Hast Thou No Scar by Amy Carmichael
Hast thou no scar?
No hidden scar on foot, or side, or hand?
I hear thee sung as mighty in the land,
I hear them hail thy bright ascendant star,
Hast thou no scar?
Hast thou no wound?
Yet, I was wounded by the archers, spent.
Leaned me against the tree to die, and rent
By ravening beasts that compassed me, I swooned:
Hast thou no wound?
No wound? No scar?
Yet as the Master shall the servant be,
And pierced are the feet that follow Me;
But thine are whole. Can he have followed far
Who has no wound nor scar?
Have you ever suffered—not for doing wrong, not for a mistake or a failure—but simply for standing with Christ? Have you ever faced rejection, loss, or pain because you refused to compromise the truth? Because you chose righteousness over comfort?
Amy Carmichael’s poem speaks to the reality of Christian discipleship: to follow Jesus is to walk a road marked by suffering. Christ Himself bore wounds—deep, cruel, undeserved wounds—and He tells us, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24).
Paul writes in Philippians 1:29, “For to you it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake.” Suffering for Christ is not a burden; it is a calling. It is part of what it means to belong to Him. But in a world that values comfort, success, and approval, it is tempting to avoid the cost of discipleship. It is easy to want Christ without His cross, to want faith without hardship. And yet, Christ was wounded. Christ was scarred. If we are truly following Him, how can we expect to be untouched?
James 1:2-4 tells us to “consider it all joy” when we face trials because they refine and strengthen our faith. We often think of suffering as something to be avoided, but Scripture says it is something to be embraced. Why? Because it shapes us into the image of Christ. It deepens our trust in Him. It proves that we are truly His.
Paul warns in 2 Timothy 3:12, “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” Not some, but all. If we have never experienced any form of suffering for our faith—no ridicule, no rejection, no hardship—it is worth asking: Have I truly stood for Christ? Have I truly followed Him?
Amy Carmichael’s words cut deep:
“Pierced are the feet that follow Me;
But thine are whole. Can he have followed far
Who has no wound nor scar?”
It is a question we must all ask ourselves. Have we followed Christ at a distance, careful not to stand too firmly on truth, careful not to offend, careful not to suffer? Or have we walked so closely with Him that we bear the marks of that walk? If you have suffered for Christ, take heart. It is a sign that you are His. If you have not, perhaps it is time to ask whether you have truly stepped out in faith, spoken truth when it was costly, or chosen obedience when it hurt.
But do not fear suffering. Christ walks with us in it. And beyond every wound, every scar, every moment of rejection, there is a glory far greater than we can imagine. “If we endure, we will also reign with Him” (2 Timothy 2:12).
So, dear believer, hast thou no scar?