Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I recently heard this old Christmas hymn of praise and joy (for that’s how carol is defined in my dictionary) and, word lover that I am, I was curious about its origin and wording. Some of what I found was expected, but one major thing was not.

And that makes all the difference in the world to the meaning of the song.

“God rest ye merry, gentlemen, let nothing you dismay.
Remember Christ our Savior was born on Christmas Day
To save us all from Satan’s power when we were gone astray.
O tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy.
O tidings of comfort and joy.”

(18th century Christmas Carol)

Once again, bear with me as we explore together the words it uses and, perhaps, share a spiritual discovery.

First of all, look at the title and notice where the comma is placed: The title is “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen”. The comma is placed between the word merry and the word gentlemen. If you’ve ever thought of it—and you probably haven’t given it any thought–you’ve probably seen the title printed with the comma between the word ye and the word merry. Even if you haven’t noticed this seemingly small detail, you’ve probably understood the song that way–I know I did.

However, the song is not addressed to “merry gentlemen.” The word merry belongs in the opening phrase. The verb rest is used here as we might say “rest assured.” The Old English Dictionary has the origin of the phrase “rest thee merry” dating from the 1400′s. Later, such variations as “rest you well” and “rest you happy” came into use.

My personal favorites are “rest myself content” from Shakespeare , “rest thee tranquil” from Shelley, and “rest thee sure” from Tennyson. (I love the words tranquil and tranquility, which refer to being free from commotion or disturbance, free from anxiety, tension or restlessness; composed; steady.)

Now, I hope you realize this is not primarily another study of words for me.

Instead, I was led to another spiritual lesson by the Lord.

That’s what we as believers do at this time of year: rejoice and praise through the carols we sing and through the realization that He is here; the Savior has been born (to borrow a line from a song from Hillsong Australia).

We can be merry in the current sense of the word: full of high-spirited gaiety, and as this old hymn of praise and joy instructs us: to rest in that news. Rest, as used then and now, is repose.

We find these definitions, which are so fitting: cessation of work, exertion, or activity; peace, ease, or refreshment resulting from sleep or the cessation of an activity; relief or freedom from disquiet or disturbance; mental or emotional tranquillity (there’s that beautiful word again), and termination or absence of motion.

And where in Scripture are we told the same thing? Just look at Paul’s letter to the Philippian Christians:

“Do not fret or have any anxiety about anything, but in every circumstance and in everything, by prayer and petition (definite requests), with thanksgiving, continue to make your wants known to God. And God’s peace [shall be yours, that tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and being content with its earthly lot of whatever sort that is, that peace] which transcends all understanding shall garrison and mount guard over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. For the rest, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is worthy of reverence and is honorable and seemly, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely and lovable, whatever is kind and winsome and gracious, if there is any virtue and excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think on and weigh and take account of these things [fix your minds on them].” (Philippians 4:6-8 Amp)

Look at the first lines of the song.

As the carol says, “Let nothing you dismay“–Don’t allow anything to trouble or disturb you.

“For Jesus Christ our Savior” – Savior being one who delivers or rescues from peril

“Was born on Christmas Day” He is here. He was born, He lived, He died for us, took the penalty for our sin condition, and was resurrected from the dead. His Holy Spirit resides in us.

“To save us all from Satan’s power” The enemy has been defeated.

“When we were gone astray” We moved away from a group, deviated from the correct course, or went beyond established limits. We became lost. We wandered about without a destination or purpose; roamed; We followed a winding course; meandered. We deviated from a moral, proper, or right course; we erred.

We hear much this time of year of “peace on earth” and how Jesus came to bring peace between men. But this is not true. As Jesus says in the book of Matthew:

“Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.” (Matthew 10:33-36 NIV)

Instead, peace between God and Man has been established. In Luke we read:

“And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” (Luke 2:13-14 New King James)

In this busy season, find time for tranquility and repose, free from commotion or disturbance. And most of all, enjoy the Lord. My prayer for each of you is that “God rest ye merry, gentlemen”, and gentlewomen as well.

Love,
Brother Bill

Somebody needs a hug today. And you can get one anytime you want—even if you are alone. For you see, if you have confessed Christ Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you really are never alone. The Holy Spirit of God is within you. And you can ask Him for anything, especially for a demonstration of His love for you.

So, how do you ask for this expression of love?

Well, among others, there’s one example that’s given to us in the book of Acts.

“To Him all the prophets testify (bear witness) that everyone who believes in Him [who adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Him, giving himself up to Him] receives forgiveness of sins through His name. While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell on all who were listening to the message.” Acts 10:42-43

The expression “fell on” is epipipto in Greek and means to embrace with affection.

While Peter was preaching to Cornelius and his household the subject of forgiveness of sins caused the Holy Spirit to touch all those who heard the words.

