JOHN BROWN’S DEMISE

      (Profile of a church fight)

-A. Ralph Johnson

John stood before the mirror, long,              

Admiring his physique,                       

Then crawled beneath the covers                 

And drifted off to sleep.                    

But shortly hence a bicep gave                  

A self-appraising twitch                     

And boasted its importance, GREAT,              

To keep the frame in pitch.                  

This irritated very much                         

The haughty collar bone                      

Who sneered and said the muscle’s use           

Was due to him alone.                        

The backbone stiffened in surprise              

And bowed the frame in rage,                 

Such idiots knew, ‘twas HIS support,            

Preserving youthful age!                     

The lungs gasped sharply ‘gainst such cant;     

The stomach raised a fuss;                   

The nose gave a snort, and the tongue declared, 

“THEY HAVE NO NEED OF US!”                  

The liver quivered with bilious wrath           

And bitterly proclaimed--                    

“The tongue’s a boastful fellow-                

In need of being tamed!”                     

The eyes and ears joined with the mouth         

And took an angry vow,                       

While feet and legs began to kick               

And spread the general row.                  

The kidney then denounced the heart             

As “never being right”                        

And all the joints together moved               

To get into the fight.                       

The struggle grew to dreadful heights           

With flailing arms and fists:                

With ripping nails and gnashing teeth           

And frightful jerks and twists.              

Each member bent himself to win--               

His “rights” so “long past due”,             

Resolving ne’r to give an inch                  

While others held their view.                

How strong each was!                            

They ALL held out!                           

Not one would yield his “side.”                   

Their “dignity” was kept intact--              

BUT THE BODY UP AND DIED!

(cf. Gal. 5:15;  1Cor. 12:12-27;  Eph. 4:16)