Posted May 16th, 2009
A Christian is one who has been set free from the power and penalty of sin, both in this life and in the next, through the only means that God has given for such redemption, the substitutionary death of Jesus who took the awful punishment for sin that we deserved. (1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 2:2) This central message of the Christian faith is our deepest delight and surest anchor and deserves to be on our hearts and lips every day. We should never tire of singing praise to Jesus who has redeemed us from our sin and guilt. Nothing can fill our hearts with gratitude like remembering how wicked we really are, the severity of punishment that our sins deserve before a holy God, and the love that God has shown us in giving His Son to endure our punishment for us. (Romans 5:8) Jesus has taken the “wormwood and the gall” (severe bitterness associated with judgment - see Jeremiah 9:15 for an example) for us and has completed the work of reconciliation; there is no way we can add to or subtract from its saving value. Let this closing thought be the theme song of our lives: “my Beloved, He is mine, for He has made me His.”
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Posted March 14th, 2005
This hymn was originally written by Horatius Bonar, who has been called the prince of the Scottish hymnwriters. In it we are reminded of how God invites us to bring our sins to Jesus not just initially when we come to Christ for justification, but repeatedly as we continue to become trapped in the guilt and shame of our remaining sin. The chorus was added with Revelation 3:19-20 in mind, an often-misquoted passage about God's invitation to believers to repent and return to Him. "Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me." Jesus is speaking to the church in Laodicea which had become "lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold" in thier deeds of righteousness. This song explores WHY we can bring our sins to Jesus, giving us peaceful trust that He is willing, able, and ready to forgive and restore sweet communion with Himself to us when we ask.
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Posted July 11th, 2003
This song helps us remember that God's grace is unending, infinite, and free. In Christ, he richly pours out this grace on all those who believe in Him. We sing that it perflectly cleanses, gives infallible cure from guilt, and demands that we receive it just as we are - utterly sinful. This song has an original chorus, something songwriter David Ward has been doing more of lately. It needed a focal/high point that made the theme more memorable and summarized the main theological points about this "fountain of grace". Singers are also challenged to come - whether it is for initial or continued cleansing.
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Posted July 8th, 2003
In John 13 we see a powerful demonstration of what it meant for Jesus to be a servant leader. As he approached Peter to wash His feet (a task normally reserved for a servant, not an esteemed teacher), Peter was understandably uncomforable. Like in Luke 5:8 when Peter told Jesus "away from me, Lord, I am a sinful man!", he felt unworthy to be in the presence of his Lord. But after Jesus told Peter "unless I wash you, you have no part with me", in characteristic Peter form, he asked for Jesus to wash not only his feet but his hands and head as well. This song adds the heart as a third thing we desire to be washed by our Lord. Note that the original text of the third verse has been altered to make it easier to understand.
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