"Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all."

"Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all."
Hymn: “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” – Isaac Watts (1674-1748)
Tune: HAMBURG

This final phrase from one of the best-loved Christian hymns – especially during Lent – pulls together all the previous stanzas to state the proper response to our giving attention to the wondrous cross on which the Prince of Glory died.

We have been called upon to count our richest gain as loss – or to consider all that we’ve amassed in this life as nothing. Instructed to have contempt for – to hate – our prideful nature, we’ve promised God that we would never boast in anything except the death of his Son. We have committed to turn instruments of vanity into a sacrifice for our blood-bought redemption.

We have looked with reverence upon the head, hands and feet of the Crucified One from whom sorrow and love become a confluence flowing slowly downward. Have ever love and sorrow intertwined in such a way? Has ever a rich crown been formed from bramble-bush thorns?

Then we come to the end of the hymn, admitting that nothing created could possibly be gift enough for all this suffering. Instead, our total surveillance of the wondrous cross demands total commitment… a sacrifice of soul, life, and all that we are.

Thank you, Isaac Watts, for walking us through the crucifixion event with such beautiful language… language to sing together as a great congregation of those redeemed by the blood of the Lamb... language which at once communicates our sorrow and our love.

Hear Gilbert Martin’s Setting of This Hymn

"Beneath the cross of Jesus, I gladly take my stand."

Hymn: “Beneath the Cross of Jesus” – Elizabeth Clephane (1830-1869)
Tune: ST. CHRISTOPHER

Following on yesterday’s post about proximity to the cross, this opening hymnline of one of my favorite Lenten hymns has a similar theme. After answering the question “Are we there yet?”, we are drawn within “the shadow of a mighty rock” and “a home within the wilderness, a rest upon the way.”

We often steer away from singing this hymn because in the original text printed in most hymnals, the word “fain” is used instead of the word “gladly.” When our mind has to stop and wonder what a word means, we sometimes lose the thought that follows; therefore, I’m glad that some song books and arrangements are using less archaic language to help us ‘get it’ without explanation!

I would have used the word “proudly,” but pride is such a no-no in church-speak! However, we should be proud to take our stand with Christ at the foot of his cross, shouldn’t we?!

Taking our stand for Christ and with Christ is vital for those of us who would be counted as one of His. Our placement keeps people from second-guessing who we are and whose we are. In today’s society, that establishment of our post is key to our vitality as witnesses to “the very dying form of One who suffered there for me.”

Looking for prime real estate in the Kingdom? Find it beneath the cross of Jesus.

A Men’s A Cappella Setting of This Hymn

"Near the cross I'll watch and wait, hoping, trusting ever."

Hymn: “Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross” – Fanny Crosby (1820-1915) 
Tune: NEAR THE CROSS

Proximity is a wonderful thing in any relationship. We never want to be far from the people we love most. That’s why Hallmark has a whole series of cards from “across the miles”!

Maintaining a close proximity to the cross is of great importance to those of us who are Christ-followers. Many people accessorize with a cross, wearing it daily as a reminder to themselves that they are inextricably affiliated with the One whose life and death are represented by two intersecting straight lines. For many years in my early ministry, I dangled a wooden cross from my neck so that every time it struck my chest, I was reminded whose I was… and my minute-by-minute commitment to him.

You may not ‘wear’ a cross daily, but you need to be prompted to stray not far from the influence of the cross on your daily decision-making.

Beneath the cross of Jesus is a good place to keep vigilance, with a watchful eye to avoid failure and mis-steps. There we can wait… be still… learn patience. It is also a great vantage point from which to view hope as a constant under-girder of our faith experience. And is there a better place to express our trust in Him who redeems us, comforts us, restores us – yea, even saves us?

In the context of Fanny Crosby’s text, this hymnline is about watching for, waiting on, hoping toward, and trusting in the ultimate return of Christ. The following line says, “till I reach the golden strand just beyond the river.”

I agree with all that; but it is also the place I watch for God, wait for him to act, hope that his will is done in my life, and trust that he will see me through TODAY… whether or not his return is imminent!

Need a change of place? Come over here and stand with me near the cross. Proximity is a wonderful thing.

Hear Hastings College Choir sing Robert Sterling’s arrangement of this hymn

"To teach the way of life and peace, it is the Christ-like thing."

Hymn: “We Give Thee But Thine Own” – William W. How (1823-1897)
Common Tunes: SCHUMANN, ST. ANDREW, TRENTHAM

While reminding us that all we have already belongs to God and is on loan from us, this offertory hymn includes today’s hymnline which speaks to our being people of peace, teaching a peaceful lifestyle to those within our circle of influence – not because it’s the trendy thing but because it is the Christ-like thing.

At University Baptist Church in Chapel Hill, NC where I served last in a full-time capacity, our motto was “Moving toward Christlikeness.” That phrase was printed on our Sunday bulletins, in our publicity pieces, on our church stationery, etc. It probably caught on better than any theme I’ve ever encountered at the local church level. Not only was it a motto; it became the goal of our congregation. More than once in committee meetings or Bible study classes, I heard someone ask, “Is this the Christ-like thing to do?”

I’m pretty sure that Christ would approve of our being a people of peace. Having modeled that for us, it seems as if our promoting amity or harmony would be in keeping with the pathway down which he has led us.

President Ronald Reagan said, “Peace is not the absence of conflict. It is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means.” I think he was right about that. We may be conflicted at just about every turn in our decision-making… even in our dealings with others; however, if we can set out to intentionally settle those in ways which reflect the peace that passes understanding, we will become teachers of that Christ-like way of life and peace.

A congregational singing of the SCHUMANN tune

"O the deep, deep love of Jesus, vast, unmeasured, boundless, free."

"O the deep, deep love of Jesus, vast, unmeasured, boundless, free."
Hymn: “O the Deep, Deep Love of Jesus” – Samuel Trevor Francis (1834-1925)
Tune: EBENEZER


As we head toward the sacrificial event of Good Friday, we need to re-appreciate the deep, deep love of Jesus. I join the apostle Paul in his prayer for the church at Ephesus: “I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge.” (Ephesians 3:17b-19a) Wide, long, high, deep – these measurements are helpful to our understanding of the love by which Christ was infused so deeply that he was willing and able to endure death on the behalf of others… even 21st Century strangers-yet-sinners.

This hymnline indicates that even dimensions, amounts, and quantities cannot adequately measure the extent of Christ’s love for humankind. “Vast” is a great, limitless word to use here: unmeasurably boundless. I think you get the picture!

But that word “free” has more than one meaning. The love of Christ is offered without a price attached… without cost from us… even without a coupon! It is also free in that it runs rampant throughout all time and space, offering itself to those whose hands are willing to grab for it and whose hearts are willing to put it to good use.

And let’s not overlook that beginning exclamation: “O”! It seems to call us aside to enjoy that which follows. This simple one syllable expresses so much of the profundity of our religious experience and is so often found in Scripture and in song lyrics, offering us a circle into which we might stand and take it all in!

Let us come apart from the busy-ness of our life and turn our eyes upon Jesus, fully aware of his deep, deep love. Otherwise, we might just come apart!

Contemporary Setting

Straight-forward Singing