Pause right now and tell the Lord, “Thank you for forgiveness of my sins.”

Say so with faith that God Himself hears your words and, once again, gives you a love hug.

This love hug is also part of the story of the prodigal son found in Luke 15.

In verse 20, the father, representing our Heavenly Father, rushes to the boy and falls on his neck, expressing his unqualified love for his son—and shows God’s unqualified love for each of us.

“Thank you, Father, for forgiving my sins.”

Too simple? The Gospel message itself is simple, and yet incredibly rich. With the faith of a child that prompted you to ask Jesus into your heart, ask God to touch you tangibly with His love.

Then, accept the demonstration of His love for you.

Do it right now.

Love,
Brother Bill

Those who read my letters on a regular basis know that I often write about contemporary Christian music as well as old, traditional hymns. Today I look at the song Glorious Day. Although it’s a contemporary hit, the surprise for me is that it’s both new and old!

I fell in love with the song Glorious Day when I first heard it sung by Mark Hall and Casting Crowns.  To me it had a special anointing. I’ve heard it sung in my church on two occasions by a dear couple, Brandon and Tiffany Marshall, who are friends of mine.

I found the song to be so extraordinary because of its complete gospel message, telling the story of Jesus from birth, through life, and to His death and resurrection.

Living, He loved me; dying, He saved me;
Buried, He carried my sins far away;
Rising, He justified freely forever;
One day He’s coming—O glorious day!

I was so greatly touched by the song so much that I became hungry to know more about it and, after researching, I found even more than I expected to find.

First, here is a video of the song as sung by Casting Crowns. The video contains the wonderful lyrics. If you’re not familiar with the song, take a couple of minutes to listen. You’re in for a treat. If you know the song, listen anyway and be blessed.

Mark Hall spoke briefly about the original hymn on which Glorious Day is based:

The words to the hymn One Day were written by J. Wilbur Chapman in 1908 and set to music by Charles H. Marsh.

J. Wilbur Chapman (1859-1918) was an American evangelist, revivalist and pastor. He gave two po­ems (in­clud­ing this one) to Charles Marsh around 1908. Marsh then wrote the tune but there was dis­a­gree­ment over the co­py­right be­tween two pub­lish­ers. As a re­sult, this song was not pub­lished un­til 1911.

Here is a video of the original hymn One Day:

One Day contained one verse that is not sung in Glorious Day:

One day they left Him alone in the garden,
One day He rested, from suffering free;
Angels came down o’er His tomb to keep vigil;
Hope of the hopeless, my Savior is He!

Another verse was arranged as a bridge in the Casting Crowns version and placed before the final chorus or refrain.

Glorious Day has been given another arrangement by Michael Bleecker, the Worship Pastor at the Village Church in Dallas:

This arrangement is similar to the one by Casting Crowns but quite different, as you have heard, sharing some characteristics with the original hymn.

Bleecker tells the story behind his arrangement of Glorious Day:

“Easter was approaching and I had nothing to sing. As a worship pastor, that can be very disheartening. Easter is the time you pull out all the big guns with a life-sized papier-mache tomb and angels flying in from the ceiling on zip lines.

“I sat at my desk planning how I would be able to take off my harness, white robe and gold-encrusted pipe cleaner halo and go right into leading worship, but to no avail. If I couldn’t do the zip line, no one could, so I did what any God-fearing worship pastor would do… I googled ‘Easter worship songs.’

“I browsed Google trying to find the right song when my eye caught the word ‘hymnal.’ I walked over to my stack of hymnals and pulled out the 1939 copy of THE HYMNS OF PRAISE: NUMBERS ONE AND TWO COMBINED from a church in Kenosha, Wisconsin (I don’t know how it got here).

“I flipped through the yellow pages of the hymnal and found One Day. As I carefully pulled back page 172, I read: ‘Living, He loved me; dying, He saved me; Buried, He carried my sins far away; Rising, He justified freely forever: One day He’s coming: O glorious day!’ ‘This is it,’ I thought. ‘This is what I want our church to sing on Easter.’

“I pulled out my guitar and as I read through it, the Lord gave me a melody, a few chords and the desire to get these words out to our people. Without the Presbyterian evangelist, Rev. John Wilbur Chapman (1859-1918), these words would never have been used to create a new song. I’m so thankful that words from the late 1800s were combined with music from 2006, and can now be used to give God the glory that is due His name.”

Brothers and sisters, Jesus loves us, He saved us, He carried away our sins, He justified us and He will return for us one day–One Glorious Day!

Love,
Brother Bill

For more information about J. Wilbur Chapman, the man who penned the words to this extraordinary song, look here:

http://www.wholesomewords.org/biography/biorpchapman.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wilbur_Chapman

http://www.cblibrary.org/dev_stud/chapman/secret/shd_toc.htm

“Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you [uncompromisingly] righteous [you who are upright and in right standing with Him]; shout for joy, all you upright in heart!” Psalm 32:11 The Amplified Bible

Don’t feel like it? Doesn’t matter. Neither do I sometimes. But, you know, when I start praising the Lord and rejoicing something comes over me—or I should say Someone comes over me. It’s the Holy Spirit.

