Sing a New Song
My wife and I live in Taiwan—and although they do actually have a few good churches here, the vast majority of Taiwanese churches invariably lean toward some species of salvation by works and other associated doctrinal errors. I can only speculate as to how this came about, but virtually every church in Taiwan—regardless of the name on the door—seems to be of the opinion that "good works" are required to keep a solid grip on one's salvation.
Along similar lines,
many Taiwanese Christians also believe (because they have been taught it and
accept it without question) that they will stand at the Great White Throne
Judgment to learn whether or not they made the cut, so
to speak, and will enter heaven. Many believe that if their works fall short
and they don't make the cut, they will be sent off to something that has
the distinct odor of purgatory, although that word is never used because the
Roman Catholics have had dibs on it since the fifteenth century.
To be honest, however, I
don't get bent out of shape over it. I have discovered that everybody is
wrong about something in the Bible (this writer included), and so no
church is free of error. I'm generally willing to let a few doctrinal missteps
slide just to be able to gather to worship God and give my Taiwanese wife
Phoebe a chance to make some Christian friends. In other words, I don't go for the preaching. I say that because many years ago I made the
decision to adhere to a simple principle I like to call DIY: Doctrine Is
Yours.
In other words:
Don't get your doctrine
from a denomination.
Don't get your doctrine from a certain preacher.
Of course, you can and
should learn from other sources that you come to trust over
time as being reliable. And never lose sight of
the fact that godly people can disagree over various secondary doctrinal points
without coming to blows. The point is that in the end, your doctrinal beliefs
are on you.
You need to get your
doctrine by studying to show
yourself approved, a workman who need not be
ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
Because that's what we
are commanded to do in 2 Timothy 2:15. And legions of people in churches all
over the world today would do well to follow the same maxim to the best of
their ability.
But I digress. All I
wanted to say is that a couple of months ago my wife and I started going to a
different church that's on the opposite side of Taipei City from where we live.
And although it's a pretty long stretch, we both
really like the preaching. They have services in both English and Chinese, and
we go to the English service since Phoebe's English is w-a-y better than
my Chinese. The pastor is Australian, and I can sum up the reason I like him in
four words:
He. Preaches. The. Word.
No touchy-feely
anecdotes. No cartoonish life applications. No huffing and puffing and spitting
on everybody in the first three rows. Just the Word of God, straight and true.
I hate to say it, but the truth is that you could attend the great majority of churches
in Taiwan every single Sunday for years and never once hear a clear,
straightforward presentation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The attitude seems
to be that you must already be a Christian since you walked in the door of the
church, so we don't need to bother with all that basic stuff—just join a group
activity and get involved...and see ya next
Sunday! 08)
But this preacher from
Down Under? So help me...this guy can't go 10 minutes
without referencing the sacrifice Jesus made for our sins at Calvary so that we
could be eternally reconciled to a holy God who loves us. And he's the type
that carefully explains exactly what the Bible says and means to the
best of his ability—word by word, verse by verse (including Greek!) Now that's
my kinda preacher, and that's what
makes this church a rarity in Taiwan and a real treat for me and Phoebe—and we
gobble it up like a couple of hungry coyotes that stumbled across some choice
carrion.
(Relax...I'm getting
there.) So that's one thing we like about this church. But I
gotta be honest: There is one minor, incidental thing about this church that
just leaves me flat as a cōng yóu bǐng (green onion pancake),
and it was something I always loved about the church my family went to when I
was a kid growing up in a small town in the heart of the Midwest:
The songs!
As good as this church
is in ways that count, before God the songs they sing just suck the life out of
me. I don't know (and don't care) who wrote them, but they are the most boring,
insipid, lifeless excuses for hymns I have ever had the misfortune of hearing
and pretending to sing.
Now, don't get the wrong
idea...the lyrics to most of these songs in isolation may be boring, but they
are at least doctrinally sound, generally speaking.
But just try to imagine singing a Shakespearean sonnet put to a melody that
plods along in a pedestrian fashion and just goes nowhere. Yeee-haweth.
So although I really
like this church, their sorry excuse for songs couldn't help but bring back
fond memories of the songs we sang in the church I grew up in—songs that made
the Holy Ghost punch you in the gut, pack a load of firecrackers in your
spirit, and put a blowtorch to your heart in ways that such boring, feel-good
fuzzy-wuzzies just don't—at least not for me.
