A famous quotation and its missing context

Stupidity is a more dangerous enemy of the good than malice. One may protest against evil; it can be exposed and, if need be, prevented by use of force. Evil always carries within itself the germ of its own subversion in that it leaves behind at least a sense of unease in human beings. Against stupidity we are defenseless. Neither protests nor the use of force accomplish anything here; reasons fall on deaf ears; facts that contradict one’s prejudgment simply need not be believe—in such moments the stupid person even becomes critical—and when facts are irrefutable they are just pushed aside as inconsequential, as incidental. In all this the stupid person, in contrast to the malicious one, is utterly self-satisfied and, being easily irritated, becomes dangerous by going on the attack. For that reason, greater caution is called for when dealing with a stupid person than with a malicious one. Never again will we try to persuade the stupid person with reasons, for it is senseless and dangerous.—Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in After Ten Years, 22

<idle musing>
This is probably one of the most famous quotations from Bonhoeffer. But, it is usually just thrown out there without any context and without the following paragraph.

If we want to know how to get the better of stupidity, we must seek to understand its nature. This much is certain, that in essence it is not an intellectual defect but a human one. There are human beings who are of remarkably agile intellect yet stupid, and others who are intellectually quite dull yet anything but stupid. We discover this to our surprise in particular situations. The impression one gains is not so much that stupidity is a congenital defect but that, under certain circumstances, people are made stupid or that they allow this to happen to them.

Did you catch that? He isn't saying that stupidity is an intellectual problem. Stupidity is a learned behavior in response to situations.

Being sensitive to the Holy Spirit can keep us from being stupid. As we walk in his power, we can walk in love, which is the exact opposite of stupid. Sure, we can make dumb decisions and mistakes, but that's not being stupid...

Just an
</idle musing>

Is it Torah?

Paul evokes the death of Christ not to exclude an alternative soteriological mechanism (salvation by works), but to counteract an appeal to the Torah as the normative definition of “righteousness” — the appeal advanced both in Antioch and in Galatia. The Christ-event has revolutionized the believers’ existence, recalculating their norms. If they think that “righteousness” is Torah-defined, or act as if it were, they are no longer true to the good news. The gift enacted in the death of Christ has fundamentally reshaped every system of values, and to reestablish the Torah as the ultimate norm would be to refuse God’s gift. That event is either reflected in the norm-breaking practice of communal life or is in danger of being altogether denied. The good news stands or falls with the realization, in thought and practice, of the incongruous Gift.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 387

Sing them over again to me

109 Sing Them Over Again to Me

1 Sing them over again to me -
   Wonderful words of Life;
   Let me more of their beauty see -
   Wonderful words of Life.
   Words of life and beauty
   Teach me faith and duty:

Refrain:
   Beautiful words, wonderful words,
   Wonderful words of Life;
   Beautiful words, wonderful words,
   Wonderful words of Life.

2 Christ, the blessed One, gives to all
   Wonderful words of Life;
   Listen well to the loving call -
   Wonderful words of Life.
   All the wondrous story,
   Showing us His glory: [Refrain]

3 Sweetly echo the gospel call -
   Wonderful words of Life;
   Offer pardon and peace to all -
   Wonderful words of Life.
   Jesus, only Savior,
   Sanctify forever: [Refrain]
                         Philip P. Bliss
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
I've always loved this hymn. I was surprised to discover it only occurs in a 567 hymnals. Hymnary.org has this to say about his hymns: "Their popularity is far beyond their literary merits, and is mainly due to the simple melodies to which they are wedded." Can't say I disagree—at least on this hymn.
</idle musing>

Attacking the red cape

The fanatic believes that he can meet the power of evil with the purity of a principle. But like the bull in the arena, he attacks the red cape rather than the person carrying it, grows tired, and suffers defeat. He becomes entrapped in nonessentials and is caught in the trap of the cleverer one.—Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in After Ten Years, 19

A new self

The crucifixion of Christ — not just a death, but a cursed and scandalous execution ([Gal] 3:13; 5:11) — marks a radical disjunction. The reference to the “Christ who lives in me” gestures to the resurrection (1:1), which founds a radically new existence. For believers, these are not past events contemplated from a distance: they are imprinted onto their very existence (“I have been crucified with Christ”) in a way that collapses the distance between past and present.” “Living to God” is not just a reorientation of the self, but a mode of existence founded on, and shaped by, the life of another, the life of “Christ in me.” The Christ-event therefore founds not only a change of vision and value, but a change of self. Out of that newness, every value is newly evaluated and every norm reassessed.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 386

"You cannot have a Christian world…" (Tozer for Tuesday)

So, what can we do? I think the first thing that we must do is return to New Testament living. We must get into the Scriptures and discover the level of morality and ethics that are the mark of true believers in Christ. We are to deny ourselves and forsake the world on every level possible and always keep in mind that Christianity and the world do not mix. You cannot have a Christian world, but unfortunately, you can have a worldly Christian.—A.W. Tozer, Reclaiming Christianity, 155

O Jesus Thou Art Standing

108 O Jesus Thou Art Standing

1 O Jesus, Thou art standing
   Outside the fast-closed door,
   In lowly patience waiting
   To pass the threshold o'er:
   Shame on us, Christian brethren,
   His Name and sign who bear,
   O shame, thrice shame upon us
   To keep Him standing there!

2 O Jesus, Thou art knocking;
   And lo! that hand is scarred,
   And thorns Thy brow encircle,
   And tears Thy face have marred.
   O love that passeth knowledge,
   So patiently to wait!
   O sin that hath no equal,
   So fast to bar the gate!