“And He has put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many shall see and fear (revere and worship) and put their trust and confident reliance in the Lord.” Psalm 40:3 TAB

If you want to feel the love of God flowing through you, and your want to have the fire of the Holy Spirit burn within you, just try reading these words from The Message Bible out loud a few times:

“Sing to God a brand-new song, sing his praises all over the world! Let the sea and its fish give a round of applause, with all the far-flung islands joining in. Let the desert and its camps raise a tune, calling the Kedar nomads to join in. Let the villagers in Sela round up a choir and perform from the tops of the mountains. Make God’s glory resound; echo his praises from coast to coast. God steps out like he means business. You can see he’s primed for action. He shouts, announcing his arrival; he takes charge and his enemies fall into line: ‘I’ve been quiet long enough. I’ve held back, biting my tongue. But now I’m letting loose, letting go, like a woman who’s having a baby— Stripping the hills bare, withering the wildflowers, Drying up the rivers, turning lakes into mudflats. But I’ll take the hand of those who don’t know the way, who can’t see where they’re going. I’ll be a personal guide to them, directing them through unknown country. I’ll be right there to show them what roads to take, make sure they don’t fall into the ditch. These are the things I’ll be doing for them— sticking with them, not leaving them for a minute.’ Isaiah 42:10 The Message

Talk about the enthusiasm and readiness to not only sing praise to God but also to share the Gospel with others!

Oh, and that “uncompromisingly righteous” part—don’t worry. If you’ve professed Christ Jesus as your Savior, you are righteous. And it has nothing to do with you or your conduct or your works. Like Intel says, “It’s Inside.”

“For no person will be justified (made righteous, acquitted, and judged acceptable) in His sight by observing the works prescribed by the Law. For [the real function of] the Law is to make men recognize and be conscious of sin [not mere perception, but an acquaintance with sin which works toward repentance, faith, and holy character]. But now the righteousness of God has been revealed independently and altogether apart from the Law, although actually it is attested by the Law and the Prophets, Namely, the righteousness of God which comes by believing with personal trust and confident reliance on Jesus Christ (the Messiah). [And it is meant] for all who believe.” Romans 3:20-23 TAB

“For if because of one man’s trespass (lapse, offense) death reigned through that one, much more surely will those who receive [God's] overflowing grace (unmerited favor) and the free gift of righteousness [putting them into right standing with Himself] reign as kings in life through the one Man Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).” Romans 5:17 TAB

Make a joyful noise to the Lord today.

Love,
Brother Bill

When Jesus fed the 5,000 it took five loaves of bread. When He fed the smaller 4,000 crowd it took seven loaves. It looks like to me that the larger the “problem” the easier the solution is for God! Of course, I’m being facetious here but, in light of the fact that there is NOTHING too hard for God,  can we say that about our own solutions?

Don’t tell our Abba Father you’ll handle the “small stuff” as long as He handles the “big stuff.” Let Him handle them all!  Feeding 5,000 or feeding 4,000–or handling your “stuff” is no problem for God.

We need to recognize, just as the prophet Jeremiah did:

“Alas, Lord God! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm! There is nothing too hard or too wonderful for You–” Jeremiah 32:17 TAB

I might add that there is nothing so small that we can handle better than our Heavenly Father can.

So, come on now, don’t be “proud.” He wants it ALL and that means even more than giving Him everything in your life; it means giving your very SELF to Him! Do you remember that old hymn about surrender? It wasn’t titled “I Surrender Some.”

Here are the words, followed by a stirring video of some of the verses sung by the Oslo Gospel Choir.

I Surrender All

(J. W. Van Deventer and W. S. Weeden)

All to Jesus I surrender,
All to Him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust Him,
In His presence daily live.

Chorus:
I surrender all,
I surrender all;
All to Thee, my blessed Savior,
I surrender all.

All to Jesus I surrender;
Humbly at His feet I bow,
Worldly pleasures all forsaken;
Take me, Jesus, take me now.

All to Jesus I surrender;
Make me, Savior, wholly Thine;
Let me feel the Holy Spirit,
Truly know that Thou art mine.

All to Jesus I surrender;
Lord, I give myself to Thee;
Fill me with Thy love and power;
Let Thy blessing fall on me.

All to Jesus I surrender;
Now I feel the sacred flame.
Oh, the joy of full salvation!
Glory, glory, to His Name!

“Therefore humble yourselves [demote, lower yourselves in your own estimation] under the mighty hand of God, that in due time He may exalt you, Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully.”
1 Peter 5:6-7 TAB

After we humble ourselves before Him, the words of this hymn would make a very good prayer.

