How do we live in light of God’s once and for all conquest of sin and Satan at the cross? How does knowing the victory is won affect our lives? If “the LORD reigns forever and ever” (Exodus 15:18), how do we reflect that in our daily lives?

I concluded Sunday’s sermon with the first three verses of this hymn by Charles Wesley. He clearly had meditated on the Songs of Moses in Exodus 15 and Revelation 15 prior to writing these lyrics. Consider Wesley’s answers to these questions:

Head of Thy Church triumphant,
We joyfully adore Thee;
Till Thou appear, Thy members here
Shall sing like those in glory.
We lift our hearts and voices
With blest anticipation,
And cry aloud, and give to God
The praise of our salvation.

While in affliction’s furnace,
And passing through the fire,
Thy love we praise, which knows our days,
And ever brings us nigher.
We clap our hands exulting
In Thine almighty favor;
The love divine which made us Thine
Shall keep us Thine for ever.

Thou dost conduct Thy people
Through torrents of temptation,
Nor will we fear, while Thou art near,
The fire of tribulation.
The world with sin and Satan
In vain our march opposes,
Through Thee we shall break through them all,
And sing the song of Moses.

By faith we see the glory
To which Thou shalt restore us,
The cross despise for that high prize
Which Thou hast set before us.
And if Thou count us worthy,
We each, as dying Stephen,
Shall see Thee stand at God’s right hand,
To take us up to Heaven.

The church is already triumphant. We “give to God the praise of our salvation” for He is the author and finisher of our faith. His love has made us belong to Him, and He Himself will keep us, guard us, protect us, and bring us safely to His heavenly kingdom. Neither temptation nor persecution can separate us from His love. We together, as His beloved church, shall break through all opposition, and sing in triumph that He accomplished the victory; His deeds are great and amazing, His ways just and true.

The last verse alludes to several passages we must keep in mind to understand it rightly:

• “For the joy that was set before him [Jesus] endured the cross, despising the shame (Hebrews 12:2).
• “Whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me” (Matthew 10:38)
• “We ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring. This is evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are also suffering” (2 Thessalonians 1:4-5)

So when Wesley writes, “the cross despise” he is referring to the shame that results from taking up our cross and following Christ. We despise the loss of reputation or goods or jobs that comes from our identification with Jesus. And, praise God, He counts us worthy of His kingdom when He gives us the grace to persevere to the end. It is all of Him

May we focus on His victory, His grace, His love, His joy, and thus live joyfully to His glory, knowing the battle is won.