So that's why I'm here:
to share with you a Top 10 list of my favorite gospel songs—songs that I still
remember singing as a kid in the church I grew up in. Some of these are pretty well-known hymns that most of you have heard before,
and a few are perhaps not quite so well known. But each and
every one is a walk down memory lane for yours truly,
and move my spirit like nothing I've heard in any church since.
Notes on the songs: I have included the
full lyrics and a link to a YouTube performance for each of these Top 10 songs,
and I have made an effort to give you the lyrics to
each of these 10 songs as they are performed in the associated video. So, some
verses may be omitted or rearranged, and a few words may vary from other
printed versions.
For these Top 10 videos,
I did my best to search YouTube to find good quality performances in a variety
of styles, ranging from my favorite gospel quartet to an amazing six-member
acapella group from Uganda, so hopefully there's a little something for
everyone.
(I mention two
additional songs near the end of the article for which I only include a link to
a generic YouTube video that displays the lyrics.)
The Top
10
1.
Are You Washed in the Blood?
Performed by Joey + Rory
/ YouTube [v1] Have you been to Jesus
for the cleansing power? Are you
washed in the blood of the Lamb? Are you
fully trusting in His grace this hour? Are you
washed in the blood of the Lamb? [Chorus] Are you washed in the blood, In the soul cleansing
blood of the Lamb? Are your garments
spotless? Are they white as snow? Are you washed in the
blood of the Lamb? [v2] Are you walking daily
by the Savior's side? Are you washed in the
blood of the Lamb? Do you rest each moment
in the Crucified? Are you washed in the
blood of the Lamb? [Chorus] [v3] Lay aside your garments that are stained with sin, And be washed in the
blood of the Lamb; There's a fountain
flowing for the soul unclean, O be washed in the blood
of the Lamb! [Chorus] Are your garments spotless? Are they white as snow? O
be washed in the blood of the Lamb! Comments: "Are You Washed in
the Blood?" was written in 1878 by a Presbyterian minister named Elisha
Hoffman. This song became very popular within the Salvation Army in the late
nineteenth century, when the major emphasis of the Church in America was trying
to reform a corrupt society rather than save individual sinners (i.e. the
Social Gospel). But even as the Social
Gospel began to fade in the early twentieth century, the song remained popular
in many churches around the country because—Social Gospel or no—it hammers home
the key, fundamental question that lies at the heart of the gospel. And that
question hasn't changed in two thousand years and never will: Have your sins been
washed away by
the blood of the Lamb? One of my favorite lines in this
song has always been "Are your garments spotless? / Are they white as
snow?" This always reminds me of how we will appear when we return with
Christ at the Second Coming to rule and reign with Him in the kingdom: 7"Let's rejoice and
be exceedingly glad, and let's give the glory to him. For the wedding of the
Lamb has come, and his wife [that's us] has made herself ready." 8It
was given to her that she would array herself in bright, pure, fine linen, for
the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. [We
are returning to earth with Christ at the Second Coming wearing our
"spotless garments" that are "white as snow."] 9He said to me,
"Write, 'Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the
Lamb.'" [The wedding supper on earth (which follows
the wedding ceremony in heaven) will be one of the first things on the agenda
when we return to earth with Christ.] (Revelation 19:7–9a / emphasis
& [comments] added) And forgive me pointing out the obvious, but this is just one reason why
the Parable of the Ten Virgins cannot be about the Church. The Church in
its entirety (the Bride) is inside at the
wedding supper—so how can half the Bride be outside
trying to get in and be refused entrance, while the other half of the Bride is allowed in to
her own wedding supper? How does that
work?! In that parable (Matthew
25:1–13), the Bride is never mentioned and has clearly
been whisked away by the Bridegroom at the outset (in
the Rapture). Later in the parable, the Bride is
exactly where you'd expect the Bride to be: inside enjoying her own wedding supper. No...the virgins
cannot be the Church: This wedding supper follows the Second
Coming, and these virgins can be no one except Tribulation survivors who either
maintained a faithful witness (the sheep) or who wimped out and failed to do so
(the goats). "Sheep?! Goats?! Yo, you're talking about the wrong parable, dude!" Oh, yeah? As I have
discussed in a previous article, I am convinced that all
three of the parables in Matthew 25 (the Parable of the Ten Virgins, the
Parable of the Talents, and the Sheep and Goat Judgment) apply to these same
two groups of people at the inauguration of the Millennial Kingdom. 2.
