Welcome!
Today our prayer is that our hearts would be fully directed toward, attentive to, and focused on the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ. May the Holy Spirit help us to truly appreciate and celebrate this glorious, generous, sacrificial love today and every day.
In Zephaniah 3:17, we read the following powerful declaration:
The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.
Our God is a God of love! He is in our midst, he is mighty, he saves, he rejoices over us, and exults over us with loud singing! He also quiets us with his love. This is our Father's comforting love that calms our fears and "bids our sorrows cease," as the hymnist Charles Wesley once wrote. God's salvation plan for us completely demonstrates this great love, vast as the ocean: "But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8).
Today we will exult over God's love for us, and exalt and praise our loving Father with our own loud singing! Even if we can't worship together at our churches just yet (although some of you now are able to do so safely, and we rejoice with you!), this is a space where we can commune in spirit with one another and the Lord by singing beautiful songs of praise and adoration. May the music, stories, Scripture and images shared here encourage you in your faith and help you to lift high the name of Christ as you start a new week.
If you are a first-time visitor, click here to find out the story of "Notes of Glory." (You will also find instructions here for listening to music using the SoundCloud windows).
Here's an alphabetical list of all "Notes of Glory" music with links so that you can revisit your favorite hymns/songs and sing them once again!
Love Divine, All Loves Excelling
Words by Charles Wesley, Music by John Zundel. Arranged for piano solo by Victor Labenske
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
2 Corinthians 3:18
And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.
Revelation 21:6
And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment.
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We sang "Love Divine, All Loves Excelling" together as a featured hymn back on May 10, 2020. (My, that seems like a very long time ago!) Today's post features an encore appearance of this marvelous hymn on the theme of God's love, this time in a fresh arrangement for piano solo by Victor Labenske. Below is some of the information I shared in the original "Love Divine" post. Since last May we've sung many other hymns by Charles Wesley, but I thought you might enjoy a bit of a re-introduction to this amazingly prolific writer.
"Love Divine, All Loves Excelling" was included in Wesley's 1747 collection, Hymns for Those that Seek, and Those that Have, Redemption in the Blood of Christ. The tune that is now commonly matched with Wesley's text in American hymnals was composed in 1870 by John Zundel (1815-1882), a German organist and composer who emigrated to America and was hired by famed preacher Henry Ward Beecher to be organist and music director at Brooklyn's Plymouth Church. In fact, the tune for "Love Divine" is often called "Beecher" (although sometimes it is simply titled "Zundel"). Zundel wrote the tune specifically for Wesley's text, and the two were published together in Zundel's 1870 collection Christian Heart Songs.
Love divine, all loves excelling,
joy of heav’n, to earth come down,
fix in us thy humble dwelling,
all thy faithful mercies crown.
Jesus, thou art all compassion,
pure, unbounded love thou art.
Visit us with thy salvation;
enter ev'ry trembling heart.
Breathe, O breathe thy loving Spirit
into ev’ry troubled breast.
Let us all in thee inherit,
let us find the promised rest.
Take away the love of sinning;
Alpha and Omega be.
End of faith, as its beginning,
set our hearts at liberty.
Come, Almighty, to deliver,
let us all thy life receive.
Suddenly return, and never,
nevermore they temples leave.
Thee we would be always blessing,
serve thee as thy hosts above,
pray, and praise thee without ceasing,
glory in thy perfect love.
Finish, then, thy new creation;
true and spotless let us be.
Let us see thy great salvation
perfectly restored in thee.
Changed from glory into glory,
till in heav’n we take our place,
till we cast our crowns before thee,
lost in wonder, love and praise.
Words by Frederick M. Lehman and Music by Frederick Lehman.
Romans 8:35-39
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written,
One of the most beautiful hymns extolling the love of God was written by Frederick Lehman (1868-1953), who emigrated with his family to America from Germany when he was about four years old. They settled in Iowa, and Lehman became a Christian at age 11. He studied at Northwestern College in Naperville, Illinois and then became a pastor, serving various congregations in Illinois and Iowa before settling in Kansas City, Missouri where he helped to found the Nazarene Publishing House in 1911. Song writing was Lehman's passion and he wrote hundreds of gospel songs and hymns during his lifetime.
