Amazing Grace!

Perhaps the best loved of all hymns, Amazing Grace reminds us that it’s not about how much we’ve sinned, but about how great is the mercy and grace of our God!  It’s a song of hope for the lost and a song of praise to God for His redemption.  What I love best about this song is the story behind the author of this hymn, John Newton.  He wasn’t sitting alongside a quiet stream in England, clad in monk’s robes, with quill in hand, trying to figure out what would rhyme with “wretch like me”.  I believe that these words were formed in the depths of Newton’s soul. I think they welled up from within and spilled out on to paper as he recalled the amazing grace given to him personally. 

John Newton was born to a devoted Christian mom who loved and prayed her son and taught him truths from the Bible every day of his young life.  Unfortunately, Mrs. Newton lost a battle to tuberculosis when John was just seven years old.  Consequently, John was raised by his rough and rugged father who served many years as captain of a ship in the Mediterranean trade.  At the tender age of 11, John went on his first sea-voyage upon his father’s merchant ship and thus began his career as a seaman.   Unfortunately, John Newton ended up in stocks for unruly behavior and then was allowed to join a slaver ship.  Eventually, John became deeply involved in the West African slave trade, where human souls were treated like nothing more than dispensable cargo.  He ruthlessly oversaw the transfer, torture and trade of more than 20,000 men, women and children – many of whom did not survive the journey. 

Newton was aboard the Liverpool, a British ship headed home in 1747 when a life-threatening storm began to batter the ship.  Terrified for his life, Newton recalled the Proverb from the Bible: “Because I have called and ye have refused, … I also will laugh at your calamity."  In that moment, John Newton chose to turn to God and to trust Him with his life.  He didn’t leave the slave trade immediately, but a hatred for the industry gradually arose in his heart until he could stand it no longer.  He quit, found the fullness of God’s grace, plunged himself into the truth of God’s Word, became an ordained minister of the gospel, and wrote a hymn.   (He actually wrote more than just Amazing Grace.  I suppose he had more in his heart that he wanted to pour out onto paper!)

As friend and pastor, Newton went on to become a significant spiritual influence in the life of William Wilberforce, the key British leader of the movement that successfully abolished the slave trade in England in 1807. Think about that. Wow. Amazing, magnificent redemption!

There are two things I especially like from this story of John Newton’s life:

      1.       No matter how deep your sin, His grace is deeper still.

      2.       Christian moms – the prayers you pray for your children are powerful. Don’t give up!

Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now am found; was blind but now I see.

Are You Washed in the Blood?

Are you washed in the blood?

Out of context, that’s a pretty odd question – even a bit disturbing.  Put those words into a popular upbeat hymn sung by faithful church goers and it could border on downright sadistic. Am I washed in the blood?   What was Elisha Hoffman thinking when he wrote those words in 1878? 

And did you know that there is a fountain filled with blood?  Um…Eww.   

(That one was written by William Cowper, while recovering from a bout of depression in 1772.) 

To be clear, and to put it all in context, the blood we’re singing about is the blood of Jesus Christ.  And here’s the thing: we do not have forgiveness of sins without it.  We do not have atonement, or redemption, or grace without it.  Neither do we have peace or promise or life without it!  It is the central theme of our Christian faith.  Many hymns written in the 18^th and 19^th centuries have references to the blood of Jesus and have become favorite hymns of Christians ever since.   It’s interesting though, it seems many newer, contemporary Christian songs steer clear of highlighting the blood of Jesus.  Oh, I know there are some old hymns set to new tempos and maybe it’s just my perspective but I do wonder why it seems many of our newer songs tend to avoid the subject of blood, especially since it is so primary to who we are as believers.   Have we gotten familiar with it? Are we offended by the thought of it?   Is it outdated? Admittedly, it is kind of gross.  And maybe the concept of a blood sacrifice is old school and we need to figure out a way to serve up a less offensive, simpler sounding gospel in order to be relevant with the culture around us.   

OR maybe we should re-enroll in that old school, and remind ourselves why the blood is so crucial to our faith.

John 6:53-56 says, “Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.  Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.  For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.  He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.”  

