I Gave My Life For Thee

Good morning and welcome to Our Daily Walk.

Audio version at http://tinyurl.com/yu33g5

No one alive today knows what Jesus looked like. But that doesn’t stop the artists from giving their own depictions of His likeness. Many paintings and sculptures have been crafted over the centuries and most are very moving. One such painting titled Ecce Homo, or “Behold the Man” depicted Christ with a crown of thorns looking back upon the viewer. Below was the caption, “I have done this for you; what have you done for me?”

That painting became the inspiration for many works. In the early 1700s a young German boy viewed the painting and determined that although he believed in Jesus and loved Him very much, he really hadn’t done much of anything for Christ. So he set out to do more and became a very influential missionary around the world.

More than a century later that same painting inspired a young 17 year old girl. Frances Havergal was traveling in Germany and became very tired. She sat down to rest in a museum just opposite that painting. As she studied the picture and read the lines beneath she was very moved.

She grabbed a piece of paper and scribbled a few lines down. This later became the song, I Gave My Life For Thee.

I gave My life for thee, My precious blood I shed,

That thou might’st ransomed be, and quickened from the dead;

I gave, I gave My life for thee, What hast thou giv’n for me?

I gave, I gave My life for thee, What hast thou giv’n for me?

Frances took that paper back home to England but after she read it a few more times she really didn’t like it very much. She tossed that paper into the fire, but somehow it fell back out of the grate. Some time later she showed it to her father who was very impressed with the words. He wrote a melody for that piece and eventually so also did the famous composer, Philip Bliss. It is the arrangement by Bliss that most are familiar with today.

Viewing great works of art can be a very inspiring event. Knowing that some great artist had actually carved that statue or painted those very strokes can help us to draw closer to the passion they had when they created the work.

But you and I need not fly to Europe to view such works in order to draw closer to God. The artist that painted that portrait of Jesus painted from his heart and with a message that would draw people to want to serve Jesus. He didn’t know what Jesus looked like, but he did know that Jesus died a horrible death and that He wants us to work for Him.

How did he know these things? What inspired the artist to create such a compelling piece of art? The Bible. God’s own word was the inspiration that compelled such a great work.

And, friends, you and I have that same powerful book of inspiration in our own homes today. We turn and read that wonderful story of God’s love that caused Him to send His only Son to die in our place. Paul tells us the following in Romans 5:8-11.

“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.”

Jesus not only gave His life for us, but He also suffered an agonizing death to pay for our pardon. He left the glory of heaven to come to earth and brought down salvation, full and free, for us.

All this Jesus did for us. What have we done for Him?

On Our Daily Walk today, may we take a few moments to reflect on our commitment to Jesus. May we determine to improve the ways in which we draw others to our Savior and may we ever be known as followers of our Lord.

Our thought for the day: “I have held many things in my hands and lost them all; but whatever I have placed in God’s hands, that I still possess.” Martin Luther

May God bless you on your daily walk.

© Our Daily Walk, Mike Baker, 2007. Permission is granted to copy these articles provided they are not sold and the author's name and copyright are included.

It Is Well With My Soul

Good morning and welcome to Our Daily Walk.

Audio version at http://tinyurl.com/39yr8a

Do you know what your breaking point is? I mean, have you even contemplated what it would take before you would be ready to abandon your faith in God? For many people, that breaking point is not very far away. Some will blame God for things that go wrong and will quickly leave their faith. Others will endure hardships but will harbor ill feelings toward God in the process. A test of a great faith is to face whatever life presents with the assurance that God is for us and will see us through the difficulty.

When people have problems laid upon them today it is sometimes a comfort to read the life of Job and reacquaint ourselves with the problems of that righteous man. But there are other stories of people who lived through adversity and those stories help us as well.

Take, for example, Horatio Spafford. He was a very successful lawyer in Chicago in the 1800s. At one point in his career he began to invest heavily in the real estate market there. Unfortunately, it was just before the great Chicago fire of 1871.

Horatio was out of town in Indiana trying to arrange for the sale of some of that property when he received word of the great fire. Mile after mile of homes and businesses were ruined in that fire. Overnight Horatio lost most of his fortune.

But his wife and four daughters escaped the fire and were safe. That was indeed a comfort. In the days that followed, his wife experienced great pains from her memory of seeing the people who suffered and died during the fire. On the advice of their physician, the Spaffords decided to take a trip to Europe. Due to some pressing meetings, Horatio was unable to go immediately but sent his family on ahead to Europe.

