O Jesus

This joyful song reminds us of the beauty and power of Jesus' name. Scripture tells us that "there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12) and that "at the name of Jesus every knee will [one day] bow." It is not simply the sounds or letters of His name that thrill Christians – it is what that name stands for, what it represents and reminds us of about our precious Savior. As we sing this song we remember the love Jesus showed us in dying for our sins, the sympathy He has towards His own, and the comfort He freely shows to all who seek it. In a fitting conclusion, we are reminded of promise that one day all who treasure Jesus' name will gather together and sing "worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!" (Revelation 5:12) May we treasure and share the precious name of Jesus more and more in our public worship and in every day life.

Song Upated on July 16th, 2010: the chorus has been changed slightly. If you downloaded the song before this date or are not sure where you version came from, please check to make sure you have the correct sheet music or MP3 file.

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An Overdue Update

Pardon the silence here for the past month or so. I've been putting most of my non-worship-leading-non-father-of-five focus on a top secret software project (well, I like to think it's top secret). Eric and I have met a couple of times this fall to work on our Hymns on God's Attributes project, and we have drafts of all 15 hymns completed (though several of them might not deserve the term "draft"!). We need to revise them and are still looking and praying about whether we can publish them as a small book with a "real" publisher. Here's one of my favorite verses from our recent trip, verse 2 of "The Lord is Merciful" which explains how God's mercy is demonstrated in the gospel:

The Lord has saved us from sin's pow'r according to His mercy;
When we were helpless and oppressed He looked on us with pity.
The merciful High Priest approached the mercy seat
And through His sacrifice paid our redemption's price
To demonstrate His kindness.

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Free Concert at Redeemer Bible Church

I'll be giving a free concert at my home church on December 12th. Several fantastic musicians are joining me to present some of my songs (both old and new) in a casual, acoustic context. In addition to singing and preforming the songs, I'll be sharing about what the lyrics mean and how they point us to the gospel. Lord willing, it will encourage and edify believers and be a strong witness to unbelievers. Please bring family and friends, or invite complete strangers! The concert is free and open to all.

Details
When: Saturday, December 12th, 7-8:30pm
Where: Redeemer Bible Church (16205 Highway 7, Minnetonka, MN 55345, 952-935-2425)

I hope to see you there!

Book Give-away Blog Contest

Through my blog, I'm giving away a couple copies of Russ Moore's book, Adopted for Life, to those who link to our song "Though I Was Born an Orphan" or pass it along to their pastor.

For entry details, go here. The contest is open through November 15.

A Sermon on “How Firm a Foundation”

The audio from my hymn-series sermon on "How Firm a Foundation" is now up:

How Firm a Foundation: Standing on the Word of God

There Is Life

Jesus said "I am the way, the truth, and the life." (John 14:6) He is the only source of true and abiding life- both eternal life with God and a joyful and peaceful life now. This song reminds us not only of the overflowing offer of life given to all in the gospel, but of the ironic way that life was purchased - through the death of the life-giver. As the writer reminds us, forgiveness and peace with God (resulting in eternal life) is not gained by our efforts - our tears or prayers - but only by Jesus' atoning blood. Then what must a person do to receive the merits of His blood? The song answers with several verbs: believe, trust, and receive. Simply believe that Jesus' blood is the only payment that will suffice to cover the debt of your sin, and that Jesus' righteous life is the only life acceptable enough to allow you to stand before a holy God. This belief must move past agreement to actual trust. You must think and live in light of this truth, trusting that your acceptability before God is only based on Jesus' work, and you will experience what this song offers: life rich, eternal, and free!

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Though I Was Born an Orphan

One of the central applications of the Gospel is to imitate it. Israel was to love the sojourner because they were sojourners in the land of Egypt (Deuteronomy 10:16). If they, when fatherless, widowed and homeless, were fed, clothed and sheltered by the Lord, they should display his glory in their treatment of others.

Likewise, James says to Christians (James 1:27), “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction.” James is not content to refer merely to God. Rather, he writes of “God, the Father,” reminding his readers of the privileged relationship they have with God—namely, He has become their “Father.”

As believers, we may call God “Father” because of our adoption as “sons” in Jesus Christ. We were born “sons of disobedience” and “children of wrath” (Ephesians 2:1-3). But the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, chose us and predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:3-6).

He sent his Son to live a life of full obedience, to die on the cross for our sins, and to be raised from the dead. Through faith in Jesus Christ, we are adopted as sons of God and become heirs (Galatians 3-4). Because we are sons, the Father sends the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying “Abba! Father!” To keep us from falling back into fear, the Spirit of adoption bears witness to us that we are children of God, fellow heirs with Christ, with whom we will be glorified (Romans 8:15-17). God the Father graciously makes his home with us until he calls us to his house (John 14).

If God the Father has blessed us with this great and altogether undeserved adoption, we will show like care to “orphans and widows in their affliction.” In application of the Gospel, Christians become people who display the greatness of their Father through their care for those in need.

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Worship Team Recruiting / Info Brochure

Last week I wrote a pamphlet for prospective members of our "Song" team (otherwise known as the "Worship" team) and thought it might be worth sharing here. Hopefully you'll find a few ideas that will help you structure your music ministry or what you communicate to prospective team members.

Welcome
This little brochure has been created to answer common questions about who participates in leading our worship services and what’s involved in serving in this way.

We would first like to express how delighted we are that you have the interest and desire to be involved with the public worship of God. Worshipping God is one of our highest privileges and joys, and making music for His glory and the edification of His people is a great honor and can be very satisfying. Second, we’d like to point out that even if you aren’t up front, in a very real way you are still participating in our music. We believe that music in worship is designed chiefly as an aid to congregational singing and do all that we can to encourage, invite, and make participation by all possible. Before you make music “on stage,” you should see yourself...

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E-Interview About Reformed Praise

An Internet acquaintance asked me to do an email interview about Reformed Praise and music ministry at Redeemer Bible Church. In the interview I shared about some of the spiritual struggles I face as an artist, songwriter, and regular "performer" (though not in the typical sense). I'm grateful for the chance to put God's grace on display - it's amazing that He uses sinners like me to spread the gospel and impact lives for eternity.

Hymns on God’s Attributes Work Day

Just a quick note to let you know that Eric and I are working together all day tomorrow and hope to finish all 15 three stanza hymns on God's attributes, as outlined in our original project post. We would appreciate your prayers for a productive and enjoyable time and that we be filled with the Spirit as we "speak to one another" in hymns. Please also pray for wisdom in what to do with the hymns; whether to seek publication with a major publisher; self-publish a physical book, or simply post them like our other works directly on Reformed Praise.

UPDATE: We finished our work day with four more hymns under our belt (not the 10 we were hoping for!) and were again blessed to spend so many hours pondering the mysteries of God's character and how they were so clearly demonstrated at the cross. This is perhaps my favorite stanza from our time, the second (gospel) stanza from The Lord Is Righteous:

The Lord has shown Himself as both the Just and Justifier
When Jesus died to satisfy what Justice did require.
The spotless Lamb was slain for guilty sinners' gain;
Through faith the Judge declares His righteousness is theirs
And

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