Monday, October 6, 2008 • 5:45 am 11
The following is an insightful article written by my friend Jeffrey Cavanaugh.
I have recently been bugged by a trend I’ve noticed in hymnody. It’s not a new trend; in fact it’s been going on for at least a century and a half. It still bugs me.
The trend is to take great hymns from the 17th and 18th centuries and to “update” them by setting them to new music, sometimes changing the original lyrics, and, most irritatingly, adding a chorus or refrain.
Filed under: Hymns, The Church, Worship
Thursday, August 28, 2008 • 8:31 am 0
The only hymn attributed to John Calvin is a sum of the complete devotion of his life.
I greet thee, who my sure Redeemer art,
My only trust and Saviour of my heart,
Who pain didst undergo for my poor sake.
I pray thee from our hearts all cares to take.
Thou art the King of mercy and of grace,
Reigning omnipotent in every place;
So come, O King, and our whole being sway;
Shine on us with the light of thy pure day.
Thou art the life by which alone we live
And all our substance and our strength receive.
Sustain us by thy faith and by thy power
And give us strength in every trying hour.
Our hope is in no other save in thee;
Our faith is built upon thy promise free.
Lord, give us peace, and make us calm and sure
That in thy strength we evermore endure.
Filed under: Hymns, John Calvin
Wednesday, January 30, 2008 • 7:32 am 0
Every Wednesday at Pastor and People we highlight books from the online Westminster Bookstore. This week we are featuring books on the topic of Worship. I trust you will find these books beneficial as you desire to become more Biblical in your corporate and private worship.
To see other Westminster recommendations please click here.
A Taste of Heaven: Worship in the Light of Eternity
Publisher: Reformation Trust Publishing
Author: Sproul, R. C.
ISBN-10: 1567690769 | ISBN-13: 9781567690767
Binding: Hardcover
List Price: $15.00
Westminster Bookstore: $10.50 – 30% Off
Modern Christians have shown their inability to agree on where to look for God’s design of worship. Neither pop culture nor the status quo can provide us with satisfactory answers. We need a biblical reason for doing what we do when we worship God.
In A Taste of Heaven, Dr. R. C. Sproul searches the Scriptures, finding timeless principles from the worship practices of the Old Testament to guide worship today. God intends worship to be an unforgettable encounter between Himself and His people – a joyous experience engaging the worshiper’s entire being.
Give Praise to God: A Vision for Reforming Worship
Publisher: P and R Publishing Company
Author: Ryken, Philip Graham
ISBN-10: 0875525539 | ISBN-13: 9780875525532
List Price: $29.99
Westminster Bookstore: $19.49 – 35% Off
Edited by Philip G. Ryken, Derek W. H. Thomas, and J. Ligon Duncan III
The ministry of the late James Montgomery Boice, pastor of the historic Tenth Presbyterian Church in the heart of Philadelphia, centered on God-honoring and glorifying worship. Give Praise To God seeks to extend Dr. Boice’s vision for biblically-based corporate worship founded squarely upon the regulative principle of worship. Helpful chapters discuss family and private worship as well. The eighteen contributors provide a solid and well-rounded discussion of a Reformed vision for worship. If you are looking for a winsome argument for the regulative principle, this is the book to read. – Jeff Waddington – Westminster Bookstore Staff
Singing and Making Music: Issues in Church Music Today
Publisher: P and R Publishing Company
Author: Jones, Paul S.
ISBN-10: 0875526179 | ISBN-13: 9780875526171
Binding: Paperback
List Price: $16.99
Westminster Bookstore: $11.21 – 34% Off
In this book of 32 thought-provoking essays on church music, Paul S. Jones, Organist and Music Director at historic Tenth Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia, provides biblical reasoning and practical wisdom concerning the purpose and practice of church music.
With Reverence and Awe: Returning to the Basics of Reformed Worship
Publisher: P and R Publishing Company
Author: Hart, D.G.
ISBN-10: 0875521797 | ISBN-13: 9780875521794
Binding: Paperback
List Price: $12.99
Westminster Bookstore: $9.09 – 30% Off
“Reformed Christians”, write D. G. Hart and John R. Muether, “are increasingly divided over how they ought to worship their God.” Considering it an urgent matter “to recover a biblical view of worship,” the authors have written With Reverence and Awe. Drawing on Scripture and Reformed confessions and catechisms, the authors answer such questions as: When are we to worship? How do we worship with reverence?
