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Sing O, Sing, of My Redeemer

29/6/2014

Born to a poor but godly family Philip P. Bliss (1838—1876) learnt to cherish two things in life: his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and music. Never a day went by when Psalms or spiritual songs were not sung in the Bliss’ log cabin to the accompaniment of folk instruments. At age ten when selling vegetables door to door, bare-footed Philip heard a piano for the first time in his life and fell in love with the sound. In general he loved music but the Bliss family never had the money to afford a piano or piano lessons. But when Philip married Lucy Young, her grandmother paid for him to have music lessons at a music school. He took what he learnt and taught it to young people and went on to become a travelling musician, then Music Director and Sunday School Superintendent at their local church and he was a popular song leader for Evangelist, Major Daniel Whittle. Bliss became a noted Gospel and popular song writer and we can find his name several times over in our own Hymn books. He not only wrote just the melodies for some (as he did for "It is Well with My Soul") but he also wrote a number of the songs entirely like, "Hallelujah, What A Saviour!", and "Almost Per-suaded." He only wrote the words of today’s hymn, but he never heard it sung in this world…

In December 1876, Bliss was requested to sing at D.L. Moody’s Tabernacle in Chicago, for the New Year’s Eve service. Leaving their two little children with their grandparents, Philip and Lucy boarded the train, the Pacific Express, from Pennsylvania to Chicago. The PE ran late and was fighting its way through blinding snow storms. As it was traversing a bridge in Ohio, the bridge creaked and then collapsed pulling all 11 coaches down in to the ravine below. Philip made his way out of the crushed coach but went back in to find Lucy, and in doing so lost his own life. He was just 38 years old.

His luggage made its way to Chicago and when it was opened, the words of this newly composed hymn was found amongst his belongings. He and Lucy are surely singing of their Redeemer!

Sing Oh sing of my Redeemer

I will sing of my redeemer
And His wondrous love to me
On the cruel Cross He suffered
From the curse to set me free

Sing Oh sing of my redeemer
With His blood He purchased me
On the Cross He sealed my pardon
Paid the debt and made me free

I will tell the wondrous story
How my lost estate to save
In His boundless love and mercy
He thee ransom freely gave

I will praise my dear Redeemer His
triumphant power I’ll tell
How the victory He giveth
Over sin and death and Hell

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Search Me, O God

22/6/2014

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J. Edwin Orr (1912-1987) was born on the 15th of January in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He was later converted, married, and ordained on the same date. At the age of nine he was born-again. After his father and older brother died he had to leave college and work in a bakery to feed the family. At age 19 he became involved in street evangelism. This led to the call of God when he set off on his bicycle on an evangelistic trip of Britain with no money in his pockets for two years. Within a few years he was travelling Europe, America and the world. On one trip he hitchhiked across Korea, China, and India to Cairo. Another time he held evangelistic meetings in forty eight states in America in a period of three months. In his life time he visited 150 countries to preach the gospel and for a portion of this time he was accompanied by his wife who was from South Africa. In 1949, he, his wife, and 4 children moved to the USA where some years later he became Pro-fessor at Fuller Seminary in California.

Not only did his heart burn for the souls of men but he was a scholar and student of revival history. He wrote numbers of books on revival—often two a year—on past revivals as well as present ones which he witnessed with his own eyes. He found that revival had its source in two things amongst God’s people: prayer and repentance. For a num-ber of years he worked closely with Chinese revivalist Andrew Gih. He was considered the greatest historian on revival in his generation but he was also a hymn writer. In 1936 when he was in New Zealand attending Revival meetings four Maori girls sang a folk song called, "The Song of Farewell." Orr could not get the tune out of his head to which he put the words of Psalm 139:23-24. He wrote it down on the back of an envelope then printed it in one of his books and today it is sung across the world as Search Me Oh God. It is a powerful revival hymn. A young man once interviewed the old Professor and said to him that he was praying for revival but asked "What else can I do?" Orr immediately responded "You can let it begin with you!" Today’s hymn really does capture this kernel of truth on which Orr so often preached and by which he lived—that revival should, could and would be personal if we would but yield ourselves to God.

