He Sets Prisoners Free

"'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.' And he closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, 'Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.'" (1)

The Jailer Of Mercy

Within the cellblock of my heart,
I stand alone and clutch the key:
I promised to never depart;
Despite the Jailer of Mercy.

Within this cellblock, I'm detained,
By wounds of pain and shame and guilt.
I am unwanted, marked, and stained;
By lack of love, this cell was built.

But now the Jailer comes to me;
Between the bars, He reaches in.
With His own strength, I place the key
Into His hand -- I turn from sin.

He leads me, gently, by the hand;
We place the key into the lock.
And with mercy, without demand,
The latch of self will then unlock.

The bars open before my eyes;
The Jailer smiles back at me.
I step to freedom and surmise:
"His act of love has set me free!"

We walk into the broad daylight;
Through prayer, I throw away the key.
The cellblock disappears from sight --
My heart opens eternally!

By love, He sets the captives free:
My Savior -- Jailer of Mercy!






(c) Paul Buis, 2001

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(1) Luke 4:18-21