Reformed Praise

Support the Independent Film “The Bench”

David Ward — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 20:52:11 +0000

A friend of mine, Terrell Ferguson, who produced and directed our music video for There Is No Sin That I Have Done, is trying to raise money for a short film called “The Bench.” He did amazing work on our music video, and this film is intended both to spark conversation about the justice of God and the relationship between good and evil, and as a way for all of the filmmakers, writers, actors, and others who are involved in the film to showcase their skills in the hopes of advancing their careers. To support this project, simply visit the project’s IndieGogo Page.

Here is the film summary from the writers:
A provocative turn on the classic tale between good and evil, The Bench allows us to look in on a conversation of two long-time foes, who meet yet again. This cinematic short begs the question of what it means to be on either side the proverbial line. Good and evil are not always what they appear to be.

For the Sake of His Name

David Ward — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 18:12:26 +0000

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Description

This song was born out of a devotional time in Ezekiel 36. This chapter is typically known for its new covenant language, for example in verse 26 where the Lord says, “I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you.” But there is something bigger happening in this chapter – God not only promises to redeem His people from their sins, and give them new hearts that they might “walk in His statutes,” but He tells us why He will do it:

It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came. And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Lord God, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes. (vs. 22-23)

Surely God redeems people because of His great love and mercy, but here He declares that His redemption is about His honor – His reputation, the glory of His holy name. He cannot let their unfaithfulness go unpunished, or He would cease being the holy and just Judge of the universe. And how does He “vindicate the holiness of [His] great name?” Ultimately, at the cross, where Jesus absorbed all of the holy wrath and jealousy due us because of our sin. He did this in order that God might be able to justify (pardon) His people and at the same time remain just. This is what Paul says in Romans 3:26: “so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

As we contemplate the greatness of God’s fame and eternal plans, and the fact that His purpose in saving us is so much bigger than our own lives, we might begin to feel small. But losing ourselves in His glory means finding ourselves in His story – the great story of redemption that will one day culminate when we are able to see His glory face to face. May we sing to our glorious God with humble and awestruck thanksgiving for His saving purposes, and may we long for the day when we can experience the fullness of His glory.

Lyrics

The Lord has seen us, our ways and deeds;
Before His splendor we’re unclean.
Our God is jealous for we have profaned
The thing He treasures – His own name.
Though His name has been disgraced
All our sins have been erased;
He has raised us from the grave
To new life

Chorus:
For the sake of His name,
For His unrivaled fame,
He has cleansed and sanctified us at the cross;
As He pours out His wrath
On His people’s behalf
See Him vindicate the greatness of His name,
His glorious name, His glorious name.

He sent His name’s sake to bear our shame,
The Son has taken all our blame.
From Christ, His treasure, He turned away
His love and glory to display.
Though His name has been disgraced
All our sins have been erased;
He has raised us from the grave
To new life

Bridge:
We will lose ourselves in His glory
As we find ourselves in His story.

Songwriter

David L. Ward

We Are Yours

David Ward — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 23:57:51 +0000

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Description

This modern hymn was written for a sermon series in Acts, and is a prayer for strength to accomplish the mission for which God created the church – to spread the gospel of His grace to every tribe and tongue, giving testimony by word and deed of the mercy of God shown in giving His Son to rescue sinners for His glory. As we sing this song, we are triumphantly proclaiming God’s rightful rule over us, His people, and expressing our dependency on His Spirit’s work in our midst to empower us for His gospel mission. We’re not called simply to preach the gospel, but to treasure it, to sing it. We’re not called simply to share a statement, but the living Word of God, giving proof of its power to transform people through our own ransomed lives. And when we feel weak, unfit, or scared at the immensity of what God calls us to do and the dangers we face along the way, may he “strengthen hand and heart and nerve” that we might be “champions of Calvary!”