3 O Jesus, Thou art pleading
   In accents meek and low,
   I died for you, My children,
   And will ye treat Me so?
   O Lord, with shame and sorrow
   We open now the door;
   Dear Savior, enter, enter,
   And leave us nevermore!
                         William W. How
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
Not sure I like the heavy guilt-inducing attitude in this hymn…
</idle musing>

For the sake of the common good

In whatever particular historical moment we find ourselves, we are summoned to determine what our place in history will be, to think and act beyond our self-interest for the sake of a common good: not just the common good of the moment, our particular political group, or even our society, but of our times—to act, as Bonhoeffer put it, on behalf of history itself and for the sake of future generations and the kind of society we would wish for them.—Victoria J. Barnett in Dietrich Bonhoeffer, After Ten Years, 16

Gospel and Torah at Galatia

That the Antioch dispute is the context for this line of argument indicates the importance of social experience in radicalizing attitudes toward the Torah. In eating with Gentiles out of loyalty to “the truth of the good news,” Jewish believers have found themselves looking like “sinners” in the eyes of the Torah, and that experience has brought to a head a clash of authority that Paul finds inherent in the Christ-event itself. That Paul is more ready than Peter to recognize this clash is a symptom of his greater exposure to the company of Gentile believers and the modified habitus thus formed. Although a Jew, he has lengthy experience of communities whose social intimacy and shared meals were apt to disregard Jewish customs and thus to suspend the authority of the Torah. His experience has created a disjunction in his cultural allegiance, matching and arising from the disjunctive effect of the Christ-event. As he expresses the matter here, because his incorporation into the Christ-event has executed his former self, his previously total allegiance to the Torah has been broken; a new identity has emerged, solely grounded in and oriented to Christ.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 385

Holy Spirit, Faithful Guide

106 Holy Spirit, Faithful Guide

1 Holy Spirit, faithful Guide,
   Ever near the Christian's side;
   Gently lead us by the hand,
   Pilgrims in a desert land;
   Weary souls for e'er rejoice,
   When they hear that sweetest voice,
   Whisper softly, "Wand'rer, come!
   Follow me, I'll guide thee home."

2 Ever present, truest friend,
   Ever near thine aid to lend,
   Leave us not to doubt and fear,
   Groping on in darkness drear;
   When the storms are raging sore,
   Hearts grow faint, and hopes give o'er,
   Whisper softly, "Wand'rer, come!
   Follow me, I'll guide thee home."

3 When our days of toil shall cease,
   Waiting still for sweet release,
   Nothing left but heaven and prayer,
   Wond'ring if our names are there;
   Wading deep the dismal flood,
   Pleading nought but Jesus' blood,
   Whisper softly, "Wand'rer, come!
   Follow me, I'll guide thee home."
                         Marcus M. Wells
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

(Spiritual) Bankruptcy

So, what is the new currency? Hardly some other human capacity or some inherent token of worth, but “faith in Christ” — the acknowledgement that the only thing of value is Christ himself. Faith is not an alternative human achievement nor a refined human spirituality, but a declaration of bankruptcy, a radical and shattering recognition that the only capital in God’s economy is the gift of Christ crucified and risen. Faith directed to, and centered on, Christ recognizes, under the impact of the good news, that there is no element of value locatable in the human being. It invests everything in the only capital that counts: Christ.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 383–84

Jesus is all the world to me (hymn)

97 Jesus is all the world to me

1 Jesus is all the world to me,
   My life, my joy, my all;
   He is my strength from day to day,
   Without Him I would fall:
   When I am sad, to Him I go,
   No other one can cheer me so;
   When I am sad, He makes me glad,
   He's my friend.

2 Jesus is all the world to me,
   My friend in trials sore;
   I go to Him for blessings, and
   He gives them o'er and o'er:
   He sends the sunshine and the rain,
   He sends the harvest's golden grain;
   Sunshine and rain, harvest of grain,
   He's my friend.

3 Jesus is all the world to me,
   And true to Him I'll be;
   Oh, how could I this friend deny,
   When He's so true to me?
   Following Him I know I'm right,
   He watches o'er me day and night;
   Following Him by day and night,
   He's my friend.

4 Jesus is all the world to me,
   I want no better friend;
   I trust Him now, I'll trust Him when
   Life's fleeting days shall end:
   Beautiful life with such a friend,
   Beautiful life that has no end;
   Eternal life, eternal joy,
   He's my friend.
                         Will L. Thompson
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
The author of this hymn, which occurs in a few more than 300 hymnals, also wrote "Softly and Tenderly, Jesus Is Calling," which was his most popular hymn by far. Take a moment to read his biography.
</idle musing>

A bit of data for the pistis Christou debate

The relevant genitival phrases in Galatians are all accompanied by verbs that unambiguously speak of human “believing” (2:16; 3:6, 22), while nowhere in this letter is the verb πιστεύειν or the adjective πιστός used of Christ.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 381

The self-gift of Christ

What Paul is discussing in [Galatians] 2:16 are not complete soteriological systems, but the evidential basis on which God can consider someone “righteous” (or worthy) in his sight. “Christ-faith” (or “faith in Christ”) is the sign of a prior, transformative event: it is the mode of life generated by the self-gift of Christ (2:20).—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 380

It's really that simple

We do not have to imagine here a “transfer” of “the righteousness of Christ,” effected through a believer’s union with Christ. It is enough to say that God recognizes as “righteous” those who indicate, by faith in Christ, that the Christ-event has become the ground of their being.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 379

But the Greek doesn't say that!

Two interpretative misjudgments lead to this erroneous reading: (1) that δικαιοῦσθαι means “to be made righteous” (a causative meaning impossible to justify from Greek usage, Jewish or non-Jewish, pace Martyn, Galatians, p. 265); and (2) that “to be righteous” means in itself to be saved. In combination, on this reading, Paul is denying that a person can get oneself saved by keeping the Law.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 377 n. 71

Righteous!

But it is important to note that acquittal here means that one is shown to be in the right, not that one is forgiven or absolved of guilt. The verb [δικαιόω] thus has, as Ziesler insists, “declaratory force” (Meaning of Righteousness, p. 48). If there is forgiveness or absolution involved, it is described in other terms.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 376 n. 67

Tozer for Tuesday

It is my opinion—I believe it is more than an opinion, it is insight—that evangelical Christianity as we know it is almost as far from God as liberalism. Its nominal creed is biblical, but its orientation is worldly. The modern evangelicals, the Holiness people, the Pentecostal people, the Bible loving people—we who claim to be evangelical and traditional in our Christian faith— have an orientation toward the big businessman. You know, Jesus never got along with any of the businessmen in His day. But we use them as our model.—A.W. Tozer, Reclaiming Christianity, 154

Torah and gospel

Paul uses the Antioch incident to speak about Torah-observance in general: the issue is the validity of the Torah in grounding and defining “righteousness.” When read in this context, it becomes clear that the issue is not the subjective value of “works” as a misconstrued means of eliciting God’s favor (Luther), nor “human enterprise” that depends on human rather than divine initiative (Martyn), but the practice of the Torah as though it were the authoritative cultural frame of the good news. The qualifier νόμου (which generally in this letter means the Jewish Torah) gives ἔργα in Galatians their problematic connotations (cf. 3:2, 5, 10), because the Torah is no longer the definitive measurement of “righteousness” (value) that counts before God.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 374 (emphasis original)

We would see Jesus (Park version)

90 We would see Jesus

1. We would see Jesus; lo! his star is shining
   above the stable while the angels sing;
   there in a manger on the hay reclining;
   haste, let us lay our gifts before the King.

