This song’s lyrics appear to be somewhat based off the story of the Prodigal son – See Luke 15:11-32 - http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+15&version=NIV1984.
The son had wandered far away from God, the paths of sin too long he’d trod. He’d wasted many precious years. This was his realization, and now he was coming home. Then, he said,
“I now repent with bitter tears. I’m tired of sin and straying, Lord; I’ll trust Thy love, believe Thy word. My soul is sick, my heart is sore; my strength renew, my home restore. My only hope, my only plea; that Jesus died, and died for me. I need His cleansing blood I know, oh, wash me whiter than the snow. Coming home, coming home, nevermore to roam; open wide Thine arms of love, Lord, I’m coming home.”Lord, so many of your children are at this place where they have wandered far from God and have followed the paths of sin far too long, as well as many of them have wasted many precious years when they could have been following you in faith and obedience and having an impact on the rest of the world for Jesus Christ. I know what that is like – been there, done that! Yet, your love rescued me – praise Jesus! To God be the glory, great things He has done in rescuing me from that pit of despair and following a path of sin and rebellion.
Love Lifted Me / James Rowe / Howard E. Smith
I was sinking deep in sin, far from the peaceful shore,
Very deeply stained within, sinking to rise no more,
But the Master of the sea heard my despairing cry,
From the waters lifted me, now safe am I.
All my heart to Him I give, ever to Him I’ll cling,
In His blessed presence live, ever His praises sing,
Love so mighty and so true, merits my soul’s best songs,
Faithful, loving service, too, to Him belongs.
Souls in danger, look above, Jesus completely saves,
He will lift you by His love, out of the angry waves.
He’s the Master of the sea, billows His will obey,
He your Savior wants to be, be saved today.
Love lifted me! Love lifted me!
When nothing else could help, Love lifted me!
Lord, you know the concerns that are on my heart for my loved ones who are in this condition of following the paths of sin for too long and wasting precious years that could have been given over to Jesus Christ. Lord, I pray for them that they would now repent with tears and that they would truly be tired of sin and straying and that they would come home to Jesus for good. In Jesus’ name I pray. Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening. I read John 8:1-11:
But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2 At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. 3 The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group 4 and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” 6 They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.
But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. 7 When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.
9 At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. 10 Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”
11 “No one, sir,” she said.
“Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”
My Understanding: My Bible states that this story was not recorded in the earliest of manuscripts. I am not here to debate that. What I see in this story is completely consistent with who Jesus Christ is and the kinds of things he did and taught when he was on the earth, so I have no reason to doubt that this happened or that something similar to this took place. The Pharisees often looked for ways to trap Jesus with his words. Jesus’ mission was not to go around and condemn sinners, but it was to save them from their sin, which is why he told the woman to “go and sin no more.” And, Jesus rejected the idea of religious piety from the religious leaders of his day who thought they were better than anyone else. I always find this story interesting in the fact that the woman was “caught” in the act of adultery, and yet the man is not mentioned.
Jesus saw through the plot of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law. No one knows for sure what Jesus wrote on the ground when he bent down and started to write with his finger, but I believe the context here gives us a clue. He wrote, but when they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” And, then he stooped down and wrote some more on the ground. Then, it says, “At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time.”
What would make them go away? It appears to me that Jesus was writing down their sins on the ground for all to see and it was “at this” that they began to step back and to leave. This fits with the context of Jesus writing, then saying what he said about anyone else being without sin, and then he started writing again, and “at this” the people began to leave. I believe Jesus was showing them that he knew what was in their hearts and that he could expose their sin, as well, and it was “at this” that they began to depart and to drop their stones of accusation against the woman.
The story does not indicate that the woman repented of her sin, though one could possibly surmise that by the woman’s obvious humble attitude when all the people left and only Jesus remained and when he asked if anyone was there to condemn her and she said “no one, sir.” Imagine the gratitude she must have felt in her heart to know that she was no longer going to be stoned to death for her sin but that she was being set free, but not free to sin again, but to leave her life of sin. Jesus was giving her a second chance; a new lease on life. He was not there to condemn her, he was there to offer her forgiveness and to set her free from her life of bondage to sin.
And, Jesus’ example to us here is how we should also approach those who are “caught” in sin and who are trapped in sin’s deceitfulness. Our job is not to condemn them. Our job is to forgive them. Yet, included in that forgiveness is not a pat on the back that says, “It’s ok, I’m sure you didn’t mean to do that,” or “It’s ok, we all have our weaknesses.” No, he said he did not condemn her but he also let her know that he was releasing her to go and to leave her life of sin, never to return.
James 5:19-20 says,
“My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins.”
Galatians 6:1-5 says,
“Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, for each one should carry his own load.”I believe these two passages of scripture pretty much summarize the story in John 8:1-11. The woman was caught in sin. People were condemning her. She had wandered from the truth, though I am not sure if she was a believer. Jesus was certainly spiritual, so he had the right to restore the woman. The people who were ready to stone her were prideful and thinking they were superior to her, but Jesus showed them that they, too, were sinners. We are all sinners – no one is righteous, no not one – we all like sheep have gone astray. So, we have no right to stand in condemnation against someone caught in sin. We should, instead, have a heart of compassion and love and a desire to see them turned from their sin and turned toward their heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, their Lord and Savior. And, we should first of all make sure we are in a right relationship with God before we try helping someone else out of their sin, lest we should fall into sin ourselves or lest we should deceive ourselves thinking we are something when we are nothing. We should test our own actions.
So, this song that the Lord put into my heart was about a prodigal who had wandered far from God and who had been following paths of sin far too long and had wasted many precious years, yet he was coming home through repentance and a heart of sincere tiredness and sickness over his sin (I know what that feels like), and he was calling out to God for him to renew him and to restore his hope.
On my heart this afternoon were my loved ones who are still in that cycle of following the paths of sin and of wasting many precious years, and I pray so much that they will come home to Jesus. Then, I read this story about the woman caught in adultery and was reminded of Jesus’ forgiveness of sinners, which I am personally grateful for, but also of his command to the woman to go and to leave her life of sin. This is true love when we not only forgive but when we go the extra mile in helping the sinner to turn from his life of sin and to walk in faith and obedience with Jesus Christ. Yet, we must guard our own hearts to make sure of our own motivations, intentions, actions, etc. that we are truly motivated by love and compassion and a desire to see our loved ones go free.
Coming home, coming home, nevermore to roam.
Open wide Thine arms of love, Lord, I’m coming home.
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