Do you realize that just after Jesus said these words, He lost most of His friends?  Apparently such icky  talk wasn’t relevant back in those days either.  It didn’t seem to make much difference to Jesus though.  Regardless of how offensive it may have sounded, Jesus still came to do what He had to do for our sake.  And it involved blood - more specifically, His blood.  It wasn’t about bringing a popular message, it was about saving our lives. 

So what’s the deal with the blood and why is it so important?  Putting it as clear and simply as possible: sin is bad, particularly when compared with the holiness of a perfect God.  (and to be clear, every one of us is marked by sin.)  Sin requires absolute judgment and the penalty is absolute death.  Back in the days of Moses, the Lord asked His children to provide a blood sacrifice of a perfect lamb - to atone for their sins for that year.  The lamb was killed.  Blood was applied.  Mercy was extended.  It was the Lord’s way of revealing His ultimate plan to save us.  He knew, even back then, that He would send His only son Jesus – The perfect Lamb– to live among us, and to die for us – a very bloody death.   Jesus paid the ultimate price for our salvation and it required something very precious.  His very life – His very blood. 

Why did He do it?  One word: LOVE.  

“Oh the blood of Jesus - it washes white as snow” and justifies us before our Holy God.   “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool.”  Isaiah 1:18   

Let’s revive these old hymns in our hearts. Let’s meditate on the beauty of God’s perfect plan of salvation and lift our voices to declare that there is now and forever, power in the blood!  It isn’t about bringing a popular message, it is about saving lives.

So tell me something: Are you washed in the blood? And if you're not...maybe it's time to get clean. 

 “To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. “   Rev 1:5-6

(You can listen to Selah's version of There is a Fountain Filled with Blood by clicking on the link in the upper right hand corner.) 

Dusting off the Hymnal 

A love for the old Christian hymns has grabbed hold of my heart lately. It seems I get lost in the glory and richness of the eternal truths that will never become irrelevant.   All around us, and even among us, we hear the clamoring of loud personal opinions and arguments, even within the church, and it creates a culture of confusion and chaos.  Truth can become lost in the muddy waters of current thought.  

Lately, I’ve intentionally pulled away from the noise, popped in my earbuds, and given myself to listening to the simple words of well-known hymns.  These words of truth shore me up and keep me focused on the things that matter.   

Have you ever wondered what went on inside Fanny Crosby back in 1873 that caused her heart to erupt with these words: “Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!  O what a foretaste of glory divine! Heir of salvation, purchase of God!  Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood. This is my story, this is my song! Praising my Savior, all the day long!”   I think Fanny had a clue about the gospel, don’t you?  I want to be that caught up in the stuff that matters.  I think that in spite of her blindness, she probably saw better than most of us.   

The lyrics from Jesus Paid it All have recently caught my attention in a new way – and more than my attention, I believe the Lord has brought fresh light to those words written so long ago (1865) and revealed a greater measure of His merciful love to me.  

I can hear the Savior say
Thy strength indeed is small
Child of weakness, watch and pray
Find in Me thine all in all.

I sing this song, and I’m moved to tears.  These words have brought me so much hope because, hey, Jesus gets me! He knows I’m weak, but I’m still His child! He knows my strength is small, but rather than scoff in disappointment, He makes Himself available to me.  He doesn’t tell me to “buck up” or to think positive thoughts about myself and my abilities.  His hope comes from reminding me that although I am weak - I don’t have to wallow in my weakness because He’s there to give me strength.  I am able to abide in Him! When I sing these words, I do not see the Lord frowning, but rather smiling and softly stroking my cheek, quietly assuring my heart.  Ahh, He gets me.  What love!  It’s a place of true rest for a weak child like me.  And you.

My hope in the next several weeks, is to be able to share here, more about the old hymns and their amazing relevance to our lives today.  If we have ears to hear, and a heart that’s willing to respond, I believe the Holy Spirit can freshly breathe on old words written on yellowed pages of dusty hymnals and awaken our hearts to eternal truth.   I don’t know about you, but I need that – especially in a day when confusion seems to rage in our culture. 

Savior, like a shepherd lead us.