Lyrics

Lord, we come before Your throne,
By Your blood we are Your own,
We will live for You alone.
By Your Spirit now appear,
Keep us faithful, keep us near.
Let the nations join and hear, and hear-

Chorus:
You are the mighty King
Whose glory shines in ransomed lives;
Your gospel we will ever sing.
The Great Commission stands
So help us strive, the faint revive;
Use us Your kingdom to expand.
Lord, we are Yours, we are Yours,
We are Yours.

Jesus, Master, Whom we serve,
Strengthen hand and heart and nerve,
Our allegiance You deserve.
By Your Spirit we will be
Champions of Calvary
That the lost might turn and see, and see-

Songwriter

David L. Ward

Nominate “There Is No Sin” for LifeWay Worship’s March Promotion

Eric Schumacher — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 03:49:02 +0000

LifeWay Worship is doing their “March Madness” promotion again. Last year, with your help, our song “There is No Sin That I Have Done” was seeded second.

We’ve been encouraged by the response to the music video we released last fall. And, we’d love to see more people hear the truths of the Gospel presented in this song. We pray those trapped in guilt and condemnation would hear and revel in the glorious grace given to us in Jesus.

To that end, would you consider nominating for “There is No Sin That I Have Done” and then sharing this with your friends? You can submit your nomination here.

Song for Martin Guitars’ Competition

David Ward — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 02:04:54 +0000

We don’t often post songs that aren’t directly related to Christian worship (though if understood broadly, any song can be a “worship song”), but this time we’re going to share a song and ask for your help. A friend tipped me off to a songwriting contest that Martin Guitars is having this month, and though I managed to write a song and submit it the same day I found out about it, there’s not much time left for voting. The idea of the contest was to write a 2-3m song with the word “lifespan” in it and post a recording (with guitar) to YouTube. I decided to write a blues song based on Psalm 90 and some themes in Ecclesiastes in order to share bits of the gospel to whomever happens upon this song whether through Martin’s website or just through YouTube. While it’s certainly not as overt about the gospel as the songs you might find here that are geared towards public worship, I’m still trying to bear witness to Jesus in the world of singer-songwriters.

Vote for the song here: http://lifespan.venturaassociates.net/gallerydetails.php?vid=165

Please consider voting for the song. If I win the song will be featured on Martin’s website (or YouTube channel) and I’d win a very nice Martin Guitar.

And in case you caught it, the webcam recording software I used somehow flipped the image… I’m not left-handed!

Here are the lyrics. The second verse made the song too long for their contest (3m) but I’m including it here anyway.
Vanity

The seasons change, mountains rise,
Clouds appear in ev’ry corner of my skies.
My days pass by, my secrets known,
My lifespan races on, all I can do is groan.
From dust we came, to dust we shall,
Return as quickly as we came.

{The wind blows in, rivers rush
The wind returns and the sea is never hushed.
What has been done will come again
There’s nothing new under this tireless sun.
From dust we came, to dust we shall,
Return as quickly as we came.}

It is vanity, vanity, vanity,
This is vanity, vanity, vanity.

Where can I go to end this strife,
To find the meaning of my temporary life.
For a thousand years there’s been a place-
Men sought their Maker for His mercy and His grace.
Return, O Lord, reveal Your works
And make our days of darkness glad.

He saw our strife, He saw our pain,
He saw our waywardness, our self-appointed reign.
In love He came, rich became poor,
He lived in toil and pain though innocent and pure.
From life He came, to death He went,
To rescue us from vanity.
From life He came, to death He went,
To rescue us from vanity.

From our vanity, vanity, vanity,
From our vanity, vanity, vanity.

