If you are the person who chooses new songs for your church, (like me) you may be very excited by the announcement of a new album from Sovereign Grace (August 1). “Grace has come: Songs from the Book of Romans”looks sure to be a treat! Sovereign Grace certainly has figured out a good recipe for singable Gospel songs garnished with much grace! The sample track is based on Romans 8:31-39 – Nothing can tear us from the everlasting love of Christ.
VERSE 1
What shall separate us from Your love?
Can years of sorrow break eternal bonds?
Can condemnation ever raise its voice?
Against the pardon of the blood of Christ?
Though our journey here is long
This will be our triumph song
CHORUS
Nothing in all the earth Not any height above Could ever tear us from Your everlasting love Nothing in all the earth Not any height above Could ever tear us from Your everlasting love
VERSE 2 What shall separate us from Your love?
For now the sting of death is overcome
And all the powers of this world must fall
Before Your feet because You rule them all
And though our journey here is long
This shall be our triumph song
BRIDGE Nothing in all the earth
Could ever tear us from
Your everlasting love
Today I have the pleasure of talking about two of my favourite things: author C.S. Lewis and the band Casting Crowns. Both of them have much to say about the church, not just the local church, but the capital C “Church”. By this I mean the fellowship of believers that is spread around the globe, through all time and space. The Church is the Bride of Christ. We are all part of this if we are in Christ. The “crowd of witnesses” in Hebrews 12 help make up this great gathering of God’s people. They can already see the reality of the things we hope for in Him. And they cheer us on to persevere with the small ‘c’ church, no matter how frustrating it can be at times. God’s Church marches on as he unfolds his plans. What a great grace and privilege that God draws us into something (Someone!) much greater than ourselves, much greater than the here and now.
But when it comes to Church we often can’t see the wood for the trees. And Satan would happily keep us distracted in this way! In The Screwtape Letters, Lewis describes the strength of the Church. These are fictional letters between a senior and junior devil. (For those not familiar with this classic book the main topics of their correspondance is how to discourage Christians, distract them and weaken their faith. Totally worth a read if you haven’t!)
“. . . the Church as we see her spread out through all time and space and rooted in eternity, (is) terrible as an army with banners. . . that, I confess, is a spectacle which makes our boldest tempters uneasy. But fortunately it is quite invisible to these humans”.(Letter 2)
“We want the Church to be small not only that fewer men may know the Enemy but also that those who do may acquire the uneasy intensity and the defensive self-righteousness of a secret society or clique. The Church Herself is, of course, heavily defended and we have never quite succeeded in giving her all the characteristics of a faction . . .”(Letter 7. By the way, by ‘Enemy’ these devils mean God)
Oh, that we could see the glory of Christ’s Bride! (That’s us!) Casting Crowns’ songwriter Mark Hall takes up this topic, looking forward to the final union of the Church, the Bride of Christ, with the Bridegroom, Jesus. Listen and read the lyrics below. I particularly like the description (verse 2) of the highs and lows of the Church through history. Despite these we were made to wear Christ’s robes of righteousness, on that wedding day! The love of Christ has come and set us free, indeed!
Wedding Day – Casting Crowns
There’s a stirring in the throne room And all creation holds it’s breath Waiting now to see the bride groom Wondering how the bride will dress And she wears white
And she knows that she’s undeserving She bears the shame of history But this worn and weary maiden Is not the bride that he sees And she wears white, head to toe But only he could make it so
[Chorus:] When someone dries your tears When someone wins your heart And says your beautiful When you don’t know you are And all you’ve longed to see Is written on his face When love has come and finally set you free On that wedding day, On that wedding day
[Verse 2:] She has danced in golden castles And she has crawled through beggar’s dust But today she stands before him And she wears his righteousness And she will be who he adores This is what he made her for
[Bridge:] When the hand that bears the only scars And heaven touch her face And the last tears she’ll ever cry Are finally wiped away And the clouds roll back as he takes her hand And walks her through the gates Forever we will reign
In 2004 I read John Piper’s Don’t Waste your Life. In the book he calls us not to get caught up in living for things that count for nothing! Piper says you can ensure you don’t waste your life by seeking to live and die boasting in the cross of Christ – by making the glory of God your singular passion. Instantly this became a book that I recommended to everyone, since it takes ‘faith in Christ’ straight from your head to your heart and hands. The section I found most beautiful to read (and most re-orienting) was towards the end in chapter 10: “How could I, Lord, have ever been so blind to think that being loved by you means making much of me and not yourself? How could I put my eye to some great telescope, designed to make me glad with visions of the galaxies, and notice in the glass a dim reflection of my face and say:”Now I am happy, I am loved?” How could I stand before the setting sun, between the mountain range and the vastness of the sea, and think that everlasting joy should come from making much of me? . . . “
(Don’t Waste your Life, John Piper, 2003, p.186.)
