How Great Thou Art

Here is a video of How Great Thou Art from tenor Phillip Webb, recorded at Dr. John MacArthur’s church.

AS LONG AS YOU ARE GLORIFIED

So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and struck Job with loathsome sores from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. And he took a piece of broken pottery with which to scrape himself while he sat in the ashes.

Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die.” But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips. (Job 2.7-10)

Mark Altrogge @ http://www.theblazingcenter.com has created a new song. He notes the rationale:

It’s easy to praise God in prosperity. But what do we do when we’re suffering? Job shows us that we should trust God at all times, not just in good times. I recently tried to capture this in a song:

AS LONG AS YOU ARE GLORIFIED

SHALL I TAKE FROM YOUR HAND YOUR BLESSINGS
YET NOT WELCOME ANY PAIN?
SHALL I THANK YOU FOR DAYS OF SUNSHINE
YET GRUMBLE IN DAYS OF RAIN?
SHALL I LOVE YOU IN TIMES OF PLENTY
THEN LEAVE YOU IN DAYS OF DROUGHT?
SHALL I TRUST WHEN I REAP A HARVEST
BUT WHEN WINTER WINDS BLOW, THEN DOUBT?

O, LET YOUR WILL BE DONE IN ME
IN YOUR LOVE I WILL ABIDE
O, I LONG FOR NOTHING ELSE AS LONG
AS YOU ARE GLORIFIED

ARE YOU GOOD ONLY WHEN I PROSPER?
AND TRUE ONLY WHEN I’M FILLED?
ARE YOU KING ONLY WHEN I’M CAREFREE?
AND GOD ONLY WHEN I’M WELL?
YOU ARE GOOD WHEN I’M POOR AND NEEDY
YOU’RE TRUE WHEN I’M PARCHED AND DRY
YOU STILL REIGN IN THE DEEPEST VALLEY
YOU’RE STILL GOD IN THE DARKEST NIGHT

O, LET YOUR WILL BE DONE IN ME
IN YOUR LOVE I WILL ABIDE
O, I LONG FOR NOTHING ELSE AS LONG
AS YOU ARE GLORIFIED

SO QUIET MY RESTLESS HEART, QUIET MY RESTLESS HEART
QUIET MY RESTLESS HEART, IN YOU.

From his conclusion:

Isn’t it amazing how the gospel so changes us that what matters most is the glory of Jesus, and not our own comfort? Let us be a people who overflow with praise and thanks, not only when we receive blessing from his hand, but when we receive hardship from his hand, trusting that even then he is working for our good and his glory.

NOTE: Sovereign Grace Music has graciously agreed to give away this song for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE.

(Lyrics from the CD “Come Weary Saints”, copyright Sovereign Grace Music)

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing: From Wesley to Our Hymnals

From http://www.christianitytoday.com

At least four people brought the now-inviolable hymn to its current form.

Gordon Giles, excerpted from O Come Emmanuel: A Musical Tour of Daily Readings for Advent and Christmas. | posted 12/14/2007 08:32AM

Hark! the herald angels sing
Glory to the newborn King;
Peace on earth and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled:
Joyful all ye nations rise,
Join the triumph of the skies,
With the angelic host proclaim,
Christ is born in Bethlehem:
Hark! the herald angels sing
Glory to the newborn King.

Christ, by highest heaven adored,
Christ, the everlasting Lord,
Late in time behold him come,
Offspring of a virgin's womb!
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see,
Hail the incarnate Deity!
Pleased as man with men to dwell,
Jesus, our Emmanuel:
Hark! the herald angels sing
Glory to the newborn King.

Hail the heaven-born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to all he brings,
Risen with healing in his wings;
Mild, he lays his glory by,
Born that man no more may die,
Born to raise the sons of earth,
Born to give them second birth:
Hark! the herald angels sing
Glory to the newborn King.

Words: Charles Wesley (1707-88), George Whitfield (1714-70),

Martin Madan (1726-90) and William Hayman Cummings (1831-1915) Music: Mendelssohn, from a chorus by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy (1809-47), adapted by William Hayman Cummings

The carol we now know as "Hark! the herald angels sing" did not start life as such, and required at least four people to bring it to its current form. Wesley's original, written as a Christmas Day hymn and first published in 1739, is made up of ten four-line verses, rather than the longer eight-line verses with refrain which we have now.

Related articles and links

It is interesting to note that in the original version of Wesley's, the heavens ring with the phrase "Glory to the King of kings," echoing Luke's "Glory to God in the highest heaven."

George Whitfield, who had been a student with Wesley, changed this to "Glory to the newborn King" in 1753. His fairly revolutionary Calvinist position was not compatible with Wesley's gentler reforming approach, which eventually bore fruit in the Methodist movement that he and his brother John inspired, Whitfield maintained the four-line verses of Wesley's original, but changed the angels' emphasis: "Glory to the newborn King" means something slightly but significantly different from "Glory to the King of kings." In the Gospel account, the angels praise God, whereas in "Hark! the herald angels sing," they are inaccurately described as praising Jesus. Furthermore, Luke does not say that the angels "sing," and so it may well be that this reinterpretation by Whitfield has emphasized the popular but unscriptural picture of angels singing the Gloria. ("While shepherds watched" also implies that they sang.)