I Look to Jesus

David Ward — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 13:00:40 +0000

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Description

Augustus Toplady, theological champion of the so-called Particular Baptists of the 18th century, wrote many hymns so full of theology they seem to be exploding with truth. The hymn “From Whence This Fear and Unbelief” is no different, and it is strange that this hymn is not as well known or celebrated as his “Rock of Ages” or “A Debtor to Mercy Alone.” In this hymn, Toplady sets out to not only defend the doctrine of particular redemption, but to show that it is a holy occasion for praise. In perhaps the most powerful verse, he declares (lyrics have been modernized), “If pardon You have now secured and freely in my place endured the whole of wrath divine, God cannot payment twice demand, first at my bleeding Surety’s hand, and then again at mine.” If Jesus’ death paid for the sins of every person irrespective of whether they come to put their faith in Him as their Savior, it would be unjust of God to punish unbelievers for their sins since they would have already been punished at the cross. Either God must save everyone, or Jesus’ died for a particular people, as Jesus says in John 10:14-1: “I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.” And again, in Matthew 28:20: “the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Lyrics

Why should I fear or disbelieve?
Has not the Father caused to grieve
His spotless Son for me?
And will the righteous Judge of men
Condemn me for that debt of sin
Repaid at Calvary?

Complete atonement You have made,
And ev’ry debt Your blood has paid
With mercy’s precious flood.
How then can wrath on me take place
If sheltered in Your righteousness
And sprinkled with Your blood?
(Pre-chorus:)
I’ve found in Jesus a ransom boundless.

Chorus:
I look to Jesus’, Jesus’, Jesus’ blood,
I will put all of my trust in Him.
I look to Jesus’, Jesus’, Jesus’ cross
Where I am welcomed again and again.
I look to Jesus, Jesus, Jesus alone.

If pardon You have now secured
And freely in my place endured
The whole of wrath divine,
God cannot payment twice demand,
First at my bleeding Surety’s hand,
And then again at mine.
(Pre-chorus:)
I’ve found in Jesus a ransom boundless.

Bridge:
Here I will find my rest:
The merits of Jesus
Have paid my every debt in full.

Songwriter

David L. Ward

Original Author

Augustus Toplady

My Sin

David Ward — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 21:34:16 +0000

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Description

Though this song is named “My Sin,” it could really be named “My Savior” since the song is really about all the ways that Jesus saves us from our sin. Sin is man’s most deadly enemy – a sickness far beyond any bacteria or virus we’ve ever encountered. Sin has run its course through every part of man – body, mind, heart, and soul. And sin is not like a normal sickness – just something we catch from others or the environment. We were both born natures already infected with sin, and are complicit and morally responsible for what our sin natures cause us to do. Sin is such an important biblical concept that the Lord gives us many metaphors to help us understand it and its effects. This song explores three of those metaphors, and how the Father and Son relate to us in those metaphors. As you read, listen, or sing this song, think not simply about how powerful your sin is, but more importantly, all that your Savior Jesus is to you and that he is able to save you from every aspect of sin’s terrible force in your life.

Sin as…	Man	God	Jesus
Debt	Debtor	Creditor	Surety
Enmity	Enemy	Violated One	Mediator
Crime	Criminal	Judge	Substitute

Lyrics

My sin—the dark, enormous debt
Which law and conscience show,
Reminds me of the worth of God
To Whom that debt is owed.
But Christ became my Surety,
A gift of love was made:
His precious blood and righteousness
My debt has fully paid.

My sin reveals the enmity
I had with God on high
For when He sent His Son for me
I sentenced Him to die.
Yet this same One in triumph rose
To plead on my behalf
For by His blood He turned away
The Father’s holy wrath.

Chorus:
Hallelujah, every debt is paid;
Hallelujah, peace with God was made;
Hallelujah, Jesus bore my blame;
Hallelujah to the Lamb!

My sin—the bold and shocking crimes
I callously commit
Against a perfect King and Judge
With justice shall be met.
But look! there stands the Innocent
To suffer in my place—
He took the sentence I deserve
And pardoned me by grace.