I then recalled that these very words had challenged me before. In Steven Curtis Chapman’s song “Much of You” he cleverly crafts Piper’s lyrical prose into a song that really could change your life – and ensure you don’t waste it! Have a listen above/read below and be encouraged!
Even if you can only “make much of Jesus” in what you think are small ways your life is not wasted. And what a privilege if your words (spoken, written, blogged or sung) help even one person to see Jesus for who He is. I love being part of a community of bloggers who do their best to make much of Jesus! Blessings.
MUCH OF YOU (Steven Curtis Chapman)
How could I stand here and watch the sun rise Follow the mountains where they touch the sky Ponder the vastness and the depths of the sea And think for a moment the point of it all was to make much of me ‘Cause I’m just a whisper and you are the thunder and
I want to make much of you Jesus I want to make much of your love I want to live today to give you the praise That You alone are so worthy of I want to make much of your mercy I want to make much of your cross I give you my life, Take it and let it be used To make much of you
And how can I kneel here and think of the cross The thorns and the whip and the nails and the spear The infinite cost To purchase my pardon and bear all my shame To think I have anything worth boasting in except for your name ‘Cause I am a sinner and you are the Savior
Bridge: This is your love, oh God Not to make much of me But to send your own son So that we could make much of you For all eternity
Behind the Song: ‘A lot of times as I’m writing an album I’ll read books, and certain books will come along and at the right time, will impress, affect and inspire me. One book I read was by John Piper called Don’t Waste Your Life, and by the time I finished reading it, I think I had eight or nine songs started and several that ended up on this album. I felt as I finished this book my understanding of just who God is and why I’m here, what the whole point and purpose of my life is, is ultimately to glorify God and to really make much of Him. I feel like He created us for this purpose. He’s the point, not me. This book helped put that in such great perspective for me – to get a new deeper understanding of that.’ – Steven Curtis Chapman
“Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. Mark 10-:29-30
When we are saved into Christ we are saved into community, a community of believers. This is a great promise from Mark 10. Even if we lose many things in order to own the name of Christ we gain so much more. We gain family! We gain relationship. We gain brothers and sisters in Christ. (And yes, we gain persecutions, though that is not the topic for today so I’ll just leave it to the side). As we serve one another, we grow relationships, we grow bridges between us – between people who would naturally be enemies of each other. Christ’s love makes it possible to serve and love one another. Songwriter Michael Card beautifully sums up this “call to community”, demonstrated by Christ in his earthly ministry. The call is now to us as his followers, to grow community in our churches by taking up the basin and the towel. I hope you have the time to chew over the lyrics below and reflect on your own attitude towards serving and growing community. (I know mine needs work.) The “servant’s bow” is a fragile bridge (see the bridge section below). Blessings! (Read more on Christian community here)
The Basin and the Towel (Michael Card)
In an upstairs room, a parable is just about to come alive.
And while they bicker about who’s best,
with a painful glance, He’ll silently rise.
Their Savior Servant must show them how
through the will of the water
and the tenderness of the towel.
Chorus: And the call is to community, The impoverished power that sets the soul free. In humility, to take the vow, that day after day we must take up the basin and the towel.
In any ordinary place,
on any ordinary day,
the parable can live again
when one will kneel and one will yield.
Our Saviour Servant must show us how
through the will of the water
and the tenderness of the towel.
bridge:
And the space between ourselves sometimes
is more than the distance between the stars.
By the fragile bridge of the Servant’s bow
we take up the basin and the towel.
(chorus)
You can look up sheet music for this song at the link below:
“Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (NLT Matthew 28:20)
“Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?” (ESV Hebrews 13: 5-6)
Never Alone is a gentle song with a simple melody (which makes it great for church singing) but the lyrics bring us much comfort. Christ is with us! We are not alone . . . no matter how alone we may feel. This song closely echos and explains the reasons for our confidence in Christ, revealed in the bible passages above. In four verses it tells the story of the God-man Jesus coming to earth, dying and rising for us; now he walks with us, in all our joy and pain. He is alive!