2. We would see Jesus, Mary's son most holy,
   light of the village life from day to day;
   shining revealed through every task most lowly,
   the Christ of God, the life, the truth, the way.

3. We would see Jesus, on the mountain teaching,
   with all the listening people gathered round;
   while birds and flowers and sky above are preaching
   the blessedness which simple trust has found.

4. We would see Jesus, in his work of healing,
   at eventide before the sun was set;
   divine and human, in his deep revealing
   of God made flesh, in loving service met.

5. We would see Jesus, in the early morning,
   still as of old he calleth, "Follow me!"
   Let us arise, all meaner service scorning;
   Lord, we are thine, we give ourselves to thee.
                         J. Edgar Park
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
Seems there are three (at least) hymns with this title. This one, by Park, is only in a few less than 70 hymnals. The most popular one, by Anna Bartlett Warner, appears in over 250 hymnals.
</idle musing>

O Guide to Every Child

84 O Guide to Every Child

1 O Guide to every child of thine,
   To untamed colt, the bridle
   To bird in flight, controlling wing,
   To periled sailor, rudder,
   We'll follow thee, a King's own flock,
   And praise in all simplicity
   The guiding Christ, our shepherd.

2 Thou manpursuing Fisherman,
   Who harmest not but savest,
   Draw thy protecting net around
   The catch of thine apostles.
   From sordid waves of worldly sea
   Preserve us, Lord, for life, thy gift
   To those whom thou dost capture.

3 Thou givest us that food unseen
   The world knows not nor treasures;
   Give milk or bread or solid food
   As fits my understanding.
   So thank we all the mighty Child
   Through whom we know thee, God of peace,
   And call thee heavenly Father.
                         Clement of Alexandria
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
According to Hymnary.org, this hymn only occurs in two hymnals—both of them United Methodist. It's one of two hymns by Clement in this hymnal. I blogged about the other one a few years ago.

By the way, I'm finding that about 2/3–3/4 of the hymns in this hymnal I've already blogged from the 1939 version, which is why there are gaps in the postings.
</idle musing>

The right hand of fellowship

It matters greatly to Paul that there is a successful mission to Jews. What he desires is not the formation of a Gentile church, independent of Jewish believers, but an interdependent fellowship of Jews and non-Jews in Christ. The “right hand of fellowship” ([Gal] 2:9) is the recognition that the “mission ” to Gentiles can proceed beyond the limits of the Jewish tradition but also that the Jewish mission can proceed within them. If Paul’s promise to “remember the poor” (2:10) relates specifically to “the poor” in Jerusalem, his commitment to Jewish believers, and to the Jewish mission, remains the final impression of the conference. Such a commitment, I shall suggest, finds an echo at the end of the letter [Galatians], in Paul’s prayer for mercy on “the Israel of God” (6:16; see below, 13.3.3), and is prominent in his hopes and prayers for Israel in Romans 9–11.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 363–64 (emphasis original)

Paul's developing theology of grace/gift

It is unlikely that this interpretation of the Christ-gift came to Paul fully formed in his Damascus-experience: he reconstructs this connection after many years alongside Gentile converts, whom he found gifted with the Spirit despite their failure to observe the Torah (cf. Gal 3:2–5). Paul’s experience, scriptural re-reading, reflection on the story of Christ, and extended interaction with “un-judaized” believers combined to forge his theology of incongruous gift. It is hard to imagine how Paul’s theology could have taken this shape had his mission been limited to Jewish communities in the homeland or the Diaspora: his Gentile mission not only embodied but also shaped his thought. Theology and practice reinforced one another in a protracted dialectical relationship that made his apostolic calling to the Gentiles central to his version of the “good news.”—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 361

Where's the pattern to follow?

But Gentile believers who had abandoned their traditional religious practices were certainly vulnerable to social pressure, and one may imagine the Galatian believers struggling to create, regulate, and defend a communal lifestyle that took its bearings from the Christ-event but had no precedent or social analogue. Their reception of Paul’s message had disrupted their previous habitus, with its traditional customs and dispositions, but they had yet to develop a robust alternative. In this liminal and uncertain state, it was attractive to place their new convictions about Jesus, and their new experience of the Spirit, within the established matrix of the Jewish tradition. 337

It's mercy from the very beginning!

Paul’s construal of the calling of the patriarchs (9:6–13) suggests a subtle difference: mercy goes all the way down to the origin and the root, as the very source of Israel’s history. In this sense, mercy is for Paul not just restorative, but creative: it brings into being what was otherwise impossible, creating not just “reconciliation” but “life from the dead” (11:15). As in LAB [Pseudo-Philo], God’s mercy is incongruous with the worth of its recipients; Romans 9–11 suggests that this is so not only because it has to be (in the face of universal disobedience) but because it was ever so even in the formation of Israel, and will remain so in the salvation of both Gentile and Jew.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 327

The centrality of Christ in Paul's thought

God’s calling of Jews and Gentiles is certainly the realization of his promise ([Rom] 9:8), but the line of direction in Pau1’s theological reasoning is not from the eternal past to the present, but from the present backwards to its anticipation — and forwards to its completion. Rom 9:30-10:21, like the earlier chapters of the letter indicates that, for Paul, the present defining moment is the Christ—event, specifically the death and resurrection of Christ together with their proclamation throughout the world.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 325–26

Philo vs. Paul on the "gift"

