"Passin' Through"

They say the cowboy rides away,

That sad, old song they sing,

Off in the sunset there he goes,

It’s apt a tear to bring.

‘Cause if you love a cowboy,

You know it pretty soon,

He loves his horse and livestock,

And the cowboy way makes room,

For love of land and country,

And all things wild and free,

And if you try to fence him in,

A problem’s soon to be.

But he’ll love you and adore you,

He’ll work and sacrifice,

And give you his attention,

If you become his wife.

But don’t think you can change him,

He’s only passin’ through,

It’s life you seize together,

What God has said you’ll do.

He’s headed for a distant range,

When this life’s ride is done,

He’s going there with Jesus,

With all whose race is run.

And there beyond the sunset,

The cowboy finds that he,

Has found eternal pastures,

Where he was meant to be.

And this life ends for all of us,

We’re all just passin’ through,

But Christ the way, the truth, the life,

Will bring us home, it’s true.

Jesus said: “I am the way, the truth, and the life…” (John 14:6, NLT)

Jesus did not just point to he way. He claimed to be the way. He did not just point to the truth. He said that He was the truth. Jesus did not just teach about life. He claimed to be life itself. These are bold claims, if we are to take the Scriptures seriously. Granted, those who wrote these words were believers in Jesus. Their unapologetic agenda was to win people to Him. There is absolutely no question that they were biased by their faith. However the question remains: how shall we handle the claims of Jesus, as stated by those who were eyewitnesses of His teaching? There are three possibilities. If Jesus was not who He claimed but thought He was, it means He was psychologically unbalanced. If Jesus was not who He claimed to be and knew it, but made the claim anyway, He was a colossal liar. The only other option is that Jesus really is the way, and that’s what faith chooses to believe. Choose wisely.

Lord, show us clearly who You are, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Mikel Donahue, mikeldonahue.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Mikel, and God bless you.