Above you can watch a friend of mine with a beautiful voice (Sarah), leading a large group in singing ‘Never Alone’. It was written by Philip Percival & Simone Richardson (2006) from EMU Music – and has appeared on two of their albums: Let All Creation Sing and Songs for Little Rooms. You can buy the lead sheet here. Whether or not you get to sing this with other people I trust it will be a blessing!
NEVER ALONE
1. We’re not alone, for Christ is here
Immanuel our God come near
We’re not alone, for to our world
Jesus has come, eternal Word.
And as he speaks, our souls laid bare
Naked, ashamed, sin is made clear
And yet he clothes us in his love
Never alone, Christ is with us, is with us.
2. The longest walk, earth’s darkest day
The pressing crowd, his mounting pain.
A heavy load of grief and shame
Breathless that we should breathe again.
“Father forgive them,” comes his cry
Silence from God blackens the sky.
A creeping dread in every heart
Lost in the world now God departs, God departs.
3. The dawn will come, the sun will rise
Out of the grave we’ll see hope’s light.
Tomb opened wide, stone rolled away
Morning has come, a brand new day.
“He isn’t here,” the angel said.
“He is alive no longer dead.”
Our hearts are lifted, souls raised high
Christ is with us, Christ is our life, he’s our life.
4. Never alone, is now our cry
In joy, in grief, in lonely sin.
Never alone, for Christ is ours
He lives in us, we live in him.
And ’til we reach that final day
When fears are gone, cast far away
We’ll live secure, trust in his love,
Never alone, Christ is with us, he’s with us.
Just sharing the lyrics for this great new song from my last post, THIS IS AMAZING GRACE by Jeremy Riddle at Bethel Music (2012) from the album “For the Sake of the World”.
Click here for a pdf of words and chords. Here is a clip with song lyrics included (and they are included below also). This is why we sing! Amazing Grace!
This is Amazing Grace
Who breaks the power of sin and darkness Whose love is mighty and so much stronger The King of Glory, the King above all kings
Who shakes the whole earth with holy thunder Who leaves us breathless in awe and wonder The King of Glory, the King above all kings
Chorus: This is amazing grace This is unfailing love That You would take my place That You would bear my cross You would lay down Your life That I would be set free Jesus, I sing for all that You’ve done for me
Who brings our chaos back into order Who makes the orphan a son and daughter The King of Glory, the King above all kings
Who rules the nations with truth and justice Shines like the sun in all of its brilliance The King of Glory, the King above all kings
Bridge: Worthy is the Lamb who was slain Worthy is the King who conquered the grave Worthy is the Lamb who was slain Worthy is the King who conquered the grave
Colin Buchanan is a pretty clever guy. I’m not sure how many of you from the USA or UK know much about him, but he has been producing fun and biblically true kids songs for around two decades. He is very well known here in Australia, not just for his kids music, but also as a Country singer and presenter on kids TV.
This is just one example of how Colin’s songs teach the great doctrines of God in a really catchy way. Though some people steer away from teaching the big words of the Bible, Colin makes clear the meaning of words like propitiation, substitution, salvation, justification and redemption to name but a few. All these words reveal the awesome grace God has shown us in sending Jesus! Enjoy.
Big Words That End in “Shun”
CHORUS Big words that end in SHUN! Show us what the Lord has DUN! Through Jesus, His own SUN! Big words, Big words that end in SHUN!
Revelat-SHUN! God shows Himself to us
Substitut-SHUN! Jesus takes our place
Salva-SHUN! Sinners saved from hell
Big words, Big words that end in SHUN…
CHORUS
Propitia-SHUN! God’s anger turned away
Justifica-SHUN! Just like we’d never sinned
Imputat-SHUN! Jesus’righteousness is mine
Big words, Big words that end in SHUN!
CHORUS
Resurrect-SHUN! Raised from death to life
Redemp-SHUN! Sinners bought by God
Adopt-SHUN! Sinners made God’s sons
Big words, Big words that end in SHUN!
Well I had promised to do some more study here for my exam on Mark, but a few things have been drawing me away. Let me share some things from the last few days: We hosted the first night of the Parenting Teenagers Course at our church, I prepared to run a session on one-to-one Bible reading for women at a retreat (and then did so), I found out I had upset a lovely long-term friend (sorry!), managed to put out my lower back (I am walking around like a fragile old woman), then hosted a staff meeting and dinner at my house. Most of that happened yesterday! Today I have led music at church and felt ‘obliged’ to go see Iron Man 3 with my teenagers and husband. (This last one was no huge sacrifice, but it did take a few hours. Fun film!)
