By Bridget Brenton
This isn’t an argument that says hymns exist, therefore God. But it is an argument that says that the far reach of certain hymns, the timelessness of them and the amazing circumstances in which they were written testifies of the Creator God behind them. No mere man could enable the reach of these songs to touch as many generations and in the same way that they have. And no mere man could compose such beauty in the midst of tragedy without a holy, personal God to hold them up.
Just the
fact that anyone could do this and that the hope given in these songs have kept
them going testifies of the influence of God inside a person’s soul, that God
can indeed do all things and that God has a special purpose for personal tragedies. Perhaps one of the greatest hymns of all time
has been Amazing Grace and it is one that all people should know, whether they
are Christians or not.
It was
written out of the love and compassion God had on one man in particular, to
have mercy on him when he had become the most despicable of people. He could not change himself but it was God’s
grace, he claimed, that changed him.
The reason it has resounded so long and so powerfully is because that
has also been the testimony of millions (including me) that were living for
themselves and their own pleasures and found no comfort there, discovering that
only true comfort came from God.
John Newton
not only fostered a life of debauchery at sea, but also was the captain of a
slave ship, a slave trader. He recounted
that they used to stack the slaves they took from Africa on top of each other
like books upon a shelf. Constantly
drunk, he was disliked by crew and slaves alike until a time in a terrible
storm that he was brought face to face with his depravity before God. He soon quit the slave trade and penned many
songs, but Amazing Grace was so autobiographical that it touched many.
This song
led to William Wilberforce and his campaign which stopped the slave trade,
something that never could have happened without such a Christian influence,
that we are all one under grace. A much
different message than the social Darwinism which inspired slavery in the first
place, that some humans are more ‘evolved’ and therefore better than others.
Another
powerful song, long staying in measure and a product of a defining moment
between man and God, is It is Well With My Soul. This song was born out of tragedy. The man Horatio Spafford was well off,
counting himself blessed by God with five children and property. But suddenly his youngest child (his only
son) died of Scarlett Fever and fire wiped out all his investment
properties. He thought a change of
scenery might help bring hope back to his family and he bought tickets for them
all to go to England but when meetings came up, he insisted his wife and four
daughters go without him.
He had no
idea that the ship would end up sinking in twelve minutes and he would lose all
four of his daughters. He went to
England to meet up with his rescued wife passing over the spot where his
daughters perished and felt a surprising calm within his soul due to the hope
that God had given of the afterlife.
Sorrow became hope and that hope was passed on to many over the years
that have followed as a result of that hymn.
What a Friend
we Have in Jesus was written from tragedy too.
When Joseph Scriven’s fiancé died a day before their wedding in Ireland
as while on the way to meet Joseph her horse was startled and she drowned,
Joseph went to Canada to become a servant to many. He would cut wood and educate those in need
and eventually fell in love with another girl.
But tragedy struck twice and a week before their wedding his next fiancé
died of an illness.
Despite the
tragedy Joseph found his hope in the friendship Jesus gave him. Not some fantasy friendship but a real one
forged by prayer and the still, small voice in his soul given by the Holy
Spirit. When Joseph wrote the hymn he
claimed that he and the Lord had written it together.
I have also
mentioned briefly about Silent Night, the song that touched the world written
after the wonders of a new child brought into the world and the startling
revelation of what the incarnation (God becoming man) really meant for the
world. But it was supposed to be written
for the organ yet when there was no way for the organ to be fixed it had to be
written for the guitar, and the simplicity of this guitar music has made it the
timeless wonder it is today. Also How
Great Thou Art was penned over more than fifty years when two men through many
inspirations of God’s providence were led to write the song that brought
blessings to millions.
The most
timeless of all music has not been ‘religious’ music. It has been Christian music forged with a
real relationship with the timeless God of the universe. Next time you hear one of these songs,
remember how it speaks of the God who saves and has made its mark on the world
due to the witness of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit that dwells in His
people.
