Your Favorite TRUE HYMN

[Dr. Bob]

What is it? NOT experience, testimony, song about you. NOT psalm or scripture or paraphrase. Focus on God and worship. Usually have very few in the beginning of a hymnal (in case you're looking)

Thanks for sharing. Again, your choice is subjective and not all might agree that it is truly a HYMN.

 

[Dr. Bob]

Here is an ancient hymn from Judaism. It DOES include some "personal" and "human" responsibility, but its focus is on Praise to God alone.

The God of Abraham praise, Who reigns enthroned above;
Ancient of everlasting days and God of love.
Ha Yahweh - great I AM: by earth and heaven confessed;
I bow and bless the sacred name forever blest.

The God of Abraham praise at Whose supreme command
From earth I rise and see the joys at His right hand.
I all on earth forsake, its wisdom, fame and power;
And Him my only portion make, my shield and power.

He by Himself hath sworn, I on that oath depend,
I shall, on eagles wings upborne, to heaven ascend.
I shall behold His face, I shall His power adore,
And sing the wonders of His grace forever more.

The whole triumphant host gives thanks to God on high:
"Hail Father, Son and holy Ghost!" They ever cry.
Hail, Abraham's God and mine! I join the heavenly lays;
All might and majesty are Thine and endless praise.

 

[ScottEmerson]

You spread out the skies over empty space
Said "let there be light"
Into a dark and formless world Your light
was born

You spread out Your ams over empty hearts
Said "let there be light"
Into a dark and hopeless world Your Son
was born

You made the world and saw that it was good
You sent Your only son for You are good

What a wonderful Maker
What a wonderful Savior
How majestic Your whispers
And how humble Your love
With a strength like no other
And the heart of a Father
How majestic Your whispers
What a wonderful God

No eye has fully seen, how beautiful the cross
And we have only heard
The faintest whispers of how great You are

What a wonderful Maker
What a wonderful Savior
How majestic Your whispers
And how humble Your love
With a strength like no other
And the heart of a Father
How majestic Your whispers
What a wonderful God

-------
Chris Tomlin - Wonderful Maker


I would hope that we all agree this is, indeed, a 'hymn,' even though it isn't traditional.

 

[Roy]

Not being a theohlowjun, I can't say if this is a true hymn or not, but it is my favorite.

Roy

O WORSHIP THE KING
Words: Robert Grant

O worship the King, all glorious above,
O gratefully sing His power and His love;
Our Shield and Defender, the Ancient of Days,
Pavilioned in splendor, and girded with praise.

O tell of His might, O sing of His grace,
Whose robe is the light, Whose canopy space,
His chariots of wrath the deep thunderclouds form,
And dark is His path on the wings of the storm.

The earth with its store of wonders untold,
Almighty, Thy power hath founded of old;
Established it fast by a changeless decree,
And round it hath cast, like a mantle, the sea.

Thy bountiful care, what tongue can recite?
It breathes in the air, it shines in the light;
It streams from the hills, it descends to the plain,
And sweetly distills in the dew and the rain.

Frail children of dust, and feeble as frail,
In Thee do we trust, nor find Thee to fail;
Thy mercies how tender, how firm to the end,
Our Maker, Defender, Redeemer, and Friend.

O measureless might! Ineffable love!
While angels delight to worship Thee above,
The humbler creation, though feeble their lays,
With true adoration shall all sing Thy praise.

http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/o/w/owtking.htm

 

[Baptist Believer]

Originally posted by Dr. Bob Griffin:
What is it? NOT experience, testimony, song about you. NOT psalm or scripture or paraphrase. Focus on God and worship. Usually have very few in the beginning of a hymnal (in case you're looking)

Fairest Lord Jesus

It's one of my favorites and one of the very few classic hymns that is actually addressed to Jesus.

