Key of promise, come,
O Messiah, Promised one:
To open every eye sin blinds,
To loose the prisoner from his binds,
To open each lock of despair,
To free us from each heavy care,
And then be found at last,
Inside our heart’s lock clasped,
As we in yours are ever treasured
With greatest love unmeasured.

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I wrote this poem today after reading Malcolm Guite’s “O Clavis” poem in his Advent devotional Waiting on The Word. That’s one of my favorite parts of reading poetry, especially at Christmas. I find myself inspired to make new connections and see the world and the Word a little differently after discovering another’s poetic perspective. The poetry that often results from these moments of inspiration is not so much an imitation as a continuation of the original idea.

As I penned my small tribute to Christmas and the Good News it proclaims, I layered in themes from Scripture and also from John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress (more on the key of promise in another piece I wrote). Below are some of the passages I had in mind for each line:

• Isaiah 22:22—”And I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David. He shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open.”
• Isaiah 42:6-7—”“I am the Lord; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you; I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness.
• Matthew 11:28-30—”‘Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.'”
• Matthew 6:21—”For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
• 2 Corinthians 1:20-22—”For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory. And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.”
• 1 John 4:10—”In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”

Merry Christmas, dear reader!

P.S. The photo in this post is one I took while visiting St Mary in Castro, the small 10th-century Anglo Saxon church within the walls of Dover Castle, England, that offers a poignant reminder of the long history and abiding strength of Christ’s church around the world.

Works Cited

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version.  Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway Bibles, 2001.  Print.