The Old Rugged Cross Performed by Redeemed
Quartet / YouTube [v1] On
a hill far away stood an old rugged cross, The emblem
of suffering and shame; And I love
that old cross where the dearest and best For a
world of lost sinners was slain. [Chorus] So I'll cherish the old
rugged cross, Till my
trophies at last I lay down; I will
cling to the old rugged cross, And
exchange it some day for a crown. [v2] To
the old rugged cross I will ever be true, Its shame and reproach gladly bear; Then he'll
call me some day to my home far away, Where his
glory forever I'll share. [Chorus / repeat last
two lines] Comments: "The Old Rugged
Cross" was written in 1913 by George Bennard, who served with the
Salvation Army in Iowa for a few years before being ordained in the Methodist
Episcopal Church. This old gut-puncher
takes you back to where it all went down: the cross. Personally, I always liked
the line that says "its shame and reproach gladly
bear," because in many churches today this whole concept has effectively
been swept under the carpet. And what has taken the place of "shame and
reproach gladly borne" is rapprochement won by political correctness. This
line speaks to what Jesus said to His disciples in the Gospel of John: 18If the world hates you, you know that it has
hated me before it hated you. 19If you were of the world, the world would love its own. But because you are not
of the world, since I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates
you. (John 15:18–19) So we shouldn't expect the
world to love us as believers in the gospel, nor to warmly accept that gospel
when we share it with them. That's the point: The gospel was never
meant to slap a smile on the face of sinners. It was meant to slap the smile off the face of sinners. According to Jesus,
that's just how the cookie crumbles. We are in the world, but not of
the world. If we were, the world would love its own. Running a church today
has largely become a business, and job one is to fill
the pews. And it saddens me to say it, but in many of today's churches it's
come to the point where the key to packin' 'em in is to appeal to the world by mirroring the societal
attitudes the world espouses. That translates to taking down the crosses, not
mentioning "sin," and supporting the trendy, woke social causes like
LGBT rights that the world goes gaga over. In other words, the mantra of many
modern churches has become: We sure don't want to offend
the world, so let's attract the world by being more like the world. And it works like a
charm: Many churches today are filled with people who don't even understand
the gospel, but are convinced they are on the cutting
edge of making the world a better place...for God, of course. It breaks my heart...and
it makes me ache for the day when we will share His glory in our
home far away. 3.
Love Lifted Me Performed by Jehova Shalom Acapella / YouTube [v1] I was sinking deep in sin, Far from the peaceful shore, Very deeply stained within, Sinking to rise no more; But the Master of the sea Heard my despairing cry, From the waters lifted me, Now safe am I. [Chorus] Love lifted me, love lifted me, When nothing else could
help, Love lifted me; Love lifted me, love
lifted me, When nothing else could
help, Love lifted me. [v2] Souls in danger, look above, Jesus completely saves; He will lift you by His word Out of the angry waves. He's the Master of the
sea, Billows His will obey; He your Savior wants to
be, Be saved today. [Chorus] Comments: "Love Lifted
Me" was written by James Rowe, the son of a British copper miner. Rowe
emigrated to the United States in 1889, and this song was first published in
1912. The song's primary
reference is the scene in Matthew 14 where Jesus walks on water, and tries to
get Peter to do the same but with only limited success: 22Immediately Jesus made
the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of him to the other side, while he
sent the multitudes away. 23After he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into the mountain by himself to pray. When
evening had come, he was there alone. 24But
the boat was now in the middle of the sea, distressed by the waves, for the
wind was contrary. 25In the fourth watch of the night, Jesus
came to them, walking on the sea. 26When the disciples saw
him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, "It's a ghost!"
and they cried out for fear. 27But immediately Jesus spoke to
them, saying, "Cheer up! It is I! Don't be afraid." 28Peter answered him and
said, "Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the waters." 29He
said, "Come!" Peter stepped down from the boat and walked on the
waters to come to Jesus. 30But when he saw that the wind was
strong, he was afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out, saying, "Lord,
save me!" 31Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand,
took hold of him, and said to him, "You of little faith, why did you
doubt?" [This kills me: Peter has just demonstrated
miracle-producing faith, yet Jesus chides him for being "of little
faith."]
32When they got up into the boat, the wind ceased. 33Those
who were in the boat came and worshiped him, saying, "You are truly the
Son of God!" (Matthew 14:22–33 / emphasis
& [comments] added) The song takes the image
of the stormy sea and uses it as a metaphor for sin, and the love of Jesus
lifts us out of our sinful condition in a way that is comparable to the way He
lifted Peter out of the waves when he faltered. Although it may not be a perfect
analogy, it's still effective and the song gets the point across in a spirited,
powerful manner. 4.