Search me, O God, and know my heart today;
Try me, O Saviour, know my thoughts, I pray.
See if there be some wicked way in me;
Cleanse me from every sin and set me free.

I praise Thee, Lord, for cleansing me from sin;
Fulfill Thy Word and make me pure within.
Fill me with fire where once I burned with shame;
Grant my desire to magnify Thy name.

Lord, take my life and make it wholly Thine;
Fill my poor heart with Thy great love divine.
Take all my will, my passion, self and pride;
I now surrender, Lord—in me abide.

O Holy Ghost, revival comes from Thee;
Send a revival—start the work in me.
Thy Word declares Thou wilt supply our need;
For blessings now, O Lord, I humbly plead.

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A Mighty Fortress is Our God

15/6/2014

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It is said of the great German reformer, Martin Luther (1483—1546), that he translated the Bible into German so that God could speak directly to the people, and that he wrote hymns so that the people could answer God in their songs. What a beautiful way to describe a hymn—hymns are a response to God’s wonderful Word! (Is any merry? Let him sing psalms. James 5:13b). Martin Luther himself wrote that, “The Devil hates music because he cannot stand gaiety!” He also wrote, “Satan can smirk but he can-not laugh; he can sneer but he cannot sing.” Because Luther so believed in the power of song, he not only wrote hymns (around 37 in total) but he also spent some time compiling a hymn book. Remember, Newton and Cowper were used in England in the 18th century to popularize the hymn, but God used Luther to gather and write hymns for the German speaking world 200 years earlier.

Luther’s best known hymn is, “Ein Fest Berg”. It is translated into English and known as“A Mighty Fortress”. Luther both wrote the words and music. The general form of the melody was taken from a folk tune, but Luther adapted it for the words which were inspired by a Psalm.

“A Mighty Fortress” was written at a time when Luther and his followers were experiencing severe opposition to the Reformation by the Emperor, Charles V, who desperately tried to stamp out the new movement. Luther turned to the Word for encouragement and Psalm 46 became very real and alive to him. “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah. There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High. God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early. The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: he uttered his voice, the earth melted. The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah. Come, behold the works of the LORD, what desolations he hath made in the earth.” (Psalm 46:1-8)

Luther’s composition became very popular very quickly and it was not uncommon to hear it sung in the streets and sung as the martyrs were led to their deaths. What encouraging strains on which to exit this life! Luther had been a Catholic from birth, a priest by calling, and later a doctor of theolgy. But praise God, when the light of the Gospel shined in his heart God gave him a new song to sing, founded upon justification by faith alone in Christ's atoneing Blood alone. His writings led to the salvation of the Wesley brothers who filled England, Ireland and America with their Hymns.

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Jesus Paid it All

8/6/2014

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This hymn arose from a truly ‘tri-part-effort’ as author of the chorus was North Carolina Methodist minister, Henry Bradford (late 18thC. to early 19th C.), composer of the music was church organist, Mr John Grape, (late 19th C) and authoress of the verses was, choir member, Elvina Hall (late 19th C.). Grape would not ordinarily have had an organ at home to explore hymn writing as he was a poor coal merchant, but the Methodist church in which he served was being renovated and they had moved the church organ to his own house for a short period of time. Bradford’s poem, ‘Jesus Paid It All’ had long pressed on Grape’s heart and he was inspired to put it to music. His wife thought it beautiful but when he shared it with the choir, they were not very enthusiastic about it! However, the pastor heard it and encouraged Grape to add Hall’s verses which she had doodled in the front flap of her hymnal. This he did and the hymn became popular very quickly.

