Holy God, We Praise Thy Name

385 Holy God, We Praise Thy Name

1. Holy God, we praise thy name!
   Lord of all, we bow before thee!
   All on Earth thy sceptre claim,
   All in Heav'n above adore thee;
   Infinite thy vast domain,
   Everlasting is thy reign.

2. Hark! the loud celestial hymn
   Angel choirs above are raising!
   Cherubim and seraphim,
   In unceasing chorus praising,
   Fill the heav'ns with sweet accord;
   Holy, holy, holy, Lord!

3. Holy Father, holy Son,
   Holy Spirit, Three we name thee,
   Though in essence only one,
   Undivided God we claim thee;
   And adoring bend the knee,
   While we own the mystery.
                         Attr. to Ignaz Franz
                         Tr. by Clarence A. Walworth
                         Hymns for the Family of God

<idle musing>
This hymn actually has seven verses; Hymnary.org has the rest:

3. Lo! the apostolic train
   Join thy sacred name to hallow!
   Prophets swell the loud refrain,
   And the white-robed martyrs follow,
   And from morn to set of sun,
   Through the Church the song goes on.

5. Thou art King of glory, Christ!
   Son of God, yet born of Mary;
   For us sinners sacrificed,
   And to death a tributary;
   First to break the bars of death,
   Thou hast opened Heav’n to faith.

6. From thy high celestial home,
   Judge of all, again returning,
   We believe that thou shalt come
   On the dreadful doomsday morning,
   When thy voice shall shake the earth,
   And the startled dead come forth.

7. Spare thy people, Lord, we pray,
   By a thousand snares surrounded;
   Keep us without sin today;
   Never let us be confounded!
   Lo! I put my trust in thee;
   Never, Lord, abandon me.

</idle musing>

Is it in our power?

Allowing for all of gnosticism’s varieties, we can safely say this, in summary: in gnosticism’s portrayal of salvation, the power to redeem (God’s power) has been subsumed into our capacity for being redeemed. Therefore the crucifixion becomes unnecessary.—Fleming Rutledge, The Crucifixion, 52

It ain't egalitarian, folks!

Gnostic emphasis on esoteric knowledge has a number of ramifications. Where there is gnosticism, there is spiritual hierarchy. This is not always obvious at first, because the gentle spiritual paths typical of many gnostic programs promise well-being, personal enrichment, and access to the divine for all, often with special emphasis on women, gay people, people with disabilities, and others who may feel marginalized. Sooner or later, though, the hierarchy will make itself known, for in gnosticism higher reality is “spiritual,” so that religious advancement depends on achieving degrees Of spiritual enlightenment. Masters (of either gender) lead disciples through various stages of evolved consciousness. Naturally, this results in stratification, with adepts at the top. Those who do not find meditation, spiritual exercises, or consciousness-raising congenial find themselves left behind.—Fleming Rutledge, The Crucifixion, 47–48

Praise the Lord, His Glories Show

373 Praise the Lord, His Glories Show

1 Praise the Lord; His glories show, Alleluia,
   Saints within His courts below, Alleluia,
   Angels round His throne above, Alleluia,
   Praise Him, all who share His love, Alleluia.

2 Earth, to heav’n exalt the strain, Alleluia,
   Send it, Heav’n, to earth again; Alleluia,
   Age to age, and shore to shore, Alleluia,
   Praise Him, praise Him evermore, Alleluia.

3 Praise the Lord; His goodness trace; Alleluia,
   All the wonders of His grace; Alleluia,
   All that He hath borne and done, Alleluia,
   All He sends us thro’ His Son, Alleluia.
                         Henry Francis Lyte
                         Hymns for the Family of God

<idle musing>
Hymnary.org adds a final verse:

4 Strings and voices, hands and hearts, Alleluia,
   In the concert bear your parts; Alleluia,
   All that breathe, your Lord adore, Alleluia,
   Praise Him, praise Him evermore, Alleluia.

</idle musing>

Sentimental love vs. agape love

Sentimental, overly “spiritualized” love is not capable of the sustained, unconditional agape of Christ shown on the cross. Only from the perspective of the crucifixion can the true nature of Christian love be seen, over against all that the world calls “love.” The one thing needful, according to Paul, is that the Christian community should position itself rightly, at the juncture where the cross calls all present arrangements into question with a corresponding call for endurance and faith.—Fleming Rutledge, The Crucifixion, 45

What a Wonderful Savior

372 What a Wonderful Savior

1 Christ has for sin atonement made,
   What a wonderful Saviour!
   We are redeemed! the price is paid!
   What a wonderful Saviour!

Chorus:
   What a wonderful Saviour is Jesus, my Jesus!
   What a wonderful Saviour is Jesus, my Lord!

2 I praise Him for the cleansing blood,
   What a wonderful Saviour!
   That reconciled my soul to God;
   What a wonderful Saviour! [Chorus]

3 He cleansed my heart from all its sin,
   What a wonderful Saviour!
   And now He reigns and rules therein;
   What a wonderful Saviour! [Chorus]

4 He gives me overcoming pow'r,
   What a wonderful Saviour!
   And triumph in each trying hour;
   What a wonderful Saviour! [Chorus]
                         Elisha A. Hoffman
                         Hymns for the Family of God

<idle musing>
Hymnary.org adds a couple of verses:

4 He walks beside me all the way,
   What a wonderful Saviour!
   And keeps me faithful day by day;
   What a wonderful Saviour! [Chorus]

6 To Him I've given all my heart,
   What a wonderful Saviour!
   The world shall never share a part;
   What a wonderful Saviour! [Chorus]