Like Philo, Paul concludes that God’s choice operates without regard to work; unlike Philo, he does not appeal to God’s foreknowledge of the “capacities, works, and passions” of Esau or Jacob, nor to the traces of virtue or vice formed in their characters before birth. Paul’s emphasis lies entirely, and by Philo’s lights dangerously, on the inexplicable initiative of God, on God’s choice and predetermination without regard to a corresponding condition of worth ([Rom] 9:11–12). In fact, Paul rules out numerous qualifying criteria for divine selection: birth (natural rights of descent), status (comparative “greatness”), and action (“works”). Where Philo, on examination of the text, found traces of “worth,” Paul has declined to find any, and has paraded, by contrast, the independence and autonomy of divine choice. Hence his question: “is there injustice (ἀδικία) with God” (9:14)? His answer, which we will consider below (17.2), suggests that the only factor conditioning God’s mercy is God’s mercy itself (9:15–18).—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 323–24

Weeping for the church (Tozer for Tuesday)

I cannot stop people from doing what they are doing, but at least I can grieve because they will not stop; and I am going to do that. I am going to let my tears water the footsteps of those who go astray. And when the churches will not come back to New Testament standards and worship the Lord our God in the beauty of holiness, if I cannot make them do it or persuade them to do it in this awful hour of crisis, at least I can weep because they will not come. And I can sigh if I cannot weep.—A.W. Tozer, Reclaiming Christianity, 143

Creator of the Stars of Night

78 Creator of the Stars of Night

1 Creator of the stars of night,
   Thy people’s everlasting light,
   O Christ, Thou Saviour of us all,
   We pray Thee, hear us when we call.

2 At the great name of Jesus, now
   All knees must bend, all hearts must bow;
   And things celestial Thee shall own,
   And things terrestrial, Lord alone.

3 Come in thy holy might, we pray;
   redeem us for eternal day,
   From every power of darkness when
   Thou judgest all the sons of men.

4 To God the Father, God the Son,
   And God the Spirit, Three in One,
   Laud, honour, might, and glory be
   From age to age eternally.
                         Anonymous, Latin 9th century
                         Adapt. from John M. Neale
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
What a mess this hymn is! It only occurs in a little over 200 hymnals, but I don't think any two agree on the wording! If you want to see all the variations, I suggest you head on over to Hymnary.org and use the compare texts option.
</idle musing>

Grace everywhere—but not the same everywhere

To identify a “common pattern” in Second Temple Judaism based on the priority of grace (the covenantal foundation) is to offer a one-dimensional analysis that discovers uniformity only by downplaying every other form of difference. Sanders is right that grace is everywhere; but this does not mean that grace is everywhere the same. Once we scrutinize the meaning of this concept, and disaggregate its Various perfections, we find that our Jewish texts differ not (primarily) in degrees of emphasis on grace, but in the forms of perfection with which they articulate it. Of the five texts we have studied, some perfect grace as incongruous, and others (for good reason) do not. Again, this is not because some “believe in grace” and others do not. We should resist the assumption that grace is by definition incongruous, and that the concept has become “diluted” or “corrupted” when it is not perfected in this form. That assumption is built into modern dictionary definitions of “grace” for historical reasons: it has become integral to Christian views of grace at least since Augustine, under inspiration from Paul. But incongruity is only one possible perfection of grace, and not necessarily present whenever grace-language is employed.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 319

Violence is NEVER an option

Never, ever, ever, is violence an acceptable option for the Christian. That's all.

Congruence—or recompense?

On the logic of the congruent gift, God’s grace is not the opposite of recompense, but is simultaneously gift and reward. There is no antithesis here between gift and merit; grace and recompense stand in conjunction, not opposition. This is not to make the gift any less a gift or something akin to “pay.” Those who deserve gifts are still the recipients of gifts, given voluntarily and without legal requirement. They do not cause the gift to be given (that is always a matter of the benefactor’s will), but they prove themselves to be its suitable recipients and thus provide the condition for its proper distribution. We must insist, against our instincts, that the ancients knew, and had reason to celebrate, a form of divine grace that rewarded those who were fitting recipients of its free and lavish beneficence.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 316

At the Name of Jesus

76 At the Name of Jesus

1 At the name of Jesus
   ev'ry knee shall bow,
   ev'ry tongue confess him
   King of glory now;
   'tis the Father's pleasure
   we should call him Lord,
   who from the beginning
   was the mighty Word.

2 At his voice creation
   sprang at once to sight,
   all the angel faces,
   all the hosts of light,
   cherubim in heaven,
   stars upon their way,
   all the heav'nly orders
   in their great array.

3 Humbled for a season
   to receive a name
   from the lips of sinners
   unto whom he came,
   faithfully he bore it
   spotless to the last,
   brought it back victorious
   when from death he passed;

4 In your hearts enthrone him;
   there let him subdue
   all that is not holy,
   all that is not true;
   crown him as your captain
   in temptation's hour;
   let his will enfold you
   in its light and pow'r.
                         Carol M. Noel
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
I don't recall ever singing this hymn, although it occurs in almost 250 hymnals. Hymnary.org adds two verses:

4 Bore it up triumphant
   with its human light,
   thro' all ranks of creatures
   to the central height,
   to the throne of Godhead,
   to the Father's breast,
   filled it with the glory
   of that perfect rest.

6 Christians, this Lord Jesus
   shall return again
   in his Father's glory,
   with his angel train;
   for all wreaths of empire
   meet upon his brow,
   and our hearts confess him
   King of glory now.

</idle musing>

All Praise to Thee, for Thou, O King Divine

74 All Praise to Thee, for Thou, O King Divine

1 All praise to thee, for thou, O King divine,
   didst yield your glory that of right was thine,
   that in our darkened hearts thy grace might shine:
   Alleluia!

2 Thou cam'st to us in lowliness of thought;
   by thee the outcast and the poor were sought,
   and by thy death was God's salvation wrought:
   Alleluia!

3 Let this mind be in us which was in thee,
   who wast a servant that we might be free,
   humbling thyself to death on Calvary:
   Alleluia!

4 Wherefore, by God's eternal purpose, thou
   art high exalted o'er all creatures now,
   and given the name to which all knees shall bow:
   Alleluia!