Whitfield also cut the final verses, which are now largely forgotten:

Come, desire of nations, come,
Fix in us thy humble home;
Rise, the woman's conquering seed,
Bruise in us the serpent's head.

Now display thy saving power,
Ruin'd nature now restore;
Now in mystic union join
Thine to ours, and ours to thine.

Adam's likeness, Lord, efface,
Stamp thy image in its place.
Second Adam from above,
Reinstate us in thy love.

Let us thee, though lost, regain,
Thee, the life, the inner man:
O, to all thyself impart,
Form'd in each believing heart.

There is some real theological insight in these neglected verses. First of all we notice the Advent antiphon "Come, desire of nations, come," followed by a reference to the Fall, with the serpent bruising the heel of humanity and Adam bruising its head (Genesis 3:15). Wesley cleverly alters the meaning, asking that the serpent in us (sin) should be bruised (defeated) by Christ, the second Adam, who reinstates us as beloved sons and daughters of God. In the restoration of sinful humanity to a state of grace through the incarnation of Christ, the joining of divine and human nature is also achieved. Consequently, that which was lost (salvation) is gained and a new life is granted to all believers.

The tune we now call Mendelssohn comes from the second chorus, "Gott ist Light" ("God is Light"). While there can be no doubt that the marriage of Mendelssohn's tune and the adapted words has been most fortuitous, it is rather ironic that Mendelssohn, while recognizing the value of his tune, felt that it would be unsuitable for sacred words. Similarly, Wesley, when writing the original text, suggested that a slow, solemn tune would fit them best. He refused to sing Whitfield's reworking of his words, furious that he had presumed to alter them to suit his own ends. Nowadays, there would probably be an outcry if someone were to suggest even slight changes, and some attempts to "inclusivize" the language have been coolly received.

"Hark! the herald angels sing" has become part of the institution of Christmas, and while it contains inaccuracies, it also sounds out some wonderful theology, musically reminding us that Jesus, the "newborn King," is "Prince of Peace," "Sun of Righteousness," "Everlasting Lord," "Incarnate Deity," and, best of all, "Emmanuel" — "God with us." Whatever its creators would have thought about the hymn as it currently stands, it endures as a reminder of the great gift that our Father God has given us in his Son Jesus Christ, and which we will celebrate in only a few hours' time.

Excerpted from O Come Emmanuel: A Musical Tour of Daily Readings for Advent and Christmas. Copyright ©2006 Gordon Giles. Used by permission of Paraclete Press, www.paracletepress.com.

"My New Dawn," Daniel Kirkley

The Grace Music Video

The Grace sing Praise and worship

Wonderful Cross by Michael W. Smith

Johnny Cash June Carter Cash Far Side Banks Of Jordan

Matisyahu

by Joe Thorn@ http://www.joethorn.net

Here are two short videos of Matisyahu: one is of his newest video, Jerusalem, and the other is him beatboxing. I imagine most of my readers are not into hip-hop, reggae, or the interesting combination of both, which is why I thought it would be a good idea to put it out there. Matisyahu is a member of Chabad-Lubavitch, one of the largest branches of Hasidic Judaism, and also a highly respected artist in the hip-hop and rock communities. The fact that he sings about peace, love, justice, hope and YHWH does not seem to negatively impact his growing popularity. Check it out. It’s great stuff.

Free Music

From Tim Challies @ http://www.challies.com

Sovereign Grace Music is offering a free song written by Steve and Vikki Cook and sung by Vikki. It is from the Everlasting recording that was released in 1999. "I Bow Down" is a slow, meditative song that reflects on the holiness of God. Here is a sample of the lyrics:

You saved me the sinner
With crimson red You washed me
White as snow
How I love You Lord
You loved me the mocker
With kindness You won my
Heart forever
How I love You Lord
And as I behold this mercy
I'm undone

To download "I Bow Down," click here and add the song to your shopping cart. During the checkout procedure, simply enter the promotional code FREEDOWNLOAD to bypass the credit card payment. Make sure that the total is now $0.00. Simply finalize the sale and you will be presented with a download link. This offer is only good until February 9.

There is also a new single available and another song written by the Cooks. "Beautiful Grace" moves at a slightly higher tempo and speaks of God's grace.

Who could imagine
The life-giving beauty
That shines from Calvary
My eyes were opened
And my heart was won
When Your mercy conquered me
Lord, how could I flee from this love
Lord, why would I flee from this love

What beautiful grace, incredible hope
Lord, thank you for saving me
This beautiful grace will carry me home
Lord, thank you for saving me
For saving me

It is available here for 99 cents. Several other Sovereign Grace products have seen price reductions and are now priced at $10 per album.

If you enjoy the Sovereign Grace music, you may want to Sovereign Grace e-News. Almost every newsletter comes with news of a free song.

Handel's Messiah

Hugh Hewitt recently did a three-hour interview with Professor David Allen White on Handel's Messiah. You can listen online to Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.