Today's hymns

[Invicta]

All great hymns, some of my favourites.

Today we went to a wedding and had two hymns, Great is thy faithfulness Oh God my Father and And can it be that I should gain. It was the marriage of a former foster son of ours. My wife had previously warned him not to have Fight the good fight, with all thy might, which some one one choose at their wedding.

Man of sorrows is a favourite of mine, but someone at our church won't have the usual tune, replacing it with a nondescript modern tune as he said he once heard it at a wedding and thought it was completely out of place and the usual tune reminds him of that wedding.

[Invicta]

Another great hymn by John Newton:

Glorious things of thee are spoken,
Zion, city of our God!
He, whose Word cannot be broken,
Formed thee for His own abode.
On the Rock of Ages founded,
What can shake thy sure repose?
With salvation’s walls surrounded,
Thou may’st smile at all thy foes.

See! the streams of living waters,
Springing from eternal love;
Well supply thy sons and daughters,
And all fear of want remove:
Who can faint while such a river
Ever flows their thirst t’assuage?
Grace, which like the Lord, the giver,
Never fails from age to age.

Round each habitation hovering,
See the cloud and fire appear!
For a glory and a covering
Showing that the Lord is near.
Thus deriving from our banner
Light by night and shade by day;
Safe they feed upon the manna
Which He gives them when they pray.

Blest inhabitants of Zion,
Washed in the Redeemer’s blood!
Jesus, whom their souls rely on,
Makes them kings and priests to God.
’Tis His love His people raises,
Over self to reign as kings,
And as priests, His solemn praises
Each for a thank offering brings.

Savior, since of Zion’s city,
I through grace a member am,
Let the world deride or pity,
I will glory in Thy name.
Fading is the worldling’s pleasure,
All his boasted pomp and show;
Solid joys and lasting treasure
None but Zion’s children know.

[Covenanter]

The LORD Jehovah reigns
(tune - Millennium)

O what a Saviour that he died for me
Chorus:
Verily, verily, I say unto you;
Verily, verily, message ever new;
He that believeth on the Son, 'tis true
Hath everlasting life.

What a friend we have in Jesus

& a new Townend/Getty hymn:
My heart is filled with thankfulness
(Note last 2 lines -
So I will give my life, my all
to love & follow him.

Edited August 1, 2011 by Covenanter

[LindaR]

Okay, so maybe the word 'vigorous' would meet more satisfaction....

I would choose "vibrant" for that hymn.

[farouk]

I would choose "vibrant" for that hymn.

There's a good word!

[Invicta]

Today we had a preacher from Scotland, so we had all hymns from the Scottish Psalter.

Edited August 7, 2011 by Invicta

[farouk]

Some of the Psalter hymns are often in regular hymnbooks, such as Ps 100 and Ps 23.

[Invicta]

Some of the Psalter hymns are often in regular hymnbooks, such as Ps 100 and Ps 23.

Yes, ours were all in our hymn book.

[farouk]

Yes, ours were all in our hymn book.

I:

Yes, often there is a mixture.

Some Scottish churches are into 'exclusive psalmody', though.

[Covenanter]

Today we had a preacher from Scotland, so we had all hymns from the Scottish Psalter.

Psalm singing is to be encouraged - the inspired hymn book for the church - BUT my memories of the CofE were of getting lost in the Prayer Book, & not having a clue about how to chant the Psalms.

The metrical Psalms are much easier to sing, & were a great blessing at first as they enabled worship for all.

However, the Scottish Psalms are forced into metre, with little regard for the natural word order. Isaac Watts did a good job as a poet to provide metrical Psalms & where appropriate, as directly relating to Christ.

e.g. Psalm 103:
O bless the Lord, my soul!
Let all within me join,
And aid my tongue to bless His Name
Whose favours are divine.

O bless the Lord, my soul,
Nor let His mercies lie
Forgotten in unthankfulness,
And without praises die.

‘Tis He forgives thy sins,
‘Tis He relieves thy pain,
‘Tis He that heals thy sicknesses
And makes thee young again.

He crowns thy life with love,
When ransomed from the grave;
He that redeemed my soul from hell
Hath sovereign power to save.

He fills the poor with good,
He gives the suff’rers rest;
The Lord hath judgments for the proud,
And justice for th’oppressed.