5 Let every tongue confess with one accord
   in heaven and earth that Jesus Christ is Lord;
   and God the Father be by all adored:
   Alleluia!
                         F. Bland Tucker
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

Himself (hymn)

Himself
By A. B. Simpson (1843-1919)

Once it was the blessing, Now it is the Lord;
Once it was the feeling, Now it is His Word.
Once His gifts I wanted, Now the Giver own;
Once I sought for healing, Now Himself alone.

Once ’twas painful trying, Now ’tis perfect trust;
Once a half salvation, Now the utterrnost.
Once ’twas ceaseless holding, Now He holds me fast;
Once ’twas constant drifting, Now my anchor’s cast.

Once ’twas busy planning, Now ’tis trustful prayer;
Once ’twas anxious caring, Now He has the care,
Once ’twas what I wanted, Now what Jesus says;
Once ’twas constant asking, Now ’tis ceaseless praise.

Once it was my working, His it hence shall be;
Once I tried to use Him, Now He uses me.
Once the power I wanted, Now the Mighty One;
Once for self I labored, Now for Him alone.

Once I hoped in Jesus, Now I know He’s mine;
Once my lamps were dying, Now they brightly shine.
Once for death I waited, Now His coming hail;
And my hopes are anchored, Safe within the vail.
         As quoted in A.W. Tozer, Reclaiming Christianity, 130–31

The Dead Sea Scrolls on human worth

The Thanksgiving Hymns from Qumran represent another striking articulation of divine benevolence, with the distinctive accents of a sectarian community. Effusive expressions of gratitude for divine goodness punctuate these hymns with extraordinary regularity: in multiple variations God is addressed with thanks for what has transpired “by your kindnesses” (בחסדיכה), “according to the abundance of your compassion” (כהמון רחמיכה), because of “your abundant goodness” (רוב טובכה), and through “forgiveness” (סליחות) (e.g., 1QHa XIL38; XV.33; XVII.34).‘ The language of “abundance” mirrors the almost obsessive articulation of this theme, which matches the fact that the signature tune of all these compositions is the attribution of knowledge, righteousness, power, and glory — indeed, every dimension of salvation — to God. At the same time, there is an equal emphasis on the worthlessness of the recipients of mercy, an insistent assertion that there is nothing in the material, social, or moral quality of the human object that could provide grounds for this outpouring of grace.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 239

Philo on ancestry vs. virtue

“Nobility” (ευγένεια) is a matter of the soul, not of ancestry ([Philo] Virt. 187-27). That is why proselytes can share in the patriarchs’ heritage, while Jews must be warned not to place confidence in the virtue of their ancestors (πεποίθησις προγονικῆς αρετῆς, 226).—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 236

God Is Love, by Him Upholden

62 God Is Love, by Him Upholden

1 God is love, by Him upholden,
   Hang the glorious orbs of light,
   In their language, glad and golden,
   Speaking to us day and night
   Their great story,
   God is love, and God is light.

2 Through that precious love He sought us
   Wandering from His holy ways;
   With that precious life He bought us,
   Then let all our future days
   Tell this story,
   Love is life, our lives be praise.

3. Gladsome is the theme and glorious,
   Praise to Christ our gracious Head;
   Christ, the risen Christ, victorious,
   Earth and hell hath captive led.
   Welcome story!
   Love lives on, and death is dead.

4. Up to Him let each affection
   Daily rise and round Him move;
   Our whole lives one resurrection
   To the life of life above;
   Their glad story,
   God is life, and God is love.
                         John S. B. Monsell
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

The more the better?

Since no perfection of grace can be regarded as its core characteristic, or its sine qua non, we are under no pressure to prove or to disprove that Paul is the bearer of some “essential” meaning. Nor can we assume that the more perfections of grace, the better. In fact, we may be wary of the tendency to pile perfections on top of each other, or to extend single perfections to a greater and greater extreme. Such tendencies may serve ideological interests, but there is no reason to think that the greater the number of perfections, the better the concept of grace.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 187

Let us, with a gladsome mind

61 Let us, with a gladsome mind

1 Let us, with a gladsome mind,
   praise the Lord, for he is kind:
   For his mercies ay endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

2 He with all-commanding might
   filled the new-made world with light:
   For his mercies ay endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

3 All things living he doth feed,
   his full hand supplies their need:
   For his mercies ay endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

4 Let us, with a gladsome mind,
   praise the Lord, for he is kind:
   For his mercies ay endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.
                         John Milton
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
Seems that Milton, as was his wont, was a bit more verbose than just these four verses. Hymnary.org lists twenty-four verses!

1 Let us, with a gladsome mind,
   praise the LORD, for He is kind:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

2 Let us blaze His name abroad,
   for of gods He is the God:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

3 Let us all His praises tell
   who doth wrathful tyrants quell:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

4 He with miracles doth make
   heav'n and earth, amazed, to shake:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

5 He by wisdom did create
   starry heav'ns so full of state:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

6 He did solid earth ordain
   t'rise above the wat'ry plain:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

7 He, with all commanding might,
   filled the new-made world with light:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

8 He hath caused the golden sun
   all day long his course to run:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

9 He doth shine the moon at night
   with her spangling sisters bright:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

10 He with thunder-clasping hand,
   smote firstborn of Egypt land:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

11 And in spite of Pharaoh fell,
   He brought forth His Israel:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

12 Red Sea waves He cleft in twain,
   split in two the ruddy main:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

13 Floods stood still like walls of glass,
   while the Hebrew bands did pass:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

14 But full soon did they devour
   Egypt's king with all his pow'r:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

15 He His chosen race did bless
   in the wasteful wilderness:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

16 He in battle has brought down
   kings of prowess and renown:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

17 Conquered Sihon and his host
   of the Amorrean coast:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

18 Large-limbed Og He did subdue
   with his over-hardy crew:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

19 To His servant Israel,
   gave their land therein to dwell:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

20 He hath with a piteous eye
   looked upon our misery:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

21 Freed us from the slavery
   of th'invading enemy:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

22 All things living He doth feed;
   His full hand supplies their need:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

23 Let us therefore warble forth
   His high majesty and worth:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

24 He His mansion hath on high
   out of reach of mortal eye:
   for His mercies shall endure,
   ever faithful, ever sure.

