that follow are inspired by this quote.
Basking in the Rise of the Son
The sun breaks and beauty appears,
A daily reminder that all our fears
Of dread are passed, though pain persists––
The toil, the sorrow, a persistent mist
That will be burned away in course of time,
A hopeful rest when full glow shines.
The light of dawn is only agreeable
Because the light of noon is foreseeable.
If no hope existed for a brighter light,
Sustained shadows would be lingering night.
Yet darkness is passing; the true light glows––
A brightening sky overcoming sorrows.
The dawn of immortality is the life we tread,
A life of grace because Christ bled
Taking wrath we all deserve––
A gift of love to preserve
A people for himself into the age to come––
The curse abolished in the rise of the Son.
––Jason S. DeRouchie (3/3/2011)
Remembering that our lives today are lived in the dawn, not at night, can help us remember that life is not as bad as it could be and that we have not received what we deserve. God is truly for us, shown in the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us, the just for the ungodly.
Remembering that our lives today are lived in the dawn, not at noon, can help us overcome our own sin (knowing it has already been canceled), help us love the unlovable (knowing the day is nearing when all will give an account), and help us push through the present trials in hope for lasting, unrestrained, untainted joy. Come Lord Jesus!