His wondrous works and ways
He made by Moses known
But sent the world His truth and grace
By His belovèd Son.
(Watts)

1 O thou my soul, bless God the Lord;
and all that in me is
Be stirred up his holy name
to magnify and bless.

2 Bless, O my soul, the Lord thy God,
and not forgetful be
Of all his gracious benefits
he hath bestowed on thee.

3 All thine iniquities who doth
most graciously forgive:
Who thy diseases all and pains
doth heal, and thee relieve.

4 Who doth redeem thy life, that thou
to death may'st not go down;
Who thee with loving-kindness doth
and tender mercies crown:

5 Who with abundance of good things
doth satisfy thy mouth;
So that, ev'n as the eagle's age,
renewed is thy youth.

6 God righteous judgment executes
for all oppressed ones.
7 His ways to Moses, he his acts
made known to Isr'el's sons.
etc

A new evangelical hymn book "Praise!" begins with all 150 Psalms, some in several versions, but few of these are Scottish metrical. When choosing hymns, I always look for a suitable Psalm. Edited August 8, 2011 by Covenanter

[farouk]

Psalm singing is to be encouraged - the inspired hymn book for the church - BUT my memories of the CofE were of getting lost in the Prayer Book, & not having a clue about how to chant the Psalms.

The metrical Psalms are much easier to sing, & were a great blessing at first as they enabled worship for all.

However, the Scottish Psalms are forced into metre, with little regard for the natural word order. Isaac Watts did a good job as a poet to provide metrical Psalms & where appropriate, as directly relating to Christ.

e.g. Psalm 103:
O bless the Lord, my soul!
Let all within me join,
And aid my tongue to bless His Name
Whose favours are divine.

O bless the Lord, my soul,
Nor let His mercies lie
Forgotten in unthankfulness,
And without praises die.

‘Tis He forgives thy sins,
‘Tis He relieves thy pain,
‘Tis He that heals thy sicknesses
And makes thee young again.

He crowns thy life with love,
When ransomed from the grave;
He that redeemed my soul from hell
Hath sovereign power to save.

He fills the poor with good,
He gives the suff’rers rest;
The Lord hath judgments for the proud,
And justice for th’oppressed.

His wondrous works and ways
He made by Moses known
But sent the world His truth and grace
By His belovèd Son.
(Watts)

1 O thou my soul, bless God the Lord;
and all that in me is
Be stirred up his holy name
to magnify and bless.

2 Bless, O my soul, the Lord thy God,
and not forgetful be
Of all his gracious benefits
he hath bestowed on thee.

3 All thine iniquities who doth
most graciously forgive:
Who thy diseases all and pains
doth heal, and thee relieve.

4 Who doth redeem thy life, that thou
to death may'st not go down;
Who thee with loving-kindness doth
and tender mercies crown:

5 Who with abundance of good things
doth satisfy thy mouth;
So that, ev'n as the eagle's age,
renewed is thy youth.

6 God righteous judgment executes
for all oppressed ones.
7 His ways to Moses, he his acts
made known to Isr'el's sons.
etc

A new evangelical hymn book "Praise!" begins with all 150 Psalms, some in several versions, but few of these are Scottish metrical. When choosing hymns, I always look for a suitable Psalm.

C:

I love the Psalms, indeed.

Where you refer to the Psalms as 'the inspired hymn book for the church', I think as a dispensationalist I would use the word 'Israel' rather than the church, which I don't see in the Old Testament.

But, yes, the Psalms offer an inexhaustible treasure of praise and sentiment.

[Covenanter]

I love the Psalms, indeed.

Where you refer to the Psalms as 'the inspired hymn book for the church', I think as a dispensationalist I would use the word 'Israel' rather than the church, which I don't see in the Old Testament.

But, yes, the Psalms offer an inexhaustible treasure of praise and sentiment.

Eph. 5:¹⁸And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
¹⁹Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;
²⁰Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;

Col. 3:¹⁶Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

[farouk]

Eph. 5:¹⁸And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
¹⁹Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;
²⁰Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;

Col. 3:¹⁶Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

C:

Great verses.

My point was that Israel and the church are not the same, hermeneutically.

[Covenanter]

Farouk: Why bring Israel versus the church into every thread?

[farouk]

Farouk: Why bring Israel versus the church into every thread?

In this instance, it was because I was responding to the phrase: 'inspired hymnbook of the church'. Blessings.