So now it is time to stop and think clearly for a few moments in the midst of this whirlwind, about the way Christ referred to himself, the titles of Christ as recorded in Mark’s Gospel. These titles reveal so much of God’s great plan to rescue a people for His own Kingdom purposes, a people who would come to resemble the beautiful King who saved them!
“How do the titles of Christ reveal who Jesus is?”
MESSIAH/Christ
Messiah is the Hebrew term, Christos the Greek, for the title which tells us that Jesus is God’s anointed and promised King. He fulfills the promise to King David of a descendent who would reign on his throne forever! (2 Samuel 7). Jesus, God’s Son, became the Son of God (a Messianic title which also applied to the OT Kings of Israel). The Son of God would be the one to subdue the nations and be the means of reconciliation between God and man. “Kiss the Son” is the instruction of Psalm 2, meaning we must bow to or align ourself with him. We must trust in Him: “blessed are all who take refuge in Him”. Jesus’ divinity (meaning He IS God!) was made apparent by the authority he displayed over sickness, nature, death, evil spirits and most importantly sin – God alone could forgive (Mark 2 – the Man on the Mat!). Jesus is the One who clearly fulfilled the words of Isaiah: “Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy.” (Isaiah 35:5-6). Several times in Mark, in the voice from heaven (at the baptism and the transfiguration) and the voice of demons, God revealed that Jesus was indeed His Son. Peter, Blind Bartemeus and the Roman centurion (who saw Christ crucified) all conclude “You are the Christ”, Son of David, Son of God.
Son of Man
Another significant title is this one, Son of Man, which Jesus often used in referring to Himself, and what He had come to do. While this may seem to be a puzzling title, since the man Joseph was definitely not his biological father, Jesus used it to show how he fulfilled the promises which came through Daniel. Daniel 7 speaks of one like a Son of Man who will be victorious over evil, who receives the Kingdom in the new age, and shares it with the saints (all believers). He is the servant of the Lord who delivers God’s people through a resurrection (Daniel 12). This Son of Man has the authority to forgive sins (Mark 2:8-12), and he will preside over the great Sabbath rest at the end of time (Mark 2:27-28). The Son of Man is the true descendent of Adam, representative of God the Creator, who will rule over creation within God’s total and sovereign rule.
In Mark 14:61-63 Jesus draws these two titles together, and admits who He is, as he stands before the Sanhedrin under arrest. Jesus says He is “I AM”, both the divine Son of God, Son of the Blessed One, and the Son of Man who will receive the Kingdom with power!
Suffering Servant
The final title is that of Suffering Servant, promised through the prophet Isaiah many centuries before. “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). The Son of Man will serve us by suffering, in our place. He takes the punishment for sin, our sin, which was death. Isaiah 53 provides the clearest picture of what the suffering Servant would do: the righteous servant would justify many, giving his life as a ransom. Fulfilling Isaiah’s words perfectly, Christ was crushed for our iniquities, pierced for our trangressions. The punishment that brought us peace was laid on him. Silently as a lamb he was led to the slaughter, the Perfect Lamb of God, the sacrifice that perfectly fulfilled the Law and the Prophets and brought a way for our forgiveness. Psalms 22 and 69 also foreshadow the way Christ (in fact God himself) entered into our suffering, forsaken to death for US!
And strangely, apart from all that I can learn about the titles of Christ, there is a great comfort in knowing that Jesus is not some modern, man made or religious idea, but the great God-man who fulfills the purposes of our creator, and He draws us to himself through Jesus. The name of Jesus is indeed a refuge (as Chris Tomlin has sung, below). Theology brings us comfort and assurance of all that we hope for in faith.
And just if you are interested to keep reading:
Yehoshua means ‘the Lord saves’, and is translated into English as Joshua.
Jesus’ Hebrew name is Yeshua, which is a shortened version of Yehoshua. Yeshua means ‘he will save’, and is translated into English as Joshua. Yeshua translated into Greek is Iesous. Iesous transliterated into Latin is Jesu. Jesu became Jesus in English.
Jesus’ name is actually “Joshua”.
