Trust AND Obey » Music

Where the Soul of Man Never Dies

Dave Miller — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 01:40:58 +0000

This is one of my favorite old-time hymns done by two great artists. Ricky Skaggs and Tony Rice. There is so much wonderful music that you just don’t hear anymore. This is one that is worth listening to.

Grace – Amazing or Mundane

Dave Miller — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 20:13:03 +0000

O mundane grace, how dull the sound,
Useless to one like me.
I am not lost, don’t need t’be found,
I’m good, why can’t you see?

What’s grace, and why do I need it?
God knows my heart is pure.
He loves me just the way I am,
And my salvation’s sure.

Though I may sin, from time to time,
I’m not as bad as some.
At least I’m not a hypocrite,
Like all those Church-y scum.

And when I die, and go to Heav’n
And stand before the throne.
He’ll let me in, despite my sin,
For my goodness alone.

Sadly, there are many people who claim to know the Lord, who would think that there is nothing wrong with these lyrics. I have a very dear friend who believes that God is going to let her into His kingdom because of the good things she’s done. She is a universalist and my heart breaks whenever she tells me some of the non-biblical things she believes. I have talked to her at length about Romans 3:23, Titus 3:5 and Matthew 7:22-23, but she just dismisses those parts of the bible along with others that she doesn’t like. I pray for her every day. If you know people who take God’s Amazing Grace for granted, take time right now to pray for their stony hearts to be removed and replaced with hearts of flesh. (Ezekiel 36:26)

“Beware of manufacturing a god of your own: A god who is all mercy but not just, a god who is all love but not holy, A god who has a heaven for everybody but a hell for none … Such a god is an idol of your own. The hands of your own fancy and sentimentality have made him. He is not the God of the Bible.” — J.C. Ryle

The idea for this article came from an email I received from Ligonier Ministries last week announcing a new book entitled, By Grace Alone by Dr. Sinclair Ferguson. The email began with the words, “Routine Grace, How Monotonous the Sound?” I haven’t read the book, but would recommend it based on the author’s reputation alone.

Abide with Me

Dave Miller — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:00:47 +0000

The hymn, “Abide with Me” was written by Henry F. Lyte in 1847. My favorite verse of that great hymn appears below. Click here to hear the music while you read the lyrics.

I need thy presence every passing hour.

What but thy grace can foil the tempter’s power?

Who like thyself my guide and stay can be?

Through cloud and sunshine, Lord abide with me.

There is such a wonderfully textured meaning in this song. The first line expresses our utter helplessness and child-like dependence on our heavenly father. Not an hour or a minute goes by that we do not rely upon Him for our pulse and breath. Not only is our very existence sustained by God, but only His power and grace keeps us from sin. We cannot do it on our own; if we try without God we are sure to fail. Satan is powerful, but he cannot do ANYTHING without permission from the Almighty. God is sovereign over ALL.

The line about God being our ‘guide and stay’ has a much deeper meaning that it would appear. The word stay can mean simply a thing that supports or steadies something else. In that sense, God is our stay. But ‘stay’ in this hymn, I believe, is a nautical term.

The writer of this hymn, Henry Lyte, was a minister in a small English town named Lower Brixham, Devonshire. In the mid-1800s, it was a fishing village and most of the people in Lyte’s parish were sea-farers. Lyte and his parishoners would understand the importance of the stay, which are the ropes used for steadying a mast fore and aft to keep it from bending. They are the strongest ropes on the ship and God is our strongest support in any storm.

The last line is a request for God to ‘abide with me.’ The greek word meno, which is used here, means to remain, endure and never leave. Through scorching sun and driving rain, Lord abide with me. What a wonderful prayer are these three words, Abide With Me.

The titular phrase is most likely taken from John 15:4-7 NASB These words are also used in the Hymn “God of Our Fathers, Whose Almighty Hand”