Songwriter

David L. Ward

Whate’er My God Ordains Is Right

Jeff Bourque — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 21:28:31 +0000

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Description

A friend of mine sent me this text, saying her church had just sung this hymn and though the music was not very engaging, the words were extremely powerful and would I write a new melody? I read through the text and saw what she was talking about. What a faith-filled hymn! Written by Samuel Rodigast in 1676 to comfort a sick friend, he lays out what it means to deal with the problem of pain from the perspective of faith. Our God is sovereign and full of love, and though he takes us through adversity, his plans are right and true. His promise is that he will not leave us in the circumstance through which he is taking us. Samuel’s response is to trust that God will hold him and to be content through the pain. May we all be blessed with such a response that can only come as a result of the Spirit working in us. I pray this song would help our people through whatever trial God is taking them, knowing that some sweet day, we will all be free from the pain of this world.

Lyrics

Whate’er my God ordains is right:
His holy will abideth;
I will be still whate’er he doth;
And follow where he guideth.
He is my God: though dark my road.
He holds me that I shall not fall.
And so to him I leave it all,
He holds me that I shall not fall.

Whate’er my God ordains is right:
He never will deceive me.
He leads me by the proper path;
I know he will not leave me.
I take, content, what he hath sent.
His hand can turn my griefs away,
And patiently I wait his day,
His hand can turn my griefs away.

Whate’er my God ordains is right,
Though now this cup, in drinking,
May bitter seem to my faint heart,
I take it all, unshrinking.
My God is true; each morn anew.
Sweet comfort yet shall fill my heart,
And pain and sorrow shall depart,
Sweet comfort yet shall fill my heart.

Whate’er my God ordains is right.
Here shall my stand be taken.
Though sorrow, need, or death be mine,
Yet am I not forsaken.
My Father’s care is round me there.
He holds me that I shall not fall,
And so to him I leave it all,
He holds me that I shall not fall.

Songwriter

Jeff Bourque

Original Author

Samuel Rodigast (1649-1708)

Songs for Christmas

David Ward — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 22:18:11 +0000

Christmas is upon us yet again, and though most of our service planning is probably finished, I’d like to point out a few of our songs that relate to the incarnation of Jesus.

The song When Adam By Transgression Fell was written to accompany a Scripture reading from Genesis 3 about the fall of man into sin. The Anglican liturgy of Lessons and Carols includes this reading at Christmas

Last Christmas Eric Schumacher, Jeff Bourque, and I collaborated to write a new tune (and some new lyrics) to Eric’s already existing Christmas hymn How Beautiful the Mystery. Here’s the new tune, and here’s the original hymn text.

I wrote the song My Precious Savior Gave His All a few years ago to describe what Jesus gave in order to redeem His people from their sins. The first verse refers to the incarnation when it says “He left His majesty behind- The King became a slave!”

This is a much older song, in fact, one of my first hymn re-writes: The Everlasting Lord. The text is by Charles Wesley and features the verse “Equal He with God most high, mild, He laid His glory by; He, eternal God, was born, object of His creatures’ scorn; Man with men did He appear, pleased a servant’s form to wear.”

How Blest Is He Who Does Not Walk

David Ward — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 13:00:49 +0000

Description

This is a versification of Psalm 1 that fits the tune SOLID ROCK (written for the hymn “My Hope Is Built on Nothing Less”). Setting the Psalms to hymn meters (therefore tunes) is one way to make them accessible for congregational singing.

Lyrics

How blest is he who does not walk
With wicked men in their designs
Or stand with sinners in their way
Or in the mocker’s seat recline.
But in the perfect law of God
He finds His best and chief delight
And meditates both day and night.

And He is like a healthy tree
That’s planted by refreshing streams
Which yields its fruit and never wilts
He prospers in his plans and dreams.
Not so the wicked, they are like
The chaff the wind blows far away;
When judgment comes they will not stay.

The Lord, He knows and oversees
The way of righteous, godly men.
But lo! the way of wicked ones –
Destruction is its only end.
How blest is he who does not walk
With wicked men in their designs
But to God’s perfect law resigns!

Songwriter

David L. Ward

Hymn tune

SOLID ROCK