Leaning on the Everlasting Arms Performed by Redeemed
Quartet / YouTube [v1] What a fellowship, what
a joy divine, Leaning on
the everlasting arms; What a
blessedness, what a peace is mine, Leaning on
the everlasting arms. [Chorus] Leaning, leaning, Safe and secure from all
alarm; Leaning, leaning, Leaning on the
everlasting arms. [v2] O how
sweet to walk in this pilgrim way, Leaning on the
everlasting arms; O how bright the path
grows from day to day, Leaning on the
everlasting arms. [Chorus x 2 / repeat last line] Comments: "Leaning on the
Everlasting Arms" was written by Anthony Showalter and Elisha Hoffman and
published in 1887. According to Showalter, he had received letters from two
former students saying that their wives had died, and as he wrote letters of consolation
he was inspired by the following words from the book of Deuteronomy: 27The eternal God is your
dwelling place. Underneath are the everlasting arms. (Deuteronomy 33:27a) Few images are apt to
bring any believer any greater feelings of comfort, assurance, and peace than
the image of resting on the mighty arms of God the Father. This idea of us
having rest, peace, assurance, safety, etc. in God is a common theme in many hymns,
but I'd be hard-pressed to name one that expresses it any better than
"Leaning on the Everlasting Arms." 5. At
Calvary Performed by the
Collingsworth Family / YouTube [v1] Years I spent in vanity
and pride, Caring not
my Lord was crucified, Knowing
not it was for me He died On
Calvary. [Chorus] Mercy there was great and grace was
free, Pardon there was
multiplied to me, There my burdened soul
found liberty At Calvary. [v2] By God's Word at last my sin I learned, Then I trembled at the
Law I'd spurned, Till my guilty soul
imploring turned To Calvary. [v3] O the love that drew salvation's plan! O the grace that brought
it down to man! O the mighty gulf that
God did span At Calvary. [Chorus] [v4] Now I've given to Jesus everything, Now I gladly own Him as
my King, Now my raptured soul can
only sing Of Calvary. [Chorus] Mercy there was great
and grace was free, At
Calvary...Calvary. Comments: "At Calvary"
was written by William Newell in 1895. At the time, Newell was teaching at
Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, and the lines of the song occurred to him
while he was on his way to teach a class. According to Newell, he slipped into an
empty classroom on the way to his class and scribbled the lyrics down on the
back of an envelope. Hmm...sounds familiar: Reminds me of a young
Georgetown lawyer scribbling down a poem on the back of an envelope while
standing on the deck of a British warship and seeing the American flag still
flying in 1814—a poem entitled "The Defence of
Fort M'Henry". Er...I mean "The
Star-Spangled Banner." One thing that strikes
me about the lyrics of this song is how apropos the words to the opening verse
are: "Years I spent in vanity and pride / Caring not my Lord was
crucified / Knowing not it was for me He died / at Calvary." Pride..the original sin and the
fuel that stokes the flames of legions of other sins—and a sin we are all
guilty of. But note with care the use of the words "caring" and
"knowing." Consider: If people
don't care that Jesus was crucified, the clear suggestion is that
they do actually know about it (and most
unsaved people do know about it), but they just don't care. It's
a widely accepted historical fact that Jesus was nailed to a cross two thousand
years ago. But the common reaction from many unsaved people tends to be along
the following lines: (Yawn)..."So what?
Yeah, I heard that in Sunday School when I was a kid.