His family boarded the ship and went on their way. But during the trip their ship was struck by another one and 226 people perished as the liner went down. All four of the Spafford daughters died. His wife was one of the survivors and sent a telegram back to Horatio that read, “Survived alone.”

When Horatio received word of that tragedy he told some who were nearby, “I am glad to trust the Lord when it will cost me something.” Now that’s a remarkable attitude to have under such difficult circumstances.

He booked passage on the next ship so he could join his wife. During that trip the captain of the ship came and told Horatio that they were now passing by the approximate place where his daughters had drowned.

Through his obvious grief, Horatio managed to write some wonderful lyrics that you and I know very well today.

When peace like a river attendeth my way

When sorrows like sea billows roll,

What ever my lot, thou hast taught me to say

It is well with my soul.

We can marvel at the strong faith of such a man as Horatio. But we shouldn’t really expect that it should be unusual to be so strong. When we trust in the God who created us and place our faith in Him, we can and should be able to face and overcome whatever difficulties life presents.

A personal tragedy is the basis for the lyrics of this song. But the sadness doesn’t end there. Philip Bliss, a highly respected composer, agreed to set the words to music, which he did. But within a month of its release, Mr. Bliss and his wife were tragically killed in a train wreck in Ashtabula, Ohio.

Like the four Spafford daughters, the bodies of Philip and Lucy Bliss were never recovered. Their families never had the benefit of seeing their loved ones placed in a grave for an earthly rest.

How much faith does it take for a person to be at peace when all around is tragedy? How close are we ever to that breaking point where we abandon God due to the hardships?

Paul said in Romans 8:28, “ And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”

My prayer is that we will learn from the experiences of others and that we will fortify our faith so that it will never waver or fail.

On Our Daily Walk today, may we learn to take setbacks and hardships in stride and keep them in proper perspective. May we always look to God first for answers and directions when difficult times come. May we learn that whatever happens to us, it may be well with our soul.

Our thought for the day: “Gold is tried by fire, brave men by affliction.”

May God bless you on your daily walk.

© Our Daily Walk, Mike Baker, 2007. Permission is granted to copy these articles provided they are not sold and the author's name and copyright are included.

Let The Lower Lights Be Burning

Good morning and welcome to Our Daily Walk.

Audio version at http://tinyurl.com/39hm6y

Lyrics to popular songs are sometimes difficult to understand. The internet has helped in this area. A person can perform a search on a song title and have the lyrics come up pretty quickly. Unfortunately, even then the lyrics don’t always make sense. I miss the good old days when you could sing along with a song and understand all of the words.

At times our singing in worship includes lyrics that we may not always understand. Words and phrases like “dross” or “Ebion Pinion” generally escape our modern understanding. And then there are the songs written with a particular setting in mind. With these we must understand the background and setting in order to fully appreciate the song itself. Such is the case with Let The Lower Lights Be Burning.

Philip Bliss is the author and composer of this still popular hymn. Written in 1869, this song was inspired by a sermon preached by Dwight Moody. Bliss worked with Moody on his evangelistic campaigns and led the singing. One night Moody was describing a horrible tragedy that happened at Cleveland Harbor on Lake Erie in 1869.

Lake Erie was known for sudden and violent storms. In an effort to help the ships, the city of Cleveland constructed a special harbor. This harbor had a lighthouse which could be seen far out into the lake. And it also had smaller lights which lined the harbor much like an airport runway might be lighted today. These lower lights were not as tall as the lighthouse and were seen only as the ships approached the harbor.

On this particular night in 1869 a ship was caught up in a storm on the lake. Trying to make the safety of the harbor the ship’s captain saw the main light of the lighthouse but could not make out the lower lights.

He asked his crew to look more closely and they also came up with no lights seen. They had gone out. Wondering if he could make the harbor without the lights the captain decided that he had no choice but to make the attempt.

With great skill and courage he steered the ship toward the great light of the lighthouse but he ran aground and the ship sank. Several of the passengers died that night in that wreck.

Naturally people wanted to know why the lights were not lit that night. When they found the man responsible, he said that he didn’t feel up to filling the lamps that day. After all, he reasoned, no one had ever told him that they used those lights for anything.