Filed under: Book Recommendations, Books, Hymns, Ministry, Prayer, Preaching, R.C. Sproul, The Christian Life, The Church, Westminster Books, Worship
Wednesday, October 31, 2007 • 4:08 am 0
On 31 October 1517, in Saxony (in what is now Germany), Martin Luther nailed his Ninety-Five Theses to the door of the Wittenberg Castle Church. This Theses consisted of points for debate that criticized the Church and the Pope. The most controversial points centered on the practice of selling indulgences and the Church’s policy on purgatory. Among many other things this one act helped begin the Protestant Reformation.
Luther’s spiritual predecessors were men such as John Wycliffe and John Hus. Other reformers, such as Ulrich Zwingli and John Calvin, soon followed Luther’s lead. Church beliefs and practices under attack by Protestant reformers included purgatory, particular judgment, devotion to Mary, the intercession of the saints, most of the sacraments, and the authority of the Pope.
These reformers are remembered today as we celebrate Reformation Day. As you remember the faithful men and women who paved the road upon which we walk I pray that our eyes would be turned to Christ, the one whom these men consistently pointed. One of Luther’s contributions to the church as a whole was his writing of hymns. From A Mighty Fortress is Our God to Dear Christians, One and All, Rejoice; Luther penned many hymns that spoke of his struggle with sin, the second coming of Christ, the cross and other biblical and theological themes. I thought it would only be fitting to post one of my favorite of Luther’s hymns as we celebrate Reformation Day.
“Dear Christians, One and All, Rejoice”
1. Dear Christians, one and all, rejoice,
With exultation springing,
And, with united heart and voice,
And holy rapture singing,
Proclaim the wonders God hath done,
How His right arm the victory won;
Right dearly it hath cost him.
2. Fast bound in Satan’s chains I lay.
Death brooded darkly o’er me.
Sin was my torment night and day.
In sin my mother bore me.
Yea, deep and deeper still I fell.
Life had become a living hell,
So firmly sin possessed me.
3. My own good works availed me naught,
No merit they attaining.
Free will against God’s judgment fought,
Dead to all good remaining.
My fears increased till sheer despair
Left naught but death to be my share.
The pains of hell I suffered.
4. But God beheld my wretched state
Before the world’s foundation.
And, mindful of His mercies great,
He planned my soul’s salvation.
A father’s heart He turned to me,
Sought my redemption fervently.
He gave His dearest Treasure.
5. He spoke to His beloved Son:
‘Tis time to have compassion.
Then go, bright Jewel of My crown,
And bring to man salvation;
From sin and sorrow set him free.
Slay bitter death for him that he
May live with Thee forever.
6. This Son obeyed His Father’s will,
Was born of virgin mother.
And God’s good pleasure to fulfil,
He came to be my Brother.
No garb of pomp or power He wore,
A servant’s form, like mine, He bore,
To lead the devil captive.
7. To me He spake: Hold fast to Me,
I am thy Rock and Castle;
Thy ransom I Myself will be,
For thee I strive and wrestle;
For I am with thess, I am thine,
And evermore thou shalt be mine.
The foe shall not divide us.
8. The foe shall shed my precious blood,
Me of My life bereaving.
All this I suffer for thy good
Be steadfast and believing.
Life shall from death the victory win.
My innocence shall bear thy sin;
So art thou blest forever.
9. Now to My Father I depart,
The Holy Spirit sending
And heavenly wisdom to impart
My help to thee extending.
He shall in trouble comfort thee,
Teach thee to know and follow Me,
And in all truth shall guide thee.
10. What I have done and taught, teach thou,
My ways forsake thou never.
So shall My kingdom flourish now
And God be praised forever.
Take heed lest men with base alloy
The heavenly treasure should destroy.
This counsel I bequeath thee.
Written in 1523, this was Martin Luther’s First Hymn, Richard Massie, Translator.
Text Transcribed From The Handbook to the Lutheran Hymnal, pp. 277-8.
Filed under: Hymns, John Calvin, Martin Luther, Reformation, The Church