In 1917, Lehman ran into financial problems and ended up in Pasadena, California where he worked in a citrus fruit packing factory. His 1948 pamphlet "History of the Song, The Love of God" describes the circumstances in which this song was created. (Note Lehman's use of "we" and "us" in referring to himself).
We sang "Love Divine, All Loves Excelling" together as a featured hymn back on May 10, 2020. (My, that seems like a very long time ago!) Today's post features an encore appearance of this marvelous hymn on the theme of God's love, this time in a fresh arrangement for piano solo by Victor Labenske. Below is some of the information I shared in the original "Love Divine" post. Since last May we've sung many other hymns by Charles Wesley, but I thought you might enjoy a bit of a re-introduction to this amazingly prolific writer.
One of our most beloved Christian hymns is a sung prayer for sanctification and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, addressed to the God whose love is holy, undefiled, and more excellent than anything we could ever imagine. It was created by Charles Wesley (1707-1788) who wrote over 6,000 hymns (plus an additional 3,000 poems with spiritual themes). Wesley was the youngest of 19 children (10 of whom survived to adulthood) born to Samuel and Susannah Wesley in Epworth, England. His early years were filled with Susannah's dynamic home-schooling: she taught her children for six hours each day, educating them in diverse subjects including Latin and Greek. After receiving his master's degree from Oxford University, Charles spent many years traveling on horseback and preaching with his brother John, often in open air settings. Although already a professing Christian he experienced a deep spiritual renewal in 1738: it was immediately following this period that he began to prolifically write hymns, including "Jesus, Lover of My Soul," "Christ the Lord is Risen Today," "Hark the Herald Angels Sing," and "O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing." Scholars calculate that Wesley produced, on average, 10 lines of poetic verse a day for 50 years.
"Love Divine, All Loves Excelling" was included in Wesley's 1747 collection, Hymns for Those that Seek, and Those that Have, Redemption in the Blood of Christ. The tune that is now commonly matched with Wesley's text in American hymnals was composed in 1870 by John Zundel (1815-1882), a German organist and composer who emigrated to America and was hired by famed preacher Henry Ward Beecher to be organist and music director at Brooklyn's Plymouth Church. In fact, the tune for "Love Divine" is often called "Beecher" (although sometimes it is simply titled "Zundel"). Zundel wrote the tune specifically for Wesley's text, and the two were published together in Zundel's 1870 collection Christian Heart Songs.
Love divine, all loves excelling,
joy of heav’n, to earth come down,
fix in us thy humble dwelling,
all thy faithful mercies crown.
Jesus, thou art all compassion,
pure, unbounded love thou art.
Visit us with thy salvation;
enter ev'ry trembling heart.
Breathe, O breathe thy loving Spirit
into ev’ry troubled breast.
Let us all in thee inherit,
let us find the promised rest.
Take away the love of sinning;
Alpha and Omega be.
End of faith, as its beginning,
set our hearts at liberty.
Come, Almighty, to deliver,
let us all thy life receive.
Suddenly return, and never,
nevermore they temples leave.
Thee we would be always blessing,
serve thee as thy hosts above,
pray, and praise thee without ceasing,
glory in thy perfect love.
Finish, then, thy new creation;
true and spotless let us be.
Let us see thy great salvation
perfectly restored in thee.
Changed from glory into glory,
till in heav’n we take our place,
till we cast our crowns before thee,
lost in wonder, love and praise.
HYMNS FOR YOU TO SING ANYWHERE
(transposed to easily singable keys!)
The Love of God
Words by Frederick M. Lehman and Music by Frederick Lehman.
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written,
“For your sake we are being killed all the day long;we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Ephesians 3:14-19
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
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In 1917, Lehman ran into financial problems and ended up in Pasadena, California where he worked in a citrus fruit packing factory. His 1948 pamphlet "History of the Song, The Love of God" describes the circumstances in which this song was created. (Note Lehman's use of "we" and "us" in referring to himself).
While at camp meeting in a mid-western state, some fifty years ago in our early ministry, an evangelist climaxed his message by quoting the last stanza of this song. The profound depths of the lines moved us to preserve the words for future generations.Not until we had come to California did this urge find fulfillment, and that at a time when circumstances forced us to hard manual labor. One day, during short intervals of inattention to our work, we picked up a scrap of paper and, seated upon an empty lemon box pushed against the wall, with a stub pencil, added the (first) two stanzas and chorus of the song.