Love,
Brother Bill

“Set a guard, O Lord, before my mouth; keep watch at the door of my lips.” Psalm 141:3 The Amplified Bible

Sometimes, I’ve said things I shouldn’t say (Okay, okay, frequently I’ve said things I shouldn’t say!) about others or even about myself. In the past, I’ve tried to “be better”. But I can’t stop it —and praise God for that!

Why praise God for my weakness in thought, word, and deed?

Because it is only way to do it is to surrender and ask Him to do the job through His Holy Spirit that indwells me.

That’s why I say continually, “Lord, watch my mouth. Holy Spirit, stop me when I’m about to speak the wrong things. Prompt me to speak as You would have me speak.”

Asking the Lord to “keep watch” means, of course, asking Him to observe with continuous attention, especially to act as a sentinel or for protection. Just as a shepherd watches over his flock, I ask the Good Shepherd to do the same for me.

And, you know what? It works a lot better than when I try to do it on myself!  Yes, I still get in the way, but not nearly as often as before.

Love,
Brother Bill

“I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ's sufficiency].” Philippians 4:13 Amplified

Do you sometimes feel you can’t do what you discern the Lord telling you to do?  Well, I do MOST OF THE TIME!

In fact, when I feel that way, I am right where He wants me to be.

That’s when the Lord brings Philippians 4:13 to my mind.  That’s why it’s one of my favorites–one to which I cling and confess on a regular basis.

The Lord may be calling on me to do something but it is His strength that empowers me. As the amplified verse says, He “infuses” me.

I love the word “infuse”. My dictionary defines it, “to cause to be permeated with something (as a principle or quality) that alters usually for the better” He permeates, or penetrates me with His strength.

It brings up a visualization of the Lord’s power filling me from bottom to top, filling me.

Meditate on this verse and visualize the strength of the Lord filling you, making you ready for, and equal to, anything with His sufficiency.

Love,
Brother Bill

But it is from Him that you have your life in Christ Jesus, Whom God made our Wisdom from God, [revealed to us a knowledge of the divine plan of salvation previously hidden, manifesting itself as] our Righteousness [thus making us upright and putting us in right standing with God], and our Consecration [making us pure and holy], and our Redemption [providing our ransom from eternal penalty for sin].  1 Corinthians 1:30 (Amplified)

What should we do when the enemy accuses us of doing some wrong or just not being good enough to deserve God’s blessings?

The answer may surprise you: Agree with him.

But then, tell him the whole Truth.

If, for example, he whispers in your ear, “You are not righteous enough”, say “I completely agree, devil.  But Jesus is my Righteousness.”

When you hear, “You don’t deserve to be saved” answer “I couldn’t agree with you more. But Jesus is my Salvation.”

Every time you point back to Jesus, the devil can say nothing. Jesus qualifies us for all of God’s blessings. There is none good but God and we have been saved by His grace.

Sound too simple?  The Gospel is simple:

“For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.    John 3:16

Then read Ephesians 2:1-9

Love,
Brother Bill

“God helps those who help themselves.” Ephcollipians 1:24 The Mythical Bible

Nope. it’s not anywhere in the real Bible. God does not help those who help themselves. He helps those who are helpless and dependent on Him. He helps those who look to Him as their only source of help.

What the Bible does say on the subject is:

Fear not [there is nothing to fear], for I am with you; do not look around you in terror and be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen and harden you to difficulties, yes, I will help you; yes, I will hold you up and retain you with My [victorious] right hand of rightness and justice.  Isaiah 41:10

GOD IS our Refuge and Strength [mighty and impenetrable to temptation], a very present and well-proved help in trouble. Isaiah 46:1

O give us help against the adversary, for vain (ineffectual and to no purpose) is the help or salvation of man. Psalm 60:11

John 15:5 says, “I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much (abundant) fruit. However, apart from Me [cut off from vital union with Me] you can do nothing.”

And what a wonderful promise we receive in John 15:7 when we remain dependent on Him:

“If you live in Me [abide vitally united to Me] and My words remain in you and continue to live in your hearts, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you.”

Help myself? No, thanks. I’ll leave that to the One who knows infinitely more than I do.

Love,
Brother Bill

And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who [earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His victory, His favor, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship]!  Isaiah 30:18

George Mueller once said, “Prayer is not overcoming God’s reluctance. It is laying hold of God’s willingness.”

Pause and think on these things: The Lord is earnestly waiting, expecting, looking, and longing to be gracious to you. Ask for and expect His victory, His favor, His peace, His joy, and unbroken companionship with Him.

Our Heavenly Father  is earnestly waiting,  expecting, looking, and longings to bless you. Lay hold of His willingness.

Love,
Brother Bill