Hymn 42 and Eternity Waiting
Christian Hip Hop artist IMRSQD (I’m rescued) starts his chill-hop track ‘ Hymn 42 ‘ with a beautiful refrain.
I know with You I could run a thousand miles
When I hit the dirt, You ransom my soul
I will live eternally when I go
When I go
For the believer, the person whose inner disposition has been bent toward God and whose outer behaviors have been refined by the character of Christ, there is no such thing as an end to life. For us, life does not end, it merely hiccups as we sidestep over this strange bridge of transition, which, once across, we’re embraced by our Savior. From the moment we shut our eyes, the very moment our lungs cease to expand, our heart pulsates its final cycle, and our brain’s electrical network comes to a halt, we are but transported from one state of being to a final state of holy perpetuity. This second state seems inconceivable from a perishable standpoint but we must find comfort in knowing that the imperishable will one day overwhelm this temporal vase and induce in us a transformative power so great that the corruptible shivers and shrivels at the sight of our new self.
I know with You I could run a thousand miles
A sure reminder that no distance is too great for one whose eternal lodging is still ahead. What river can we not cross? What desert can we not traverse? Is there a forest too dense for one whose compass is Creator God? What broken bridge is too broken that He cannot repair? What relationship is too shattered for One whose love granted mortals the right to immortality?
The miracle here lies not in our knowledge, nor is it in our ability to walk, run, crawl or prance about like wild beasts. The distance itself is of little import, of trivial worth since the cornerstone of this line, and more so of our existence, is in Him.
God’s eternality grants us more joy than anything we can ever accomplish. This Creator is personal and proximal. Capable and willing to relate and commune with His creation; this communion takes place not from galaxies away, hidden behind a star or a moon. No. This Creator is near to us now, nearer yet, within, without, surrounding us as the omnipresent Lord of all hope, ushering us forth in life, irrespective of distance for we have already arrived at the place of fruition and transformation thanks be to His efficacious act of unconditional love on the hill of skulls.
When I hit the dirt, You ransom my soul
How many have crossed over the threshold of awareness to hyperawareness only to be met with darkness, loneliness, and disappointment? How many souls have paid their weight in Bitcoin (figurative) to cross over the river of the afterlife to find rest and repose in the fields of peace and redemption, only to be met with the poverty of soul, without hope, a future, or expectation of rescue? This is the end of all who sought to hit the dirt with wealth, glory, and fame as the ultimate end to all their means. Possessions, status, enshrined busts of their chiseled faces erected throughout city halls and universities, their hunger for fame and prestige, to rise above the echelon of elites, only to hit the dirt and rot. The worm is their best friend and the cockroach their neighbor,
But how blessed is the soul whose confidence is in none other than in He whose words of assurance are “I am the resurrection.” We remain confident, ya, we remain steadfast on the foundation of immortality, well knowing that even though He stops our lives on a day of His choosing, He and He alone is able to start it all again.
And thankfully he abandons us not.
He waits for us as soon as the heart comes to a stop, as soon as the brain shuts down for the night, as the lungs ease into their final rest, and as the soul exits the temporal to return to its origin in the nether and beyond, it is there that we meet Him. In fact, He shuttles us there. His call is for us and He knows our name.
I will live eternally when I go
Another undeserved mercy and unmerited grace. Kindness is extended when judgment is deserved and a gift is given without it first being earned.
Eternity can only be enjoyed and fulfilled if the parties involved share the same desire to meet there. Thankfully, our aspiration as believers is greatest when our hearts are wrapped with the imminent advent of the Eternal One. Should this return tarry and our body succumb to its natural disposition, we fret not because nothing in this measured sphere compares to the immeasurable and innumerable, uncontainable and unfathomable ever-existent glory that awaits us in Heaven.
When I go
No matter the struggles from here to there, how heavy the cross we bear, or how far the distance, it will all pale in comparison. I will live eternally is more important than the ‘when’ we are dispatched from this life to the next. Whether we go tonight, tomorrow, or in fifteen years is irrelevant. The fact that we’re going is all that matters.
We are ready. We are bound by the hope of rapture, be it the apocalyptic event or the quiet and cool end of life on a bed surrounded by family and friends. We are ready.
I am ready for your return, Lord.
Should it tarry, I worry not for no matter the circumstance I know you have my soul in hand and my eternity is safely stored in Your presence.
Tonight, tomorrow, or in fifteen years, I know I will go.
I know with You I could run a thousand miles When I hit the dirt, You ransom my soul I will live eternally when I go Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves; ensure justice for those being crushed. — Proverbs 31:8 NLT
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Originally published at http://olivettheory.com on October 21, 2021.