The full authorship of the third and final stanza of the song was unknown to Lehman, although he stated the following in his pamphlet, based on what he had been able to learn about the origin of these words at that time:
These words were found written on a cell wall in a prison some 200 years ago. It is not known why the prisoner was incarcerated; neither is it known if the words were original or if he had heard them somewhere and had decided to put them in a place where he could be reminded of the greatness of God’s love – whatever the circumstances, he wrote them on the wall of his prison cell. In due time, he died and the men who had the job of repainting his cell were impressed by the words. Before their paint brushes had obliterated them, one of the men jotted them down and thus they were preserved.
Although that may well be part of the story of the final verse of this hymn, later research revealed that these words were actually written in 1096 by a Jewish cantor, Rabbi Meir Ben Isaac Nehorai who lived in Worms, Germany and wrote a lengthy 90-verse sacred poem in Aramaic called "Hadamut," or "Akdamut." The translated, extracted portion of this poem that Lehman came across nearly one thousand years later was what he adapted as the third verse of "The Love of God," adding the first and second verses and refrain. Lehman's daughter, Claudia Lehman Mays (1892-1973) provided the harmonization for "The Love of God" which first appeared in print in 1919 in the second volume of Frederick Lehman's 5 volume series, Songs that Are Different.
God's love is so deep that no human can fully understand or describe it, but throughout "The Love of God" Lehman (and Nehorai) use beautiful metaphoric imagery to try to convey its enormity and vastness. In the first verse Lehman presents the gospel message that "God gave His Son to win; His erring child He reconciled, and pardoned from his sin." He further alludes to salvation through Christ by reminding us of his "redeeming grace to Adam's race." God's love is also endless and "it shall forevermore endure."
If "The Love of God" is new to you and you'd like to hear a recording with singing, here is a video rendition featuring the Gaither Vocal Band, here's a contemporary version by the group MercyMe., and here's a video of George Beverly Shea singing this at a Billy Graham crusade in Boston in 1982. Enjoy listening to any or all of these interpretations, then come back here and enjoy singing your own version with the lyrics and piano accompaniment provided. Just a reminder: don't fear the repeated high notes: I transposed the whole song down a minor third so you'll be fine!
The love of God is greater far
Than tongue or pen can ever tell;
It goes beyond the highest star,
And reaches to the lowest hell;
The guilty pair, bowed down with care,
God gave His Son to win;
His erring child He reconciled,
And pardoned from his sin.
Refrain:
O love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure—
the saints’ and angels’ song.
When years of time shall pass away
And earthly thrones and kingdoms fall,
When men who here refuse to pray,
On rocks and hills and mountains call,
God's love so sure shall still endure,
All measureless and strong;
Redeeming grace to Adam's race —
The saints' and angels' song.
Could we with ink the ocean fill,
and were the skies of parchment made;
were ev’ry stalk on earth a quill,
and ev’ryone a scribe by trade;
to write the love of God above
would drain the ocean dry;
nor could the scroll contain the whole,
though stretched from sky to sky. [Refrain]
Here is Love, Vast as the Ocean
Words by William Rees, Translated by William Edwards. "Dim Ond Iesu" hymn tune by Robert Lowry
John 1:16-18
For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God; the only God,who is at the Father's side, he has made him known.
1 John 4:10-16
In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us
By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.
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Our next hymn celebrating God's wondrous love was composed by William Rees (1802-1883), also known by his Welsh name, Gwilym Hiraethog. Rees was a poet and author who became a major literary figure in 19th century Wales: he was also a Nonconformist minister and was considered a polymath with interests in astronomy and political science. His poem "Dyma gariad fel y moroedd," ("Here is Love, Vast as the Ocean") was first published in 1847. The poem was translated from Welsh into English in 1900 by William Edwards (1848-1829), a New Testament scholar and Baptist college principal. In 1951, two more verses (stanzas 3 and 4) of unknown authorship were added to this hymn which was included in a collection of 800 evangelical hymns published in London and titled The Redemption Hymnal.
In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us
By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.