 

[Joshua Rhodes]

TO GOD BE THE GLORY - Fanny Crosby/William Doane

WONDERFUL, MERCIFUL SAVIOR - Dawn Rodgers/Eric Wyse

 

[John Gilmore]

Holy God, We Praise Thy Name

Holy God, we praise thy name;
Lord of all, we bow before Thee.
All on earth Thy scepter claim,
All in heaven above adore Thee.
Infinite Thy vast domain,
Everlasting is Thy reign.
2. Hark! the glad celestial hymn
Angel choirs above are raising;
Cherubim and seraphim,
In unceasing chorus praising,
Fill the heavens with sweet accord:
Holy, holy, holy, Lord!
3. Lo, the apostles' holy train
Join Thy sacred name to hallow;
Prophets swell the glad refrain,
And the white-robed martyrs follow,
And from morn to set of sun
Through the Church the song goes on.
4. Holy Father, holy Son,
Holy Spirit, three we name Thee;
Though in essence only one,
Undivided God we claim Thee
And, adoring, bend the knee
While we own the mystery.

[ June 16, 2003, 05:25 PM: Message edited by: John Gilmore ]

 

[John Gilmore]

Te Deum Laudamus

We praise Thee O God, we acknowledge Thee to be the Lord.
All the earth doth worship Thee, the Father Everlasting.
To Thee all the angels cry aloud, the heavens and all the powers therein;
To Thee cherubim and seraphim continually do cry;
Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Sabaoth;
Heaven and earth are full of the majesty of Thy glory.
The glorious company of the Apostles praise Thee
The goodly fellowship of the prophets praise Thee;
The noble army of martyrs praise Thee;
The holy Church though all the world doth acknowledge Thee;
The Father of an infinite majesty; Thine adorable true and only Son,
Also the Holy Ghost, the Comforter.
Thou art the King of Glory, O Christ.
Thou are the everlasting Son of the Father.
When Thou tookest upon Thee to deleiver man;
Thou didst humble Thyself to be born of a virgin.
When Thou hadst overcome the sharpness of death,
Thou didst open the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
Thou sittest at the right hand of God
In the glory of the Father.
We believe that thou shalt come
To be our judge.
We therefore pray Thee to help Thy servants,
Whom Thou hast redeemed with Thy precious blood.
Make them to be numbered with Thy saints
In glory everlasting.
O Lord, save Thy people and bless Thine heritage.
Govern them and lift them up forever.
Day by day we magnify Thee,
And we worship Thy name ever, world without end.
Vouchsafe, O Lord, to keep us this day without sin,
O Lord have mercy upon us, have mercy upon us,
O Lord, let Thy mercy be upon us, as our trust is in Thee.
O Lord, in Thee have I trusted; let me never be confounded.

 

[D28guy]

I'd have to go with "How Firm a Foundation", as my all time favorite Hymn...

VERSE 1:

How firm a foundation, you saints of the Lord, Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!
What more can He say than to you He has said, To you who for refuge to Jesus have fled?

VERSE 2:

Fear not, I am with thee; O be not dismayed, For I am thy God, and will still give thee aid;
I'll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand, Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand.

VERSE 3:

When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie, My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply:
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine.

VERSE 4:

The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose I will not, I will not desert to its foes;
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake, I'll never, no, never, no, never forsake!

The reason it blesses me so much is that, 1st of all, I just love the melody, and 2nd, after the 1st verse, verses 2, 3, and 4 are all from Gods perspective, as if He is singing to us, the truth found there!

I had never noticed that before until one day I had my guitar out and was playing and singing this Hymn, all by myself at home. By the time I got to the end tears were streaming down my face! It was such a blessing!

Go back and sing it, if you know the melody, and see if God doesnt bless you during the last 3 verses!

{By the way, from what I understand there are two different melodies that are set to these words. I dont know why, but someone told me that. I am referring to the one that J. Vernon McGee uses as his theme song for his radio broadcast)

 

[Dan Todd]

Amazing Grace, How Sweet the Sound!

 

[Dr. Bob]

Thanks for the good hymns. What a joy to read the words and bless our God!

BTW Dan, I think "Amazing Grace" is one of ALL of our very favorite songs. It is not a "hymn" by definition (it is the testimony of John Newton) but think that is moot. It IS a blessed hymn, even in the minds of the unsaved world!