Big deal. What's that got to do with me? I try to be a good person." They know
intellectually that Jesus was crucified, but they don't care about that
fact in any significant way. It's just another historical event. It means about
as much to them as the signing of the Magna Carta. And the reason they feel
this way is because they don't know that He died to save them. But when a person hears
the message of the gospel and the Holy Spirit convicts them of their sin and
draws them to Christ, all that changes radically. Suddenly the fact that
Christ died on a cross two thousand years ago becomes a life-changing,
eternity-altering reality. At last they realize He
died for their sins so they could be forgiven and they could be eternally
reconciled to a holy God who loves them enough to sacrifice the
life of His Son to make this possible. Now they do care
that He died. Now it's personal in a way that's deeper and more profound than
anything they have ever experienced. My point is that the
artful use of the words "caring" and "knowing" in these
lines captures this reality to perfection. 6. Standing on the Promises Performed by Alan Jackson / YouTube [v1] Standing on the promises of Christ, my King, Through eternal ages let
his praises ring; Glory in the highest, I
will shout and sing, Standing on the promises
of God. [Chorus] Standing, standing, Standing on the promises
of God, my Savior; Standing, standing, I'm standing on the
promises of God. [v2] Standing on the promises I cannot fall, List'ning ev'ry
moment to the Spirit's call, Resting in my Savior as
my all in all, Standing on the promises
of God. [Chorus] Comments: "Standing on the
Promises" was written in 1886 by Russel Kelso Carter, who was a professor
at the Pennsylvania Military College of Chester as well being licensed to
preach by the Methodist Episcopal Church. Much like "Leaning
on the Everlasting Arms," this song speaks to the confidence, assurance,
and peace we have in a right relationship with God, which is established
through our faith in Christ. And a big part of that is our understanding that all
of God's promises are yea and amen: 20For all the promises of
God in him are yea, and in him Amen,
unto the glory of God by us. (2 Corinthians 1:20 KJV) Speaking of promises,
here's a quick Top 10 list: 1. God's love and kindness
endures forever (Ps. 136; Isa. 54:10). 2. God's mercy is
available to all who repent (1 John 1:9; Ps. 86:5). 3. God never leaves you
(Deut. 31:8; Josh. 1:9, Heb. 13:5). 4. God provides strength
for the weary (Isa. 40:31; 41:10). 5. God is our rescue and
protection (Ps. 9:9–10; 107:13–16). 6. God's salvation is for
the entire world (John 3:16, 36). 7. God will supply all our
needs (Phil. 4:19). 8. God is always
comforting us (Ps. 23:4). 9. God hears our prayers
(Ps. 34:17; 50:15). 10. God will work all
things out for our good (Rom. 8:28). And these and many
others are promises we can stand on. 7.
There Is Power in the Blood Performed by Music of
Hope / YouTube [v1] Would you be free from
the burden of sin? There's
power in the blood, power in the blood; Would you
o'er evil a victory win? There's
wonderful power in the blood. [Chorus] There is power, power, wonder-working power In the blood of the Lamb; There is power, power,
wonder-working power In the precious blood of
the Lamb. [v2] Would you be free from your passion and pride? There's power in the blood,
power in the blood; Come for a cleansing to
Calvary's tide, There's wonderful power
in the blood. [Chorus] [v3] Would you do service
for Jesus, your King? There's power in the
blood, power in the blood; Would you live daily His
praises to sing? There's wonderful power
in the blood. [Chorus x 2] Comments: "There Is Power in
the Blood" was written in 1889 by Lewis E. Jones, a graduate of Moody
Bible Institute who went on to work for the YMCA. Jones, who wrote hymns as a
hobby, wrote this song while attending a camp meeting in Mountain Lake Park,
Maryland. Speaking of power,
I love this song for its powerful simplicity: It just gets right down to the
nitty-gritty—the way any good hymn should, and does it in a joyful, spirited
way that's just plain fun to sing. It strikes me that
a lot of modern church songs, as good as they may be, somehow manage to avoid
the hardcore, in-your-face elements of the gospel and opt for the soft and
smooth stuff. And the blood Jesus shed on the cross is about the hardest core,
most in-your-face element of the gospel there is. I'm sorry, but
there's nothing soft and smooth about that. And I like songs
that give you a chance to shout those hardcore, in-your-face elements from the
rooftop. 8.
What a Friend We Have in Jesus Performed by Redeemed
Quartet / YouTube [v1] What a friend we have
in Jesus, All our
sins and griefs to bear! What a
privilege to carry Everything
to God in prayer! O what
peace we often forfeit, O what
needless pain we bear, All
because we do not carry Everything
to God in prayer! [v2] Have we trials and
temptations? Is there trouble
anywhere? We should never be discouraged; Take it to the Lord in
prayer! Can we find a friend so faithful Who will all our sorrows share? Jesus knows our every
weakness, Take it to the Lord in
prayer! [v3] Are we weak and heavy laden, Cumbered with a load of
care? Precious Savior, still
our refuge; Take it to the Lord in
prayer! Do thy
friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in
prayer! In his arms he'll take
and shield thee, Thou will find a solace
there. [repeat last two lines] Comments: "What a Friend We
Have in Jesus" was written in 1855 by Joseph M. Scriven, an Irish
immigrant to Canada. And the more you read about Scriven's tragic life, the
more you can appreciate what motivated him to write such a song. Scriven enrolled in
military college to prepare for a career in the army, but poor health forced
him to abandon that idea. Not long after that, his fiancée drowned the night
before their wedding in 1843. He became a school teacher
in Ontario, and then a second fiancée died following a brief illness in
1860. After that, the increasingly eccentric Scriven drifted from menial job to
menial job, largely living off the generosity of others. He was a member of the
Plymouth Brethren, and set about attempting to live
according to Jesus' teaching in the Sermon on the Mount in a completely literal
fashion. In his latter years he reportedly suffered from depression, and
like his first fiancée, he died in a drowning accident in 1886. And we'll
probably never know for certain this side of heaven, but there are some who
suspect his death may have been a suicide rather than an accident. So, it is indeed
sobering to think of the depths of pain and sorrow that gave rise to this powerful song—a song that has blessed, encouraged, and
lifted the spirits of millions of people over the years. Including mine. 9.