</idle musing>

a comfortable society

As a general rule, the theologia gloriae (theology of glory) will drive out the theologia crucis (theology of the cross) every time in a comfortable society. We will often observe that this is particularly true in America, where optimism and positive thinking reign side by side.—Fleming Rutledge, The Crucifixion, 43–44

Tozer for Tuesday

I believe, and I could be wrong here but I do not think I am, that God’s people are hungry for the real spiritual food. They have had it with artificial light and hard, stale bread and odorless incense. They have had it with the cheap imitations imported from the world; they long for the reality of God’s presence among them.—A.W. Tozer, Experiencing the Presence of God, 135

To God be the Glory

363 To God Be the Glory

1 To God be the glory - great things He hath done!
   So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
   Who yielded His life an atonement for sin,
   And opened the life-gate that all may go in.

Refrain:
   Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, let the earth hear His voice!
   Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, let the people rejoice!
   O come to the Father, through Jesus, the Son,
   and give Him the glory - great things He hath done.

2 O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood!
   To ev'ry believer the promise of God;
   The vilest offender who truly believes,
   That moment from Jesus a pardon receives. [Refrain]

3 Great things He hath taught us, great things He hath done,
   And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son;
   But purer and higher and greater will be
   Our wonder, our transport, when Jesus we see. [Refrain]
                         Fanny Crosby
                         Hymns for the Family of God

<idle musing>
I was very surprised to see that this standard Crosby hymn only occurs in about 230 hymnals. I was also surprised to see that I hadn't posted it yet. Apparently it doesn't occur in any of the three Methodist hymnals I own! I grew up singing it, so I'm not sure where I learned it, unless it was in a hymnal/songbook my parents owned—or maybe in a Sunday School songbook.
</idle musing>

The centrality of the passion in the early church

The portions of the four Gospels dealing with the life and teachings of Jesus were divided into short, discrete units (pericopes) suitable for reading and exposition in the context of worship in the early church. Once the Last Supper begins, however, the method changes. The portions describing the arrest, trial, suffering, and execution of Jesus are quite unlike the rest of the Gospels. These sequences are staged as long dramatic narratives, differing noticeably from the division of the earlier material into brief pericopes. The passion stories take up one-fourth to one-third of the total length of the four Gospels, and biblical interpreters generally agree that the material was shaped by the church’s oral traditions prior to being put into written form, in a way that forever indicates the surpassing importance of the suffering of Christ for the life of the earliest Christian communities.—Fleming Rutledge, The Crucifixion, 42

Praise the Savior, Ye Who Know Him

362 Praise the Savior, Ye Who Know Him

1 Praise the Savior, ye who know Him!
   Who can tell how much we owe Him?
   Gladly let us render to Him
   all we are and have.

2 Jesus is the name that charms us;
   He for conflict fits and arms us;
   nothing moves and nothing harms us
   while we trust in Him.

3 Trust in Him, ye saints, forever;
   He is faithful, changing never;
   neither force nor guile can sever
   those He loves from Him.

4 Keep us, Lord, O keep us cleaving
   to Thyself, and still believing,
   till the hour of our receiving
   promised joys with Thee.
                         Thomas Kelly
                         Hymns for the Family of God

<idle musing>
Hymnary.org adds a fifth verse:

5 Then we shall be where we would be,
   then we shall be what we should be;
   things that are not now, nor could be,
   soon shall be our own.

</idle musing>

I Will Praise Him!

359 I Will Praise Him!

1 When I saw the cleansing fountain,
   Open wide for all my sin,
   I obeyed the Spirit’s wooing
   When He said, Wilt thou be clean?

Chorus:
   I will praise Him! I will praise Him!
   Praise the Lamb for sinners slain;
   Give Him glory, all ye people,
   For His blood can wash away each stain.

2 Tho' the way seems straight and narrow,
   All I claimed was swept away;
   My ambitions, plans, and wishes,
   At my feet in ashes lay. (Chorus)

3 Then God’s fire upon the altar
   Of my heart was set aflame;
   I shall never cease to praise Him,
   Glory, glory to His name! (Chorus)

4 Blessed be the name of Jesus!
   I’m so glad He took me in;
   He’s forgiven my transgressions,
   He has cleansed my heart from sin. (Chorus)

5 Glory, glory to the Father!
   Glory, glory to the Son!
   Glory, glory to the Spirit!
   Glory to the Three in One! (Chorus)
                         Hymns for the Family of God
                         Margaret J. Harris

O Could I Speak the Matchless Worth

344 O Could I Speak the Matchless Worth

1 O could I speak the matchless worth,
   O could I sound the glories forth
   Which in my Savior shine,
   I'd soar and touch the heavenly strings,
   And vie with Gabriel while he sings
   In notes almost divine,
   In notes almost divine.

2 I'd sing the precious blood He spilt,
   My ransom from the dreadful guilt
   Of sin and wrath divine!
   I'd sing His glorious righteousness,
   In which all perfect heavenly dress
   My soul shall ever shine,
   My soul shall ever shine.

3 I'd sing the characters He bears,
   And all the forms of love He wears,
   Exalted on His throne.
   In loftiest songs of sweetest praise,
   I would to everlasting days
   Make all His glories known,
   Make all His glories known.

4 Soon, the delightful day will come
   When my dear Lord will bring me home,
   And I shall see His face;
   Then with my Savior, Brother, Friend,
   A blest eternity I’ll spend,
   Triumphant in His grace,
   Triumphant in His grace.
                         Samuel Medley
                         Hymns for the Family of God