</idle musing>

The six possible perfections of "Grace"/Gift

We have identified six possible perfections:
(i) superabundance: the supreme scale, lavishness, or permanence of the gift;

(ii) singularity: the attitude of the giver as marked solely and purely by benevolence;

(iii) priority: the timing of the gift before the recipient’s initiative;

(iv) incongruity: the distribution of the gift without regard to the worth of the recipient;

(v) efficacy: the impact of the gift on the nature or agency of the recipient;

(vi) non-circularity: the escape of the gift from an ongoing cycle of reciprocity.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 186

<idle musing>
You need to remember these six points! They are vital to the rest of the book. I find myself continually referring back to them as I read. Not all six are perfected by every writer—in fact they rarely if ever are. A writer will choose to perfect one or two. And this is where the problem arises. Everyone assumes that their version is the correct one and therefore reads their version back into the sources. Think Augustine/Calvin, who perfect efficacy and then read that back into the New Testament (hint, it isn't there!).
</idle musing>

Unto the hills I lift my eyes (hymn)

57 Unto the hills I lift my eyes

1. Unto the hills I lift my eyes;
   O whence shall come my aid?
   My help is from the Lord alone,
   Who Heaven and earth has made.

2. He will not let thy foot be moved,
   Thy Guardian never sleeps
   With watchful and unslumbering care
   His own He safely keeps.

3. Thy faithful Keeper is the Lord,
   Thy Shelter and thy Shade;
   'Neath sun or moon, by day or night,
   Thou shalt not be afraid.

4. From evil He will keep thee safe,
   For thee He will provide;
   Thy going out, thy coming in,
   Forever He will guide.
                         The Psalter 1912
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
Psalm 121 is one of my favorite psalms and there are a million variations on songs from it. I first learned it with the KJV put to music. I don't recall ever singing this version and Hymnary.org doesn't list it among their numerous variations.
</idle musing>

Beware the modern assumptions about "gifts"

Our attempts to comprehend ancient conceptions of the gift have resulted in relativizing modern assumptions, especially the Western notion of the “pure gift” (1.3). We have suggested in outline the gradual transformations that have shaped the distinctively modern ideal of a gift-without-return. In this sketch, large-scale social, political, and economic changes were connected to the emergence of the preference for the one-way gift. This latter may have roots in Lutheran theology, but was universalized in Kantian ethics with its resistance to externally imposed obligation. We have thus become wary of the protestations of Derrida and others that a gift is truly such only if it entails no reciprocity or return. That peculiarly modern presumption does not correspond to the assumptions of antiquity and should not be allowed to determine what Paul or his fellow Jews might have understood by the grace or gifts of God.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 185

What does anthropology say?

Anthropology offers no model of “the gift” and provides no single definition, but it alerts us to the dynamics of reciprocity, power, and obligation that have been common in gift-relations, but are easily missed or misconstrued. Studies of gift-giving in pre-modern societies are of particular heuristic value in raising questions worth testing against ancient sources.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 183

Through all the changing scenes of life

56 Through all the changing scenes of life

1 Through all the changing scenes of life,
   In trouble, and in joy,
   The praises of my God shall still
   My heart and tongue employ.

2 Of his deliv'rance I will boast,
   Till all that are distress'd,
   From my example comfort take,
   And sooth their griefs to rest.

3 O magnify the Lord with me,
   With me exalt his Name,
   To him in my distress I cry'd
   He to my rescue came.

4 With grateful hearts observe his ways,
   And on his goodness rest;
   So will your own experience prove
   That pious souls are blest.

5 For while his fear inspires your breast,
   His mercy will be nigh,
   To guard your lives from threat'ning ills,
   And all your wants supply.
                         Tate and Brady 1696
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

The Tranquilized Church

The first offer from the Lord is not tranquility at all. The Lord at first offers us deliverance, forgiveness, renewal and making things right; and following that comes tranquility. But we are marketing tranquility now, selling it like soap, and asking our people in the name of John 3:16 to come and get tranquilized. And so we have a tranquilized Church that is enjoying herself immensely at banquets and times of fun and coffee-klatches and fellowships. Then she is singing about the Lord, “Thy Word is like a garden, Lord.”—A.W. Tozer, Reclaiming Christianity, 138

O Lord, Our Fathers Oft Have Told

54 O Lord, Our Fathers Oft Have Told

1 O Lord, our fathers oft have told,
   In our attentive ears,
   Thy wonders in their days perform'd,
   And in more ancient years.

2 ’Twas not their courage, nor their sword,
   To them salvation gave;
   ’Twas not their number, nor their strength
   That did their country save.

3 But thy right hand, thy pow'rful arm;
   Whose succor they implor'd—
   Thy Providence protected those,
   Who thy great name ador'd.

4 As thee, their God, our fathers own'd,
   So thou art still our King;
   O therefore, as thou didst to them,
   To us deliv'rance bring.

5 To thee, the glory we'll ascribe,
   From whom salvation came;
   In God our shield we will rejoice,
   And ever bless thy name.
                         Tate and Brady 1696
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
Note that Tate and Brady refers to the Psalter collection of Nahum Tate and Nicholas Brady, which they published in 1696. Quite a few of their adaptations of the Psalms are still in use today.
</idle musing>

Give to the Winds They Fears

51 Give to the Winds They Fears

1 Give to the winds thy fears,
   hope and be undismayed;
   God hears thy sighs and counts thy tears;
   God shall lift up thy head.

2 Through waves and clouds and storms,
   He gently clears the way;
   wait thou His time, so shall this night
   soon end in joyous day.

3 Leave to His sov'reign sway
   to choose and to command,
   so shalt thou wond'ring own His way,
   how wise, how strong His hand!

4 Let us in life, in death,
   Thy steadfast truth declare,
   and publish with our latest breath
   Thy love and guardian care.
                         Paul Gerhardt
                         Trans. by John Wesley
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
Be sure to take the time to read the short bio of the hymnwriter at the link above. This hymn occurs in about 500 hymnals. Hymnary.org inserts four verses:

3 Still heavy is thy heart,
   still sink thy spirits down?
   Cast off the weight, let fear depart,
   and every care be gone.

4 What though thou rulest not,
   yet heav'n, and earth, and hell
   proclaim, God sitteth on the throne,
   and ruleth all things well.