 

[Aki]

Originally posted by Dr. Bob Griffin:
What is it? NOT experience, testimony, song about you. NOT psalm or scripture or paraphrase. Focus on God and worship. Usually have very few in the beginning of a hymnal (in case you're looking)

many hymnals have their songs categorized. as an example categorization: Worship, Testimony, Christmas...

Focus on God? hmmm, i've heard much of that kind from the Pentecostals, singing the thoughts "I love you God", "You are worthy God", "You are beautiful"...

God regards His Words with utmost importance (i may get out of the line here). hymns, therefore, which show realization of God's word and working in the lives of those who sing them delights God. many songs incorporate doctrines and the effects of those learned doctrines in their lives. consider:

1. Wonderful grace of Jesus, greater than all my sins...

2. Because He lives, I can face tomorrow (my favorite)

 

[John Gilmore]

Focus on God? hmmm, i've heard much of that kind from the Pentecostals, singing the thoughts "I love you God", "You are worthy God", "You are beautiful"...

A hymn should not recount the experience of a man falling in love with God but, rather, God's love for fallen man.

 

[LadyEagle]

It is Well with My Soul

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.


It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.


Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blessed assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.


It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.


My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!


It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.


And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.


It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

- Words by Horatio G. Spafford, 1873
- Music by Philip P. Bliss, 1876

From the Internet:

The words to this hymn was written after two major traumas in Spafford's life. The first was the Great Chicago Fire of October 1871, which ruined him financially. Shortly after, while crossing the Atlantic, all four of Spafford's daughters died in a collision with another ship. Spafford's wife Anna survived and sent him the now famous telegram: "SAVED ALONE."

Several weeks later, as Spafford's own ship passed near the spot where his daughters died, he was inspired to write these words.

Bliss originally named the tune "Ville de Havre" after the ship on which Spafford's four girls perished, the SS Ville de Havre. Ironically, Bliss himself died in a tragic train wreck shortly after writing this music.

http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/i/t/itiswell.htm


Marvelous Grace of our Loving Lord

Marvelous grace of our loving Lord,
Grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt!
Yonder on Calvary’s mount outpoured,
There where the blood of the Lamb was spilled.

Sin and despair, like the sea waves cold,
Threaten the soul with infinite loss;
Grace that is greater, yes, grace untold,
Points to the refuge, the mighty cross.

Dark is the stain that we cannot hide.
What can we do to wash it away?
Look! There is flowing a crimson tide,
Brighter than snow you may be today.

Marvelous, infinite, matchless grace,
Freely bestowed on all who believe!
You that are longing to see His face,
Will you this moment His grace receive?

http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/g/g/ggreater.htm

 

[Gunther]

"Tis so sweet"

 

[Haruo]

Originally posted by SheEagle9/11:
It is Well with My Soul

Marvelous Grace of our Loving Lord

Great choices, though perhaps not "true hymns". (BTW while I find it interesting to read and attempt to apply definitions of "hymn" as opposed to "psalm" as opposed to "spiritual song", and to correlate them with sections of the hymnal, I think too much can easily be made of such distinctions, while I am not convinced that much damage is ever done by making too little of them.)

Haruo

 

[showard93]

It is well is a great song but I guess my favorites are The dearest Friend and I never shall forget the day. I also love How great thou art.

 

[Larry in Tennessee]

Blessed Assurance:
Blessèd assurance, Jesus is mine!
O what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.

This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior, all the day long;
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior, all the day long.
Perfect submission, perfect delight,
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
Angels descending bring from above
Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.

Perfect submission, all is at rest
I in my Savior am happy and blest,
Watching and waiting, looking above,
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

 

[John Gilmore]

Yes, but is Blessed Assurance a true HYMN or Fanny Crosby's personal testimony of blessed assurance through direct angelic communication?

 

[Haruo]

Originally posted by John Gilmore:
Yes, but is Blessed Assurance a true HYMN or Fanny Crosby's personal testimony of blessed assurance through direct angelic communication?

Angelic? With the very Spirit of God dwelling in one's heart, what need has one of angelic communication?

Haruo