Mansion Over the Hilltop Performed by the Acappella Company / YouTube [v1] I'm satisfied with just a cottage below, A little silver and a
little gold; But in that city, where
the ransomed will shine I want a gold one,
that's silver lined. [CHORUS] I've got a mansion just over the hilltop, In that bright land
where we'll never grow old; And someday yonder, we
will never more wander, But walk on streets that
are purest gold. [v2] Though often tempted, tormented and tempted And like the prophet my
pillow is stone; And though I find here
no permanent dwelling, I know he'll give me a mansion my own. [CHORUS] [v3] Don't think me poor Lord, deserted or
lonely, I'm not discouraged, I'm
heaven bound; I'm just a pilgrim in
search of a city, I want a mansion, a
harp, and a crown. [CHORUS x 2] Comments: "Mansion Over the
Hilltop" was written in 1949 by Ira Stanphil, one of America's most
prolific gospel songwriters. He was an Assemblies of God minister (the same
denomination as the church my family attended when I was a kid) and he composed
over 500 hymns. I've always loved songs
like this because they help us imagine what heaven will be like—and the image
of a mansion on a hilltop is arguably about as close as we can come. And that's just it: We really can't
imagine what heaven will be like! But at the rate things
are going, we're probably close enough to the day when we will enter "that
bright land where we'll never grow old" that we might as well start giving
it a bit more thought. 10.
When We All Get to Heaven Performed by Alan Jackson / YouTube [v1] Sing the wondrous love of Jesus, Sing His mercy and His grace; In the mansions bright
and blessed He'll prepare for us a place. [CHORUS] When we all get to heaven, What a day of rejoicing
that will be! When we all see Jesus, We'll sing and shout the victory! [v2] Onward to the prize before us! Soon His beauty we'll behold; Soon the pearly gates
will open— We shall tread the
streets of gold. [CHORUS / repeat last two lines] Comments: "When We All Get
to Heaven" was written by Eliza Edmunds Hewitt in 1898. She was a teacher
and prolific hymn writer who was involved in numerous activities in the
Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, where she lived for her entire life. This is another song
that focuses on the unimaginably wonderful place we will inhabit soon and very
soon—a place Jesus told His disciples He would go to prepare for us so that
where He was, we would be also. I love the line
"when we all see Jesus," because when we see Him, we will see Him as
He is because we will be like Him: 2Beloved, now are we the
sons of God, and it does not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that,
when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. (1 John 3:2 AKJV) In heaven after the
Rapture, we will all have glorified bodies that can function in both the
earthly and spiritual realms, and we will be able to move back and forth
between the two. (My personal word for this is "transdimensional.")
This will be necessary because we will (a) exist in heaven, but also (b) return
to earth to rule and reign with Christ in the kingdom. That's one way we will
be like Him, and when we finally see Him we will be
able to see Him as the transdimensional being He is
because we will be in bodies with a similar ability to move in and out of dimensions we don't currently have access to. Think about it: This
this is why the disciples freaked out when Jesus appeared in a locked room with
them somewhere in Jerusalem later in the day of the Resurrection (Luke
24:36–43). They thought He was a ghost, and I think Jesus asked them for
something to eat just to calm them down and convince them it was really Him in
the flesh, so to speak. The point is simply this: They couldn't see Him as
He was because they weren't like Him. That's why He scared the
pants off them when He appeared out of nowhere. But glory to God...that
won't be the case for us "when we all get to heaven." We will all be
in glorified bodies similar to that of Jesus, and so
we will be able to move about in much the same way. CW hits No, not Country &
Western: cringeworthy. As I joyfully reminisced about the 10 songs
above, I recalled a couple of songs we sang that had something in the lyrics
that just ruffled my feathers. Not not
in terms of doctrine necessarily...but something. There were two songs
that we sang in our church that had something in the lyrics that just caused me
problems. • "He
Lives"
The first song I want to mention is "He Lives" (YouTube with lyrics), and it's popular
enough that I'm guessing many of you have heard it before. I'll just give you
the final bit of the chorus, because that's the part that makes me cringe: "Don't ask me how I
know He lives: He lives within my heart." ...right along with
Elvis, the Easter Bunny, and my grandma. Don't get me wrong—this is a wonderful,
powerful song, and it shouts out something of vital importance: Christ does
live, and that's why we can be reconciled to the Father through faith in His
Son's work of atonement for our sin. But if someone were to
ask me how I know He lives, this would be the last thing I would
say in a million years because it is arguably the weakest possible answer you
could give. Why? Think about it: "He lives within my heart..."
