Liturgy Lessons: January 28, 2018
Call to Worship: Psalm 111
Prayer of Invocation
Hymn of Adoration: Holy, Holy, Holy (#100)
Confession: Isaiah 57:14-15; Psalm 51:10-12, 15-17
Song of Confession: Lord, Lord, Lord (Have Mercy)
Assurance of Padron: Isaiah 61:1-3, 10a
Hymn of Assurance: My Hope is Built on Nothing Less (#521)
Catechism/congregational prayers
Reading of the Word: Luke 3:1-21 (John the Baptist Prepares the Way)
Doxology: #733
Sermon: Rev. Eric Irwin
Tithes and Offerings
Supper: My Song is Love Unknown (#182)
Closing Hymn: On Jordan’s Bank the Baptist’s Cry
“The aspect of this element is beautiful, either when the sea foams with its surging white caps and mounting billows, or when it bedews the rocks with its snowy spray, or even when under a balmy breeze it shimmers, often in this case presenting itself to the beholder from afar in colors of purple, suggesting serene tranquility. Such is the aspect of the sea when it does not beat the nearby shores with the onrush of its waves, but when the waters greet it, as it were, in a fond embrace of peace. How gentle is the sound, how pleasing the splash of the water, how pleasant and rhythmic the wave-beats! I am of the opinion that the beauty of such a creation is not to be estimated by the standard of our own eyes, but is to be gauged in the design of the work as a whole by its conformity and agreement with the intention of its Creator.
The sea is the secret strength of moderation, the practice of restraint, the retreat of seriousness, the port of security, the tranquility of the age, the sobriety of this world, the incentive of worship to devout and faithful men, so that when the singing of psalms chimes with the sound of gently breaking waves, the isles clap their hands and the tranquil choir of the sacred waves echo with the hymns of the saints…Aye, the Sea is the Church, which pours forth from its doors in waves the crowds of the faithful, and echoes with refluent waves of the people’s prayer, with the responses of psalms, the singing of men, of women, of children, a crashing surf of concordant song. And what of the wave that washes sin away and life-giving breezes of the Holy Spirit?”
– Ambrose of Milan, the “father of hymnody” for the Western church
“We may be sure that the characteristic blindness of the twentieth century—the blindness about which posterity will ask, ‘But how could they have thought that?’—lies where we have never suspected it…None of us can fully escape this blindness, but we shall certainly increase it, and weaken our guard against it, if we read only modern books. Where they are true they will give us truths which we half knew already. Where they are false they will aggravate the error with which we are already dangerously ill. The only palliative is to keep the clean sea breeze of the centuries blowing through our minds…”
– C.S. Lewis, Introduction to St. Athanasius on the Incarnation
Go back and read the final sentence of each of the two quotes above. Do you see how Ambrose’s question is both affirmed and answered by Lewis? It’s as if these two great men, separated by sixteen centuries, were standing on the same cliff overlooking the sea, having a chat about the nature of the Holy Spirit. In the first paragraph of the Bible we read that “the spirit of God was hovering over the waters” before God sang creation into existence. Ambrose heard that song echoed in the waves and the “hymns of the saints.” Lewis saw this harmony of the ages written out in the old books. For both of them it was a beautiful thing to behold, illuminating the mind and refreshing the soul. This beauty, the work of the Holy Spirit, can be seen throughout our hymnal. Wave after wave of inspiration (meaning “filled with the spirit”) continues in every age, according to the intention of our Creator. Brothers and Sisters, when we sing together, the Spirit of God hovers. Water and Wind, Wonder and Worship. Whoosh!
My Hope is Built on Nothing Less (a.k.a. “The Solid Rock”)
Text: Edward Mote, 1834
Tune: SOLID ROCK, William Bradbury, 1863
The following account of this hymn’s creation is offered at hymnary.org:
Edward Mote was walking to work one day in 1834; the thought popped into his head to write a hymn on the “Gracious Experience of a Christian.” As he walked up the road, he had the chorus, “On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; All other ground is sinking sand.” By the end of the day, he had the first four verses written out and safely tucked away in his pocket. Later that week, he visited his friend whose wife was very ill, and as they couldn’t find a hymnal to sing from, he dug up his newly written verses and sang those with the couple. The wife enjoyed them so much she asked for a copy, and Mote went home to finish the last two verses and sent it off to a publisher, saying, “As these verses so met the dying woman’s case, my attention to them was the more arrested, and I had a thousand printed for distribution” (Lutheran Hymnal Handbook).