6 Far, far above thy thought
   His counsel shall appear
   when fully He the work hath wrought,
   that caused thy needless fear.

7 Thou seest our weakness, Lord,
   our hearts are known to Thee;
   O lift Thou up the sinking heart,
   confirm the feeble knee.

</idle musing>

My God, I thank thee

50 My God, I thank thee

1. My God, I thank Thee, who hast made
   The earth so bright,
   So full of splendour and of joy,
   Beauty and light,
   So many glorious things are here,
   Noble and right.

2. I thank Thee, too, that Thou hast made
   Joy to abound,
   So many gentle thoughts and deeds
   Circling us round,
   That in the darkest spot of earth
   Some love is found.

3. I thank Thee more that all our joy
   Is touched with pain,
   That shadows fall on brightest hours,
   That thorns remain,
   So that earth's bliss may be our guide,
   And not our chain.

4. For Thou, who knowest, Lord, how soon
   Our weak heart clings,
   Hast given us joys, tender and true,
   Yet all with wings,
   So that we see, gleaming on high,
   Diviner things.

5. I thank Thee, Lord, that Thou hast kept
   The best in store:
   We have enough, yet not too much
   To long for more,
   A yearning for a deeper peace
   Not known before.
                         Adelaide A. Proctor
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
I don't recall ever singing this hymn. It isn't very popular, only occurring in 222 hymnals. Hymnary.org adds a sixth verse:

6. I thank Thee, Lord that here our souls,
   Though amply blest,
   Can never find, although they seek,
   A perfect rest,
   Nor ever shall, until they lean
   On Jesus' breast.

</idle musing>

What hath Sanders wrought?

What may we conclude from these heated and often confused debates in the wake of Sanders? In large measure, they revolve around unexamined assumptions and predetermined decisions concerning the meaning of the term “grace.” Even when a definition is provided, its historical and cultural roots are generally left unexamined, as if the concept had some essential meaning across all times and cultures. That Sanders meant by “grace” the priority of God’s initiative in election, but sometimes added the language of “unmerited” (that is, incongruous) grace, is one cause of the subsequent confusion. But it is also often the case that a particular definition, accorded a structural role in the thesis to be argued, is taken for granted as obvious, “typical,” or “common.”—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 174

Captain of Israel's Host

46 Captain of Israel's Host

1 Captain of Israel's host, and guide
   Of all who seek the land above,
   Beneath Thy shadow we abide,
   The cloud of Thy protecting love;
   Our strength, Thy grace; our rule, Thy word;
   Our end, the glory of the Lord.

2 By Thine unerring Spirit led,
   We shall not in the desert stray;
   We shall not full direction need,
   Nor miss our providential way;
   As far from danger as from fear,
   While love, almighty love, is near.
                         Charles Wesley
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
Unusually for a Charles Wesley hymn, there are only two verses and I could find no variations.
</idle musing>

Theology or ethics?

While supportive of the emancipatory movements that have engaged the churches in America since the 1960s, Martyn is wary lest the church’s social and political action becomes disengaged from its source, God’s action in Christ. If it does, ethics takes the place of theology, and reliance is placed on human agency in a cosmos that is conflicted at a deeper and more intractable level than the church is apt to recognize. In the context of a church that he perceives to be weakened by a moralism neither founded in nor energized by the gospel, Martyn stresses both the priority and the efficacy of grace as a liberating vision that frees the church to act boldly without relying on itself, and also carries the hope that, despite setbacks, God’s gracious power will triumph in the end.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 150

O Lord, Our Lord, in All the Earth

44 O Lord, Our Lord, in All the Earth

1 O Lord, our Lord, in all the earth,
   how excellent Thy name!
   Thy glory Thou hast spread afar
   in all the starry frame.

2 When I regard the wondrous heav'ns,
   Thy handiwork on high,
   the moon and stars ordained by Thee,
   "O what is man?" I cry.

3 O what is man, in Thy regard
   to hold so large a place,
   and what the son of man, that Thou
   dost visit him in grace.

4 On man Thy wisdom hath bestowed
   a pow'r well nigh divine;
   with honor Thou hast crowned his head
   with glory like to Thine.

5 Thy mighty works and wondrous grace
   Thy glory, LORD, proclaim,
   O LORD, our Lord, in all the earth,
   How excellent Thy name.
                         Psalm 8
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
Hymnary.org adds two verses:

2 From lips of children, Thou, O LORD
   hast mighty strength ordained,
   that adversaries should be stilled
   and vengeful foes restrained.

6 Thou hast subjected all to him,
   and lord of all is he,
   of flocks and herds, and beasts and birds,
   and all within the sea.

</idle musing>

Bultmann on grace

Influenced by both Luther and Barth, Bultmann makes the incongruity of grace the center of Pauline theology: this grace exposes, judges, and overcomes the perverted human desire to seek recognition and reward from our own resources. He likewise emphasizes the priority of grace, though distancing himself from the Augustinian understanding of predestination: God’s grace is prevenient (vorkommende) in opening up the possibility of a new self-understanding, not in determining how one will respond. Bultmann’s cautious treatment of Paul’s language of powers, and his emphasis on freedom, decision, and obedience, signal his reluctance to perfect the efficacy of grace, at least as found in the Augustinian and Calvinist traditions. Unlike Marcion and modern liberalism (but here like Augustine and Calvin), for Bultmann, grace is not singular in the sense that it is incompatible with notions of divine judgment and wrath: it is, rather, the paradoxical act of the righteous judge. Nor is it noncircular in the sense that it carries no demands: Bultmann’s emphasis on the demand of grace and the obedience of faith is markedly different from Luther’s, at least in tone. For Bultmann, to speak of “pure gift” or “radical grace” means above all one thing: there are no grounds for boasting before God, whose grace operates not in accordance with human effort but precisely to undercut the self-destructive human desire to establish our own righteousness and worth.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 140

Praise the Lord! ye heav'ns adore him

42 Praise the Lord! ye heav'ns adore him

1 Praise the Lord! ye heav'ns adore him;
   Praise him angels, in the height;
   Sun and moon, rejoice before him;
   Praise him, all ye stars of light.
   Praise the Lord! for he has spoken;
   Worlds his mighty voice obeyed;
   Laws which never shall be broken
   For their guidance he has made.