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Our next hymn celebrating God's wondrous love was composed by William Rees (1802-1883), also known by his Welsh name, Gwilym Hiraethog. Rees was a poet and author who became a major literary figure in 19th century Wales: he was also a Nonconformist minister and was considered a polymath with interests in astronomy and political science. His poem "Dyma gariad fel y moroedd," ("Here is Love, Vast as the Ocean") was first published in 1847. The poem was translated from Welsh into English in 1900 by William Edwards (1848-1829), a New Testament scholar and Baptist college principal. In 1951, two more verses (stanzas 3 and 4) of unknown authorship were added to this hymn which was included in a collection of 800 evangelical hymns published in London and titled The Redemption Hymnal.
"Here is Love, Vast as the Ocean" played a significant role in the 1904-5 "Welsh Revival," in which dynamic preachers like Joseph Jenkins (1859-1929) and Evan Roberts (1878-1951) traveled from town to town, speaking to large, enthusiastic gatherings that included singing and prayer. Hymnology Archive's Chris Fenner cites a description of "Here is Love, Vast as the Ocean" in the context of one particular revival meeting, as found in H. Elvet Lewis's book, With Christ Among the Miners: Incidents and Impressions of the Welsh Revival (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1907).
It was on Friday evening, at the closing service of the mission here, that the voice of a young girl of eighteen, Miss Annie Davies of Maesteg, came into the history of the revival. Professing Christ from childhood, trained in her home to serve Him with her vocal gifts, it was as the coming of Sister Clara to Francis. She sang, with tears on her face and victory in her voice, the mighty love-song of the revival—the hymn of Dr. William Rees (Hiraethog): “Dyma gariad fel y moroedd.” The song is of the marvel of Divine Love, flowing as vast oceans of tender mercies in never-ebbing floodtide; of the very Prince of Life dying, dying to redeem our forfeit life.
"Here is Love, Vast as the Ocean," which came to be known in Wales as "The Love Song of the Revival," has been set to many tunes, and is now commonly sung with a melody by American composer Robert Lowry (1826-1899) titled "Jesus Only," which was originally written for the hymn "What tho’ clouds are hov’ring o’er me” by Hattie M. Conrey. In Welsh hymnals the tune is titled ""DIM OND IESU" which translates to "Jesus Only."
If this beautiful Welsh hymn is new to you and you'd like to hear a recording with singing, here is a moving performance by singer Huw Priday (whose voice is also featured in the video linked below). Here's a lovely version by the Scottish Festival Singers. As you'll notice, Lowry's tune is very beautiful and is also easy to sing, so do come back here after you've enjoyed these recorded versions, and give this meaningful hymn a go with your own voice!
You might enjoy this short (less than five minutes) video that explores the overwhelmingly positive impact of these Welsh revival meetings on the local communities in which they occurred.
Here is love, vast as the ocean,
Lovingkindness as the flood,
When the Prince of Life, our Ransom,
Shed for us His precious blood.
Who His love will not remember?
Who can cease to sing His praise?
He can never be forgotten,
Throughout Heav’n’s eternal days.
On the mount of crucifixion,
Fountains opened deep and wide;
Through the floodgates of God’s mercy
Flowed a vast and gracious tide.
Grace and love, like mighty rivers,
Poured incessant from above,
And Heav’n’s peace and perfect justice
Kissed a guilty world in love.
Let me all Thy love accepting,
Love Thee, ever all my days;
Let me seek Thy kingdom only
And my life be to Thy praise;
Thou alone shalt be my glory,
Nothing in the world I see.
Thou hast cleansed and sanctified me,
Thou Thyself hast set me free.
In Thy truth Thou dost direct me
By Thy Spirit through Thy Word;
And Thy grace my need is meeting,
As I trust in Thee, my Lord.
Of Thy fullness Thou art pouring
Thy great love and power on me,
Without measure, full and boundless,
Drawing out my heart to Thee.
Lovingkindness as the flood,
When the Prince of Life, our Ransom,
Shed for us His precious blood.
Who His love will not remember?
Who can cease to sing His praise?
He can never be forgotten,
Throughout Heav’n’s eternal days.
On the mount of crucifixion,
Fountains opened deep and wide;
Through the floodgates of God’s mercy
Flowed a vast and gracious tide.
Grace and love, like mighty rivers,
Poured incessant from above,
And Heav’n’s peace and perfect justice
Kissed a guilty world in love.
