The past couple of days I have been following a thread at Bro. Chris’ My Two Cents, regarding the Lord’s Supper. I came across this post about “remembering” and the role a great (perhaps forgotten) hymn text by Charles Wesley can play in helping us look at familiar truths afresh:
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In the past two months, we have received many gracious and precious gifts for our new baby. For each of these I dutifully (though maybe not super-punctually…sigh) wrote a thank you note. Especially after the baby shower at our church, I was really thankful for the list someone had kept of “who gave what” in order to get my notes done! I found I remembered easily the gifts I had received from the folks I knew well. I could “see” a little bit of them in the items they had picked out for Kate. It was the other gifts I was getting mixed up. Was the little playsuit from the lady in the blue dress? Was the baby quilt from the young mom who sat in the back with her daughter? It wasn’t that I wasn’t grateful…I just wasn’t sure who to thank!
In the “big picture”, we all certainly know Who to thank for every blessing (Jas. 1:17). As I glance over my list of shower gifts today, I wonder…when was the last time I truly meditated upon all that God has done for me? Am I well enough acquainted with Him, so I can see Him in daily life and say, “Oh yes, that is from my Father…no mistaking it”? Am I trying to understand all that His gift of salvation means for me?
God condescends to our forgetfulness. The Lord’s Supper was instituted for just this reason. He knows we are made of dust, and that we are often swallowed up with the cares of this world. We need to be made to remember to “look at the tag” on that “unspeakable Gift”, recall Who it was from, and the great price that was paid to make the Gift ours.
Here is a lovely hymn text by Charles Wesley that was brought to my attention last month. Maybe it can be of help today in this business of remembering:
O Love divine, what hast thou done!
The immortal God hath died for me!
The Father’s co-eternal Son
Bore all my sins upon the tree.
Th’immortal God for me hath died:
My Lord, my Love, is crucified!
Is crucified for me and you,
To bring us rebels back to God.
Believe, believe the record true,
Ye all are bought with Jesus’ blood.
Pardon for all flows from His side:
My Lord, my Love, is crucified!
Behold and love, ye that pass by,
The bleeding Prince of life and peace!
Come, sinners, see your Savior die,
And say, “Was ever grief like His?”
Come, feel with me His blood applied:
My Lord, my Love, is crucified!
Then let us sit beneath His cross,
And gladly catch the healing stream:
All things for Him account but loss,
And give up all our hearts to Him:
Of nothing think or speak beside,
My Lord, my Love, is crucified!
Chris Said:
on July 26, 2008 at 12:03 am
What a beautiful text. Thanks for this.
Diane Heeney Said:
on July 26, 2008 at 2:08 pm
Chris,
You can find the midi and score at:
http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/o/l/olovediv.htm
The tune is easy and worshipful…reflective.
Lee Said:
on July 26, 2008 at 3:39 pm
My brother-in-law just gave us this same challenge from Ps 77. Asaph is depressed, the solution to his depression is, ” [blockquote]I will remember the works of the LORD: surely I will remember thy wonders of old. [/blockquote]
Diane Heeney Said:
on July 26, 2008 at 10:48 pm
Yes–Psalm 77–what a great place to go for excellent reminders and correct perspective! I want to write on that one. God has given me some special lessons on it. Thanks for “reminding” me. =)