2 Praise the Lord! for he is glorious;
   Never shall his promise fail;
   God has made his saints victorious;
   Sin and death shall not prevail.
   Praise the God of our salvation!
   Hosts on high his pow'r proclaim;
   Heav'n, and earth, and all creation,
   Laud and magnify his name.
                         Psalm 148
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
While the Methodist hymnal doesn't list an author,Hymnary.org lists a Richard Mant as the translator from the Latin. They also add a verse:

3 Worship, honor, glory, blessing,
   Lord, we offer unto thee;
   Young and old, thy praise expressing,
   In glad homage bend the knee.
   All the saints in heav'n adore thee,
   We would bow before thy throne;
   As thine angels serve before thee,
   So on earth thy will be done.

</idle musing>

Integral, but not prior

Calvin insists, “Christ justifies no one whom he does not at the same time sanctify” ([Inst.] III.16.1). Calvin is unwilling to follow the Lutheran distinction between inner saving faith and outer works of service, because the believers good works are integral to participation in Christ, whose purpose is to conform believers into his image (Rom 8:29) and thus to transform them into some approximation of the holiness of God (Inst. IIl.8.1). Calvin’s task—and considerable achievement—is to position a life of good works within the scheme of salvation, without making these works instrumental in obtaining or “meriting” grace, that is, without compromising the priority and incongruity of grace. To the extent that he succeeded, he laid the foundation for a Protestant theology of grace that envisaged an extended narrative of moral progress as an integral element of the life of faith.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 124

Party on! (Tozer for a Tuesday)

We want to play and have no hesitation advertising our Bible conferences as religious playgrounds, which proves how carnal we are. We live a life of play and trifles. In order to get many Christians interested in Bible study or missions, it must be camouflaged as play to make it more palatable. A carnal Christian must be tricked into studying the Bible and it must be made out to be something that is fun.—A.W. Tozer, Reclaiming Christianity, 125

O How Glorious, Full of Wonder

41 O How Glorious, Full of Wonder

1. O how glorious, full of wonder
   Is thy name o’er all the earth;
   Thou who wrought creation’s splendor,
   Bringing suns and stars to birth!
   Rapt in reverence we adore thee,
   Marveling at thy mystic ways,
   Humbly now we bow before thee,
   Lifting up our hearts in praise.

2. When we see they lights of heaven,
   Moon and stars, thy power displayed,
   What is man that thou shouldst love him,
   Creature that thy hand hath made?
   Child of earth, yet full of yearning,
   Mixture strange of good and ill,
   From thy ways so often turning,
   Yet thy love doth seek him still.

3. Thou hast given man dominion
   O’er the wonders of thy hand,
   Made him fly with eagle pinion,
   Master over sea and land,
   Soaring spire and ruined city,
   These our hopes and failures show,
   Teach us more of human pity,
   That we in thine image grow.

4. O how wondrous, O how glorious
   Is thy name in every land!
   Thou whose purpose moves before us
   Toward the goal that thou hast planned.
   ‘Tis thy will our hearts are seeking,
   Conscious of our human need.
   Spirit in our spirit speaking,
   Make us sons of God indeed!
                         Curtis Beach
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
The story behind this hymn is interesting. Read it here.
</idle musing>

More on Luther and grace

The superabundance of divine grace (“the overwhelming goodness of God”) is identified by Luther first and foremost with the Christ—event, not with the gifts of creation or nature. As we have seen, the Pauline terminology of “grace” is taken to signify a relationship of favor, not a quality in the character of God nor, by infusion, a human quality or capacity. God’s favorable relation to humanity is embodied in the gift of Christ, who comes to us only as the Savior who gives, not as a Legislator or Judge who demands. In this respect, Luther’s theology tends toward perfecting the singularity of grace, though (unlike Marcion) only in dialectical relationship to the law of the same God, who is “hidden” behind apparent contradictions, and with his “other hand” threatens us with judgment. The priority of grace is also fundamental for Luther: his Augustinian tradition equips him to make strong statements about the predestination of the elect, but he is wary to enter this perplexing terrain since the essence of the gospel is its address to individual lives, not the eternal disposition of God toward the world. At the heart of the gospel is the gift of Christ, “the foundation and chief blessing of salvation.” In Aristotelian terms, it is not the works that make the person, but the person who makes the works; in Lutheran terms, persons are reconstituted when they receive the all-sufficient gift of God in Christ. Sola gratia thus preserves the sense that all that is essential to salvation has not just been started but has already been achieved by Christ (solus Christus).—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 110–11

Luther and imputation

As recent analysis has rightly shown, Luther thereby melds the Pauline themes of justification by faith and participation in Christ without the polarity that has often arisen in later readings of Paul. Where Luther uses the language of “imputation,” this is never a bare “forensic” metaphor, and certainly involves no “fiction,” since Christ’s righteousness is real and really shared by the believer.“ Believers are justified by union with Christ.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 107–8

Many and Great, O God (Dakota hymn)

40 Many and Great, O God

1 Many and great, O God, are your works, maker of earth and sky.
   Your hands have set the heavens with stars;
   your fingers spread the mountains and plains.
   Lo, at your word the waters were formed; deep seas obey your voice.

2 Grant unto us communion with you, O star-abiding One.
   Come unto us and dwell with us;
   with you are found the gifts of life.
   Bless us with life that has no end, eternal life with you.
                         American Folk Hymn
                         Paraphrase by Philip Frazier
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
Actually, it isn't an "American Folk Hymn"; it's a Dakota hymn. Hymnary.org gives the original Dakota:

1 Wakantanka taku nitawa tankaya qa ota;
   mahpiya kin eyahnake ça,
   maka kin he duowanca;
   mniowanca śbeya wanke cin, hena oyakihi.

2 Woehdaku nitawa kin he minaġi kin qu wo;
   mahpiya kin iwankam yati,
   wicowaśte yuha nanka,
   wiconi kin he mayaqu nun, owihanke wanin.

According to hymnary.org, there is no information available about the translator. They also say the hymn only occurs in 46 hymnals. I don't recall ever singing it, or even hearing it sung.
</idle musing>