Vers n Dag Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners– of whom I am the worst. 1 Timothy 1:15 I mentioned Fanny Crosby last week when I wrote about Blessed Assurance. Another of hers that we still sing today is To God Be the Glory. Fanny wrote To God Be the Glory in about 1872 & included it in a collection of hymns. Many of the hymns in that collection became quite famous, but this one didnt catch on – at least, not in America, & not at that time. Evangelist Ira Stankey, however, thought it deserved a spot in his Sacred Songs & Solos, & took it with him to England. It was received much better there & included in several hymnals. It wasn’t until Cliff Barrows used the hymn in a Billy Graham Crusade in Nashville over eighty years after it was written that it became one the favourites in American hymn books. ‘To God be the glory’ is often seen as a hymn of praise, which it most certainly is, but it’s also a hymn of grace. In the second verse that Crosby most clearly sets forth the conditions for entrance through this gate—faith, & faith alone: O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood, To every believer, the promise of God; The vilest offender who truly believes, That moment from Jesus a pardon receives. Note that redemption is promised to every believer (John 3:16), & that regardless of the magnitude of one’s sins, even the vilest offender who puts his or her faith in Christ, such as the criminal crucified with Christ (Luke 23:43) or Saul of Tarsus (1 Timothy 1:15), will immediately receive pardon from Jesus. The rest of the hymn continues to bring this point of grace home, proclaiming that it is God who has done great things, not us. Fanny Crosby was a woman of God who clearly understood the importance of God’s marvellous grace in salvation. Let us indeed rejoice in our salvation provided so freely by Christ Jesus! Prayer: Thank you for Your grace, Lord, & for the gift of salvation. Thank you that there is no sin so vile that it cannot be forgiven. Amen Listen to it here: https://youtube/watch?v=2CeBoSQsBR0
Posted on: Mon, 07 Jul 2014 07:30:27 +0000
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