A Muslim could give you the same answer for Allah. A Hindu could give you the
same answer for Krishna. A member of virtually any other false religion on
earth could give you the same answer for whatever false god they worship. Sorry sports fans, but
that's not gonna cut it. And the reason is
simple: False religions are
replete with fantasies. Christianity is replete with historical facts. Big difference. You
don't have to dig too deep to discover that the fact that Christ rose from the
grave in fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy and precisely as documented in
New Testament Scripture can be substantiated by historical facts in a number of ways—ways that are only rejected by those who
simply refuse to believe no matter what. This topic is well
beyond the scope of this article, but I will at least give you two quick
points: 1.
The reaction of the Jewish religious leaders. The Jewish religious
leaders were so desperate to hide the inconvenient truth of the Resurrection
that they paid the Roman guards to lie to their superiors about how several of Christ's
scurrilous followers had broken into His tomb and stolen His body while they slept
on watch—which in the Roman army was an offense punishable by death. The
Jews paid them a handsome sum and promised they would protect them if they came
under any scrutiny (Matt. 28:11–15). One particular item that would appear to
lend additional support to this is the Nazareth Inscription, a marble tablet
that turned up in Nazareth in 1878 (although it is unclear where it was
actually discovered) that has been dated to the first half of the first
century, and that contains an official inscription in Greek from an
undetermined Roman Emperor that ordered capital punishment for anyone who
desecrated a grave or tomb, especially the body itself. Some experts are of the
opinion that this decree never pertained specifically to Christ, but they can't
conclusively prove it doesn't. It strikes many New Testament scholars as
intriguing, however, since so few grave robbers wasted their time with the actual
bodies. I mean, why would they?? They were after booty,
not bones! In other words, in the
opinion of many, it is entirely possible that the Jewish religious leaders
raised such a ruckus with their lie about how some of Christ's scalawag
followers broke into His tomb and stole His body (and enough people fell for
it) that it ultimately motivated the Romans to invoke such a decree in the
hopes of preventing such body-snatching shenanigans in the future. We may never know for
certain, but it does mesh with the historical narrative. 2.
The reaction of His disciples. Even more compelling in
my mind, however, is the reaction of Christ's disciples following the
Resurrection. After the Crucifixion, they cowered behind locked doors in
various locations around Jerusalem, hiding out in fear of the Jews. With their
fearless leader Jesus out of the way, the Pharisees would waste little time in
rounding up His cohorts and punishing them as well. But three days later,
something strange happened that is extremely difficult to explain in natural
terms. Literally overnight, these trembling, distraught men—men who feared that
everything they had lived for over the last three and a half years had been
brutally crushed out of existence—suddenly and inexplicably became the boldest,
most fearless evangelists the world has ever seen, and all but John were
ultimately martyred for their unwavering testimony that Jesus of Nazareth rose
from the grave to atone for our sin. Yet some desperately
wish to believe they gave their lives to spread the gospel knowing full well it
was a fantastical fiction they had contrived. Really?? Few die
for the truth. Who dies for a tall tale?! • "In
the Garden" This second song makes me cringe even more, and it's a
beautiful song entitled "In the Garden" (YouTube with lyrics). But as beautiful as
it is, I find it difficult to listen to some of the lyrics—and here's one line
that makes me wince every single time: "He speaks and the
sound of His voice Is so sweet the birds hush their singing." Several other lines have
essentially the same effect on me...and what effect is that,
one might innocently inquire. OK, I'm squirming
here...I'm not sure how to phrase this, and I'm trying to be polite and all
that. But I may as well just come right out and say it: To me, the lyrics of
this song make Jesus sound like your secret boyfriend. There, I said it. It's a
beautiful song, but before God—I just cringe every time I hear it...and I'll
just leave it at that. If you like "In the Garden," and I hope you
do, I pray it blesses you. Same for "He Lives." And please, whatever you
do, don't let my screwball reactions to these two marvelous songs affect your
enjoyment of either one of them in any way whatsoever. That's just weird li'l ol' me being weird li'l ol' me. But forgive me if I give