A “mote” is a tiny piece of substance, a speck, a particle. Based on the impact of this hymn to generations of believers, Mr. Mote’s name is inaccurate. This hymn is no small fleck of dust. It has been a sea stack, a Gibraltar, for many souls who have sung it in troubled times. That is because it faithfully points the singer to Christ, the anchor that holds “in many high and stormy gail” and whose covenant of love “supports us in the overwhelming flood.” He is the Solid Rock. Considering all this, I suggest a slight spelling change to the author’s last name. It should read “Mr. Edward Moat.” This “moat” is deep and wide, surrounding the church with the water of life and acting as a defense against the attacking charge of unbelief, doubt, and fear.
The tune-writer, William Bradbury, was a 19th-century musician with an impressive catalogue of compositions, and an even more impressive beard. Mostly known for his songbook collections for choirs and schools, Bradbury ran a piano company in New York City. He wrote the music for this hymn text in 1863. There are a few of his other hymn tunes that you may recognize: Sweet Hour of Prayer, Just As I Am, Savior Like a Shepherd Lead Us. His personal favorite was a little ditty for the kiddies that, unfortunately, is not more well-known. He wrote the music for it in 1860. The title of it is Jesus Loves Me.
On Jordan’s Bank the Baptist’s Cry
Text: Charles Coffin, 1736
Tune: PUER NOBIS, Piae Cantiones, 1582
This week our journey through Luke brings us to chapter 3, where we encounter John the Baptist. Although an important biblical figure, Mr. Baptist has not really been a source of inspiration for hymn-writers. Perhaps it was the animal skin outfit or the diet of locusts that turned them away. This hymn is really one of only a few that give mention to the camel-hair-covered christener, and it is an extended riff on his call to repentance. John’s announcement “Prepare the way for the Lord” (Matt. 3:3, a quote from Isa. 40:3) is the basis for this hymn. The first two verses make a universal appeal to all people today. The third verse is a confession of our need for salvation; verse four is a prayer for healing and the powerful touch of Christ. The fifth and final verse is a doxology to the Trinity. This celebrated hymn is often sung at Advent, but because it is saturated with scripture references that point us to Christ, it is worth singing in a worship service at any time of year, especially as a closing hymn for a service that includes a sermon on John the Baptist by the head pastor of the church, who is also the music director’s boss.
This text was written by a French Catholic named Charles Coffin, and submitted in an 18th-century collection of songs for the Catholic liturgical calendar. The music is a bit older than that. Puer Nobis Nascitur (Unto us a Son is Born) is a medieval Christmas carol that first appeared in collections from the 14th or 15th century, but whose origins are from melodies a few centuries older than that. It is believed that this melody found its birthplace as part of the famous 12th- and 13th-century organum repertoire of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, which was a veritable womb for the growth of western music. I’ll save more on that topic for another day, but suffice it to say that most of what we enjoy in western music culture was born in the church. The church should be the primary curator and creator of great music!
The hymn version of this song was first published in 1582, in a Finnish song book, Piae Cantiones, a volume of 74 medieval songs with Latin texts used primarily in the cathedral song schools. The harmonized version we have in our modern hymnals is attributed to Michael Praetorius, a post-reformation German who sought to reconcile the relationships between Catholics and Protestants through the singing of common hymnody. Bravo! I love that concept! I look forward to having a long conversation with Mr. Praetorius in heaven.
Scripture References:
vs. 1-2 = Isa. 40:3, 9, Matt. 3:3, Mark 1:3, Luke 3:3-4
vs. 3 = Ps. 46:1, Isa. 40:7
Sheet music
Recording (piano accompaniment)