Let me all Thy love accepting,
Love Thee, ever all my days;
Let me seek Thy kingdom only
And my life be to Thy praise;
Thou alone shalt be my glory,
Nothing in the world I see.
Thou hast cleansed and sanctified me,
Thou Thyself hast set me free.
In Thy truth Thou dost direct me
By Thy Spirit through Thy Word;
And Thy grace my need is meeting,
As I trust in Thee, my Lord.
Of Thy fullness Thou art pouring
Thy great love and power on me,
Without measure, full and boundless,
Drawing out my heart to Thee.
In Heavenly Love Abiding
Words by Anna Letitcia Waring, Music by Felix Mendelssohn
Psalm 23:1-4
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
Psalm 27:1
The Lord is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?
John 15:7-11
If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.
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Our third hymn on the topic of God's love expresses the profound peace and comfort that his love provides, using imagery drawn from Psalm 23. It was composed by another Welsh hymn writer, Anna Letitia Waring (1823-1910), whose father was also a writer: in fact, Waring had several other relatives who were involved in various literary pursuits. Anna Waring's family were Quakers, but she joined the Church of England, becoming an Anglican. She was a talented poet who published her first book, Hymns and Meditations, in 1850, and also learned Hebrew so that she could study the Old Testament in more depth. Anna Waring was also deeply involved in promoting the welfare and rehabilitation of prisoners, and supported the Discharged Prisoner's Aid Society for many years.
"In Heavenly Love Abiding" was included in Waring's 1850 hymn collection and was originally titled "Safety in God." Waring wrote many other hymns during her long lifetime, and "In Heavenly Love Abiding" was not her only poem that extolled the love of God. Here are two verses from another hymn published in the same 1850 collection as "In Heavenly Love Abiding," which was listed as "Love of God in Christ." Notice the similarity in tone and subject matter with "In Heavenly Love Abiding." It's very easy to see the themes of resting and abiding in God's love echoed in both hymns.
Though some good things of lower worth
My heart is called on to resign,
Of all the gifts in heaven and earth,
The greatest and the best is mine
The love of God in Christ made known —
The love that is enough alone,
My Father's love is all my own.
My soul's Restorer, let me learn
In that deep love to live and rest —
Let me the precious thing discern
Of which I am indeed possessed.
My treasure let me feel and see,
And let my moments, as they flee,
Unfold my endless life in Thee.
The tune matched here with Waring's text, "In Heavenly Love Abiding," is titled "Seasons" and was written between 1837-1843 by German Romantic-era composer Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847). It is the main melody from the third song in his set of 6 songs, Op. 59, which was titled "Abschied von Walde" ("Farewell to the Forest").
If "In Heavenly Love Abiding" is new to you, here is a recording of the Dallas Christian Adult Concert Choir singing it that you might enjoy listening to. As with so many hymns that speak of the comfort that only God can give, you may find this hymn especially timely during this ongoing season of challenge and change.
In heavenly love abiding,
no change my heart shall fear;
and safe is such confiding,
for nothing changes here:
the storm may roar without me,
my heart may low be laid;
but God is round about me,
and can I be dismayed?
Wherever he may guide me,
no want shall turn me back;
my Shepherd is beside me,
and nothing can I lack:
his wisdom ever waketh,
his sight is never dim,
he knows the way he taketh,
and I will walk with him.
Green pastures are before me,
which yet I have not seen;
bright skies will soon be o'er me,
where darkest clouds have been;
my hope I cannot measure,
my path to life is free;
my Savior has my treasure,
and he will walk with me.
POSTLUDE
(to send you forth with joy!)
Jesus Loves Me
Words by Anna B. Warner, Music by William B. Bradbury. Piano solo arrangement by Vicki Tucker Courtney
Jeremiah 31:3
the Lord appeared to him from far away.
I have loved you with an everlasting love;
therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.
Ephesians 5:2
And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
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On May 3, 2020, "Jesus Loves Me" was featured on Notes of Glory in the form of a solo piano arrangement by Shirley Brendlinger. Today we'll enjoy one more "take" on this classic song, via a different solo piano arrangement by Vicki Tucker Courtney that has an exuberant flair and is full of colorful dynamic contrasts. As was the case with our prelude today, I'll re-post this special song's background story which may be new to you, even if you have the words and melody of "Jesus Loves Me" well established in your permanent memory bank!
