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Jesus
saith unto him,
I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father,
but by me. 7 If
ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from
henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.
(John
14:6-7 (KJV)
Today’s
hymn is composed by George Washington Doane. I approve of his
hymn-writing more than I approve of his theology since he was an
adherent of the Oxford Movement (like Keble), and was also tried by
the Episcopal Court for careless computation of monies and funds of
the Church – though not found guilty by that court. The evidence
was overwhelming and brought by ministers tried and true. But this
hymn, I believe, was given to Doane by the Lord. All that the man did
was not of a questionable nature, and I believe the Lord used him.
Doane was later Bishop of New Jersey during the time of his trial.
Doane
wrote this hymn in 1824 and it was included in the Hymnal of 1826,
and was the first American hymn to be included in the original
edition of the English Hymns Ancient and Modern, 1860. The hymn is
suited for use on days of Holy Communion, St. James, and St. Andrew.
The tune itself is St.
James by
Raphael Courteville (1697).
Thou
Art the Way, to Thee Alone
Thou
art the Way, to thee alone
From
sin and death we flee;
And
he who would the Father seek,
Must
seek him, Lord, by thee.
Thou
art the Truth, thy word alone
True
wisdom can impart;
Thou
only canst inform the mind
And
purify the heart.
Thou
art the Life, the rending tomb
Proclaims
thy conquering arm;
And
those who put their trust in thee
Nor
death nor hell shall harm.
Thou
art the Way, the Truth, the Life;
Grant
us that way to know,
That
truth to keep, that life to win,
Whose
joys eternal flow.
Amen.
“Thou
art the Way, to thee alone From sin and death we flee; And he who
would the Father seek, Must seek him, Lord, by thee.”
Every true Christian will know, either by reading or by a burning
faith, that our Lord Jesus Christ is the “The
WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE.”
The three uses of the definite article adjective, THE, is of profound
importance for it points to Christ alone as the Way, Truth, and Life.
Our Lord is not merely ‘A’ way; or ‘another’ way – He is
the ONLY WAY, the ONLY TRUTH and the ONLY LIFE! He is the ONLY
manifested expression of the Father and His WORD on which we can lay
our hands. He became One with us, and dwelt among us in a tent of
flesh. Naturally, He offers the only escape from the penalty of sin –
Death. He is our Sun and, as the eagle is equipped to fly directly to
the sun when in danger, so do we fly to Him. The devil’s archers
cannot take accurate aim on us when we fly to our Sun of
Righteousness for reason of the blinding Light.
“Thou
art the Truth, thy word alone True wisdom can impart; Thou only canst
inform the mind And purify the heart.”
There is a difference in knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge is
important, but it makes no careful decisions. How does one gain
wisdom? “The
fear of the Lord is the beginning of
knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”
Prov 1:7 (KJV) Knowledge will lead to wisdom when the heart is filled
with the Lord’s Holy Spirit. As Job says, “Behold,
the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from
evil is understanding.”
(Job
28:28)
Before we feel SECURE in the Lord, we must fear Him. That fear leads
to a better knowledge of Him, and that better knowledge leads to
wisdom, so that FEAR is not the end, but the beginning of the
relationship. As we know Him as a loving Father, we lose our mortal
fear and acquire the loving fear that a son or daughter has for an
earthly father.
“Thou
art the Life, the rending tomb Proclaims thy conquering arm; And
those who put their trust in thee Nor death nor hell shall harm.”
He is the sum parts of all living. Have you not read, “For
the life of the flesh is in the blood.” (Lev
17:11)
This is true of all mortal life; but the spiritual life of the Elect
of God is also in the Blood of Christ which is a spiritual blood that
gives life to every cell of our spiritual being. The Tomb whose stone
closure was rent apart by the Lord’s resurrection is the eternal
promise that our tombs, as well, shall be made open at the day of the
Lord’s own choosing. He conquered death; and He also conquered
Hell, for US. No longer are the Elect subject to that second death,
or to the everlasting fires of Hell.
“Thou
art the Way, the Truth, the Life; Grant us that way to know, That
truth to keep, that life to win, Whose joys eternal flow.”
If we do not know the way, we have not been using our Chart and
Compass (which is the Holy Word of God). It charts the
sources of cool, gushing waters for the thirsty; the mountains and
valleys for our navigation and refreshment; and the life-giving trees
for shade and sources of many excellent fruits. He has given us His
full truth for us to know and walk in. Yet, we add meaning and error
to that Word by adding our own thoughts and immoral opinions thereto.
Truth is unchanging, immutable, uncompromising. Sometimes it gets in
the way of our social engineering, doesn’t it? When it
comes to the decrees of God Almighty, national constitutions are
irrelevant. We obey God’s Law as precedent above every manmade
ordinance. (Ps
118:8 and Acts 5:29)
If we do these things, we have another hymn to add to the riches of
our hearts:
Joys are flowing
like a river,
since the
Comforter has come;
Christ abides with
us forever,
makes the trusting
heart his home.
What a wonderful
salvation,
when we always see
Christ's face,
what a peaceful
habitation,
what a quiet
resting place.
AMEN