This song from Garage Hymnal is one that has been really encouraging to our church family. It speaks with such certainty of the secure salvation we have in Christ.
We first came across it about 5 years ago, but it is the truth of Romans 8:28-39 that makes it lasting. Our heavenly Father is holding us. He is mighty to save, mighty and strong enough to keep hold of us even when we are on a slippery slope. He can lift us up, gently restore us, and he won’t let go. He is our Sovereign Lord!
This is the promise we find in Philippians 1:4-6. “In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
I have been taking John Piper out for a walk now and then recently – well, obviously not in person, but in mp3 format on my smart phone. Today I listened to a talk from 2010 on Mark 8, titled “The Son of Man Must Suffer many things“….. It was an astounding message. The first half explored the passage and the topic, and the second explained why he needed to take a complete 8 month break from preaching!
In the first half, the climax was this challenge from Piper on verse 38:
“Verse 38: “Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.” Let’s get the meaning clear before we make the connection. What’s the opposite of being ashamed of somebody? Being proud of them. Admiring them. Not being embarrassed to be seen with them. Loving to be identified with them.
So Jesus is saying, “If you are embarrassed by me and the price I paid for you (and he’s not referring to lapses of courage when you don’t share your faith, but a settled state of your heart toward him)—if you’re not proud of me and you don’t cherish me and what I did for you—if you want to put yourself with the goats that value their reputation in the goat herd more than they value me, then that’s the way I will view you when I come. I will be ashamed of you, and you will perish with the people who consider me an embarrassment.”
Now I’m sure you are curious how preaching on this passage links with Piper announcing his request for a leave of absence from ministry (you can read or listen to the talk if you follow this link.) And I’m not going to tell you . . . because his challenge is what I want you to contemplate: are you in a settled state of admiration for Christ, do you love being identified with him – or are you in a settled state of embarrassment for the “foolishness” of the Cross of Christ? As I was being challenged by Piper’s words I was reminded of a similarly challenging plea that comes in a song from Sovereign Grace:
“Let me be unashamed, Jesus, to speak Your name Let me be bold to claim you as my Lord”
This is a brilliantly rousing song. The faster pace and guitar riffs would surely appeal to many, even though it may be considered “old”. I hope you will be able to encourage your whole church to bring this plea before God in song: “Let me be unashamed….” I definitely need to add this one back onto the new song list for our church!
(Click here to listen, for lead sheets and other music formats.)
UNASHAMED
VERSE 1
You were not ashamed to be
Emptied and poured out to death
Unashamed to give Your dying breath
You were not ashamed to bear
All of my reproach and sin
Jesus, You were such a faithful friend
So I will glory in the cross
And in the blood You shed for us
Glory in the gospel of Your grace
Let me be unashamed Jesus, to speak Your name For You were the one who came The Savior of the world Let me be unashamed Jesus, to speak Your name Let me be bold to claim You as my Lord
VERSE 2
You were not ashamed to give
Your body to a Roman lash
Unashamed to bear God’s holy wrath
You were not ashamed to hang
Naked bleeding on a tree
Gladly You did all of this for me
So I will glory in the cross
And in the blood you shed for us
Glory in the gospel of Your grace
I'm Ash. I love Jesus. I'm a wife and a mum. I'm a teacher. I'm also studying my Masters of Counselling. I started studying a few years after started the very hard work of engaging my own story of harm and trauma. This is a place where you'll hear my stories, as well as the stories of others. I'll also reflect on faith, healing and walking with Jesus. I pray that these words might encourage you to do your own painful but life-bringing work of examining your own stories, and allowing Jesus to heal the parts of you still locked in shame. For He came that we might have life, and have it to the full. Welcome, fellow traveller.
Words, words, words... well said Hamlet! A little blog to go off on tangents within the worlds of history, literature, TV and film that interest me. From the Tudors to Tom Hardy's Tess, the Boleyns to Bollywood or from the Wars of the Roses to Wuthering Heights, feel free to browse through my musings to pick up extra ideas and points for discussion!
If you are the person who chooses new songs for your church, (like me) you may be very excited by the announcement of a new album from Sovereign Grace (August 1). “Grace has come: Songs from the Book of Romans”looks sure to be a treat! Sovereign Grace certainly has figured out a good recipe for singable Gospel songs garnished with much grace! The sample track is based on Romans 8:31-39 – Nothing can tear us from the everlasting love of Christ.
sevennotesofgrace 