Songs

Easter Cantata Brian West Easter Cantata Brian West

Nothing But Pain

Hopefully some of his sheeple will see
When he hangs in shame, naked, then dead
Honor Rome, please the gods,
But look out for the frauds
Only you will get you daily bread

Chorus:
Oh, it's as plain as the sky and the rain
Oh, when you're weak you've got nothing but pain
When you're weak you've got nothing but pain

See that centurion, face full of doubt?
His privilege is weakening his soul
Mark my words, he's forgetting
The pow'r of bloodletting
Only fools give up any control

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Character Studies, Easter Cantata Brian West Character Studies, Easter Cantata Brian West

Turn (Judas’s Song)

Why am I following this Rabbi ‘cross the land,
When I could be somewhere else?
Perhaps it’s curiosity, telling me
To see it for myself

But as I’m following, I cannot understand
How it really fits together
The targets of His woes and blessings seem to flow,
And change just like the weather;
He changes like the weather

Turn to the words of life eternal,
Learn to trust the Speaker
Search if you must, but cling to
The Voice you heard, and find your healing

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Easter Cantata Brian West Easter Cantata Brian West

Divine (Last Supper)

One will deny Me, one will betray
The sheep will be scattered; all will run away
(The) Messiah must die; the Scriptures say it’s true
But first let Me share this meal here with you:

Chorus:
Take this bread, now broken, and drink this blessed wine
Whene’er you meet, remember Me,
The flesh and blood divine,

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Easter Cantata Brian West Easter Cantata Brian West

House of Confusion (Part One)

Jesus, standing so silent,
I command you to speak, on Israel’s oath:
Do you claim to be the Messiah,
The Son of God, or, incredibly, both?

Jesus:
You’ve forced me to speak; this is barely, and just barely, legal;
And you and I both know this “trial” is really a sham
And yet I will answer your question, so rooted in evil,
For all that you say that I AM, THAT I AM.

Joseph of Arimathea: I find this trial quite irregular...
Sanhedrin: Blasphemer!
Nicodemus: Aren't we ignoring procedure here?
Sanhedrin: Blasphemer!
Joseph of Arimathea: He may be just Who He claims, I fear...
Sanhedrin: WHAT?!!?

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Easter Cantata Brian West Easter Cantata Brian West

House of Confusion (Part Two)

Caiaphas: Are you, O Pilate, a faithful, good servant of Caesar?
For this Jesus here makes a claim to be King of the Jews
If you would ignore him, you too would be guilty of treason
You’d best execute him, or you may be crucified, too

Pilate: I see your game—you’re determined to kill your Messiah [crucify, crucify, crucify!]
You’re just as barbaric and backward as any I’ve seen [crucify, crucify, crucify!]
So this time I’m cornered—you’ll get what your bloodthirst desires [crucify, crucify, crucify!]
But let the guilt fall upon you, and none upon me

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Easter Cantata Brian West Easter Cantata Brian West

I Have Seen Him / He’s Risen

I didn’t have to touch Him,
I didn’t have to prove;
His eyes were full of comfort,
His voice able to soothe

No one could make me think it wasn’t true,
For I have seen Him, I have seen Him.

He is your Lord, and my Lord, yes, our Lord,
And though we have not seen Him,
Still we believe; we will believe
For the prophets and Moses, they testified
To all that we have seen,
And so we believe;
We choose to believe

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Easter Cantata Brian West Easter Cantata Brian West

Sword Through My Soul (Mary at the Cross)

I saw it coming;
He showed me in His eyes
The holy spotless Lamb of God
Must choose to die, be sacrificed.

Chorus:
For I know the Messiah must be broken
For the souls that He loves to be made whole
But Truth cannot disguise a mother's pain:
A sword through my soul, a sword through my soul.

When He was young, I washed Him,
And held Him when He cried.
Now helplessly I stand and watch Him
Be crucified, be crucified.

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Easter Cantata Brian West Easter Cantata Brian West

Coming Back Broken (Peter’s Song)

Holy One who gives all of Israel a home,
Keep Your people, but please, won’t you leave me alone?
For You know when I sit down, You know when I stand;
You know every stumble I make
Like the soldiers surrounding me,
I feel Your hand
That won’t let me just run away--
You won’t let me just run away.

Chorus:
You are the air I breathe, trapping me,
tight to my skin;
and so I say, “go away,” and draw You within
And though I’ve denied You,
I fear that I’ll finally
Come back confessing my sin,
Coming back broken again.

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