A very short time after being completed this hymn was used in an open-air meeting on New Year’s Evening 1866. The sweet melody attracted a young runaway house maid which stopped her in her tracks. A missionary gave a short address on the subject of the hymn, and then departed to attend a tent meeting. The young maid was drawn to follow him to and upon hearing footsteps following him the missionary turned around when the maid begged him, “Sir, do you think Jesus could save a sinner like me?” to which he replied that there was no doubt that Jesus could and would. He took her into the tent meeting and on hearing the Gospel preached that night, she was made aware of the wretchedness of her soul and repented and gave her life to Christ. Not long after her conversion she became sick unto death and the same missionary was able to visit her in hospital. After reading some Scripture to her, he read the words of the hymn which was dearest to her heart. She was captivated by the coming glory of Christ who had paid it all and went to glory a mere two hours after the missionary’s visit.

I hear the Saviour say, thy strength indeed is small
Child of weakness watch and pray,
Find in me thine all in all

Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow

Yet nothing good have I, whereby Thy grace to claim;
I’ll wash my garments white in the blood of Calvary’s Lamb

And now complete in Him, my robe His righteousness
Close sheltered ’neath His side, I am divinely blest

Lord, now indeed I find, Thy power and Thine alone
Can change the leper’s spots, and melt the heart of stone

When from my dying bed, my ransomed soul shall rise
‘Jesus paid it all’ shall rend the vaulted skies.

And when before the throne I stand in Him complete
I’ll lay my trophies down; All down art Jesus’ feet

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There is a Fountain Filled with Blood

1/6/2014

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William Cowper’s (1731-1800) life was tragic from his earliest years for his mother died when he was only six years old, and when at ten years old he was sent to boarding school, he suffered severe bullying by older boys. Not without intelligence or skill, he was sent to study law and attempted to practice this profession for some nine years without success. He had a downtrodden manner and demeanour and he reached a point where he spiralled downwards into an abyss where to him suicide was the only option. As he prepared for a job interview for a place in the House of Lords, he felt the pressure of life was too much and Cowper attempted to take his life more than 5 times in one night, yet each time he failed! At first he tried drinking laudanum but his hand would not put the liquid to his mouth, so he smashed the vial of poison in frustration, then he tried jumping into the Thames but a stagecoach porter was watching so he could not, then he tried to pierce his heart with a penknife but the point broke, and when he tried to hang himself, twice the cord or stay gave way.

Cowper was eventually admitted to an Asylum but by the grace of God a relative visited him there and told him of Jesus’ power to save him. For the very first time in his life a ray of hope shone into his dark heart. After the relative departed, Cowper opened the Bible and the first passage he read was, Romans 3:25, “Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood.” The Blood of Jesus became a very precious truth to him. The first hymn he wrote was, There is a Fountain Filled with Blood based on of Zechariah 13:1. This hymn was so greatly loved by, “The Prince of Preachers”, C.H. Spurgeon that he asked that at least one verse be engraved on his tomb stone, which one can view to this day, “E’re since by faith I saw the stream, Thy flowing wounds supply, Redeeming love has been my theme, And shall be till I die.” Cowper’s name will be familiar to the reader, for when we looked at John Newton’s Amazing Grace and the history of the Hymn itself, William Cowper was mentioned as he was neighbour and inseparable best friends to John Newton and together they were responsible for the creation of The Hymn, and compiled the very first Hymn Book, Olney Hymns, to which Cowper contributed 67 hymns. This was the beginning of popular hymns. His use of words was amazing. He was considered the greatest national poet of the century.

There is a fountain filled with blood
Drawn from Emmanuel’s veins;
And sinners plunged beneath that flood
Lose all their guilty stains.

The dying thief rejoiced to see
That fountain in his day;
And there have I, though vile as he,
Washed all my sins away!

I do believe, I shall believe,
That Jesus died for me!
That on the Cross He shed His blood
From sin to set me free.

Dear dying Lamb, Thy precious blood
Shall never lose its power
Till all the ransomed church of God
Be saved, to sin no more.

E’er since, by faith, I saw the stream
Thy flowing wounds supply,
Redeeming love has been my theme,
And shall be till I die.

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Sing O, Sing, of My Redeemer

Search Me, O God

A Mighty Fortress is Our God

Jesus Paid it All

There is a Fountain Filled with Blood

Limerick City Church

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