them a pass and stick with my Top 10. Bustin'
loose As you may have already
guessed, the title of this article comes from the book of Revelation, where we
see the raptured Church represented by the 24 elders "singing a new
song" along with the four living creatures before the throne in Revelation
5, just before Jesus starts opening the seals of the scroll to kick off the
Tribulation in Revelation 6: 8Now when he had taken
the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one having a harp, and
golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. 9They
[i.e. both the four living creatures and the 24 elders] sang a new song,
saying, "You are worthy to take the book and to open its seals, for you
were killed, and bought us for God with your blood out of every tribe,
language, people, and nation, 10and made us [far
more likely: them] kings and priests to our God; and we [far
more likely: they (see comment*
below)]
will reign on the earth." (Revelation 5:8–10 / emphasis
& [comments] added) *Comment: It's not relevant here,
but I discuss in a previous article why I am convinced that
verse 10 should be in the third person (them/they), and is being sung by
the four living creatures about the 24 elders (the raptured Church).
Apparently the four living creatures and the 24 elders are singing in a
back-and-forth antiphonal style, and the 24 elders sing verse 9 about
themselves, and then the four living creatures sing verse 10 about the 24 elders.
And I would encourage you to read the article I linked to sometime if you're
interested, because the manuscript evidence for what might seem to many people
as an unusual interpretation of this passage is surprisingly compelling. And that "new
song" focuses on how Christ is worthy to unleash judgment on the earth,
since He shed His blood to reconcile us to His Father, and
has made us kings and priests to rule and reign with Him in the kingdom. And I don't know about
you, but I can't wait to sing it. Of course, today there
are probably hundreds of good gospel songs that I know and love, but the
majority are songs I've become familiar with as an adult. But I'm not talking
about those here. As I said, I'm only talking about songs I heard as a child in
the little church my family attended—and so each of these is an uplifting
stroll down memory lane for me. And speaking of family,
when I see my mom and dad in heaven, I want to thank them for taking me to that
little church every Sunday, because I came away from that upbringing with the
following precepts firmly established way down in the murky depths of my ornery
little pea-brain: The blood Christ shed on
an old rugged cross at Calvary had the power to wash away my sin, and that
Jesus was a friend whose promises I could stand on, whose everlasting arms I
could lean on, and whose love could lift me out of the depths of sin and make
it possible for me to dwell in a mansion on a hilltop when I get to heaven. And although it would be
a few more years until those precepts finally brought forth fruit, it was songs like
these and many others that I sang as a child that did a lot to help prepare the
soil of my heart to come to know Jesus on a real, life-changing spiritual basis
as a young adult. So, since a
"twinkling of an eye" doesn't sound sound
like it's gonna give you much time, the moment you
hear that trumpet sound I suggest you grab your earplugs as quickly as
possible—and I'll be happy to tell you why: I'm liable to bust loose
and start singing "When We All Get to Heaven" before we all actually
get to heaven.
From Greg Lauer @ A Little Strength—MAY '25
Thanks Greg - enjoyed reading that. Had only heard the Casting Crowns version of 'At Calvary' and had no idea that William Newell wrote it! Newell's commentary 'Romans verse by verse' is one of the best books I own. He was an amazing teacher especially on grace and our identification with Christ. And it is a great song. Be interesting to see what songs/hymns others like but a couple I'd have in the list would be:
ReplyDeleteBe thou my vision
It is well with my soul (the truth expressed in the midst of trials and tragedy, going right through to his hope in the Lord's return)
But, Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!
Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul!
And Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.
The line from In the Garden that bugs me is "and the joy we share as we tarry there, none other has ever known.". Really? God elevates me above everyone else?
ReplyDeleteI believe there is a difference between praise and worship. Worship is singing to God. This is a set of Terry McAlmon about 49 minutes in length. The presence of the Holy Spirit is heavy. Start at 5:26 minutes.
ReplyDeleteYour post was about doctrine though.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=5F5_oaQkvGI&embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F&source_ve_path=Mjg2NjY