Advent Poetry

Today, I wanted to share a little advent poetry here, and I pray these words are an encouragement to you. Remember all that our great God has done.

"Let every heart prepare Him room!"

Thou who wast rich beyond all splendour,
All for love's sake becamest poor;
Thrones for a manger didst surrender,
Sapphire-paved courts for stable floor.
Thou who wast rich beyond all splendour,
All for love's sake becomes poor.

Thou who art God beyond all praising,
All for love's sake becamest man;
Stooping so low, but sinners raising
Heavenwards by thine eternal plan.
Thou who art God beyond all praising,
All for love's sake becamest man.

Thou who art love beyond all telling,
Saviour and King, we worship thee.
Emmanuel, within us dwelling,
Make us what thou wouldst have us be.
Thou who art love beyond all telling,
Saviour and King, we worship thee.

-- Frank Houghton (1894-1972) in PRAYING WITH THE ENGLISH HYMN WRITERS, Triangle, 1989. Also found in HYMNS II, InterVarsity Press, 1976.

Words and Music

Authentic Christian faith is not merely believed. Nor is it merely acted upon. It is sung—with utter joy sometimes, in uncontrollable tears sometimes, but it is sung. “Words and music did for me what solid, even rigorous, religious argument could never do, they introduced me to God, not belief in God, more an experiential sense of GOD”—that’s the way Bono, lead singer of the band U2, puts it.

What is it about singing that takes us beyond mere belief or behavior?

Think of singing as a language that allows us to embody our love for our Creator. Song is a means he has given us to communicate our deepest affections, to have our thoughts exquisitely shaped, and to have our spirits braced for the boldest of obediences. Through music, our God draws us deeper into a love affair with himself.

— Reggie Kidd, from WITH ONE VOICE: DISCOVERING CHRIST’S SONG IN OUR WORSHIP, Grand Rapids: Baker Books, ISBN: 0801065917.

Saved to Worship

The foundation upon which true worship is based is redemption. The Father and Son have sought to redeem us that we may become worshipers. Jesus said that the Son of Man came into the world to seek and to save that which was lost (Luke 19:10). In John 4 He reveals the purpose for His seeking: "For such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers" (v. 23). The Father sent Christ to seek and save for the specific purpose of producing worshiping people.

Thus, the objective of redemption is making worshipers. The primary reason we are redeemed is not so that we may escape hell—that is a blessed benefit, but not the major purpose. The central objective for which we are redeemed is not even so that we might enjoy the manifold eternal blessings of God. In fact, the supreme motive in our redemptive is not for US to receive anything. Rather, we have been redeemed so that God may receive worship—so that our lives might glorify Him. Any personal blessing for us is a divine response to the fulfillment of that supreme purpose.

— John MacArthur, Jr., from THE ULTIMATE PRIORITY, Chicago: Moody Press, 1983, p. 23.