Along with "Amazing Grace," "Jesus Loves Me" may be one of the best-known Christian songs/hymns, at least here in America. Its history, however, is little known to many today who are familiar with this simple, deeply reassuring tune. American hymn writer and novelist Anna Bartlett Warner (1827-1915) wrote these short verses in 1859, and they were included in her sister Susan Warner's 1860 novel, Say and Seal. As part of the novel's storyline, a dying boy is comforted by his Sunday school teacher who sings him the stanzas listed below (most of us are only familiar with the first stanza and refrain). Two years later, musician and composer William Batchelder Bradbury (1816-1868) added the tune as well as the now-familiar refrain, "Yes, Jesus Loves Me." Bradbury also wrote the tunes for "Just As I Am," "He Leadeth Me," "My Hope is Built on Nothing Less," and "Savior Like a Shepherd Lead Me," all featured in the past year on Notes of Glory. Bradbury was also a conductor, organist, and music editor, and also established the Bradbury Piano Company in 1854, which successfully manufactured and sold a variety of high-quality pianos for many years.
Anna and Susan Warner were both successful writers (sometimes described as ''the Brönte Sisters of America") and lived in their family home on Constitution Island in the Hudson River. They taught Bible classes to nearby West Point cadets for 50 years: they would boat across to the academy until they were too frail to make the trip, then the cadets would come to them for both Biblical training and warm hospitality that included lemonade and ginger cookies. Anna and Susan Warner are the only two civilian women buried at the U.S. Military Academy Cemetary, recognized for their service to generations of these young soldiers.
"Jesus Loves Me" is typically considered to be a song for children, written in simple and comforting language. Yet it is deeply meaningful to many adults as well. Famed German theologian Karl Barth was asked in 1962 how he would summarize his numerous writings on faith and religion, and simply stated, "Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so."
Along with "Amazing Grace," "Jesus Loves Me" may be one of the best-known Christian songs/hymns, at least here in America. Its history, however, is little known to many today who are familiar with this simple, deeply reassuring tune. American hymn writer and novelist Anna Bartlett Warner (1827-1915) wrote these short verses in 1859, and they were included in her sister Susan Warner's 1860 novel, Say and Seal. As part of the novel's storyline, a dying boy is comforted by his Sunday school teacher who sings him the stanzas listed below (most of us are only familiar with the first stanza and refrain). Two years later, musician and composer William Batchelder Bradbury (1816-1868) added the tune as well as the now-familiar refrain, "Yes, Jesus Loves Me." Bradbury also wrote the tunes for "Just As I Am," "He Leadeth Me," "My Hope is Built on Nothing Less," and "Savior Like a Shepherd Lead Me," all featured in the past year on Notes of Glory. Bradbury was also a conductor, organist, and music editor, and also established the Bradbury Piano Company in 1854, which successfully manufactured and sold a variety of high-quality pianos for many years.
Anna and Susan Warner were both successful writers (sometimes described as ''the Brönte Sisters of America") and lived in their family home on Constitution Island in the Hudson River. They taught Bible classes to nearby West Point cadets for 50 years: they would boat across to the academy until they were too frail to make the trip, then the cadets would come to them for both Biblical training and warm hospitality that included lemonade and ginger cookies. Anna and Susan Warner are the only two civilian women buried at the U.S. Military Academy Cemetary, recognized for their service to generations of these young soldiers.
"Jesus Loves Me" is typically considered to be a song for children, written in simple and comforting language. Yet it is deeply meaningful to many adults as well. Famed German theologian Karl Barth was asked in 1962 how he would summarize his numerous writings on faith and religion, and simply stated, "Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so."
Jesus loves me! this I know,
For the Bible tells me so;
Little ones to Him belong,
They are weak, but He is strong.
Refrain:
Yes, Jesus loves me,
Yes, Jesus loves me,
Yes, Jesus loves me,
The Bible tells me so.
Jesus loves me! He who died
Heaven's gates to open wide!
He will wash away my sin,
Let His little child come in. [Refrain]
Jesus loves me! loves me still,
Tho' I'm very weak and ill;
From His shining throne on high,
Comes to watch me where I lie. [Refrain]
Jesus loves me! He will stay
Close beside me all the way;
If I love Him when I die,
He will take me home on high. [Refrain]
Here is a playlist featuring all the music from today's post
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