Moody’s sermon focused on the fact that God is the great light and will keep that light bright for all time. But we are the lower lights and it is our responsibility to keep them going.

Jesus said as much in Matthew 5:14-16.

“You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good words and glorify your father in heaven.”

A great loss of life could have been averted if that one man had filled the oil for the lights. What a shame that he didn’t feel the responsibility to perform his one function upon which so many would depend.

Friends, the same is true today of you and me. Jesus has given us the charge to be lights in the world, to draw others to Christ, to be His representatives on this earth. While many people can see and acknowledge the great light, God, they cannot find the safe harbor without also seeing the lower lights burning.

Brightly beams our Father’s mercy, from His lighthouse evermore,

But to us He gives the keeping of the lights along the shore.

Let the lower lights be burning, send a gleam across the wave!

Some poor fainting, struggling seaman, you may rescue, you may save.

On Our Daily Walk today, may we never underestimate our role in doing God’s will on earth. May we approach each action, each opportunity knowing that we are lights shining into a sin darkened world.

Our thought for the day: “In the darkness there is no choice. It is light that enables us to see the differences between things; and it is Christ who gives that light.” Mrs. C. T. Whitnell

May God bless you on your daily walk.

© Our Daily Walk, Mike Baker, 2007. Permission is granted to copy these articles provided they are not sold and the author's name and copyright are included.

I Will Sing Of My Redeemer

Good morning and welcome to Our Daily Walk.

Audio version at http://tinyurl.com/2t5x3j

Not everyone will die doing something that they enjoy doing. Fortunate is the man who, when he has died, will have his legacy enhanced by the event of his death. Alben Barkley was a senator and vice-president under Harry Truman, but he seemed to have a good perspective on life. On the day he died, Barkley was doing something he enjoyed—giving a speech. In that speech just moments before he collapsed and died, he said, “For I would rather be a servant in the house of the Lord than to sit in the seats of the mighty.”

Now contrast that with the account of General John Segdwick, a union general who died in 1864. Honestly, I don’t know much about this man except for his dying words. Obviously a general must have had many accomplishments, but his life was overshadowed by his unfortunate last words.

Mounted on his horse with the battle raging on, the general was encouraged to take cover. Instead, he said, “They couldn’t hit an elephant at this distance.” But before he got the last word out, a confederate bullet killed him.

What would you be known for if you were to die today? Would others think more highly of you when they saw the Bible you studied and the kinds of things in your house? Would they be disappointed by some secrets in your life?

Jesus said in Matthew 6:21, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Where is your treasure today?

Philip Bliss and his wife Lucy were taking a much needed vacation in December of 1876 when a telegram arrived requesting that they return to Chicago for another revival meeting. They left their two children with relatives and boarded a train for Chicago.

On that cold snowy Friday night the train struggled on the tracks. At one point near Ashtabula, Ohio, the train crossed a wooden trestle bridge crossing a stream. The stream was swollen with water which had undermined the supports for the bridge. The engine of the train made it across the bridge, but the rest of the train plummeted 75 feet into the ravine and stream below.

As the wooden cars fell one on top of another, fire broke out as the oil lamps ignited the heap and a terrible fire raged on into the night. 140 of the 160 passengers were burned to death and only 59 of the bodies were recovered.

Witnesses told that Philip had survived the fall to the ravine and was safe, but his wife, Lucy, was still trapped in the wreck. He went in after her and said, “If I cannot save her, I will perish with her.” Neither of their bodies was ever recovered. Philip Bliss was only 38.

Later on when they opened a luggage trunk which survived the wreck they found the words to the song, I Will Sing Of My Redeemer. This was the last hymn that Bliss had written and it served to further solidify his legacy.

I will sing of my Redeemer,

And His wondrous love to me;

On the cruel cross He suffered,

From the curse to set me free.

Sing, oh sing, of my Redeemer,

With His blood, He purchased me.

On the cross, He sealed my pardon,

Paid the debt, and made me free.

In life and later in death, the faith of Philip Bliss impacted the lives of others. What a wonderful legacy.

Friends, we do not choose the time or method of our departure from this life, but we do choose the life that we currently live.

On Our Daily Walk today, may we always seek to do what is right according to God’s will. May we live so as to hear those wonderful words, “Well done good and faithful servant.”

Our thought for the day: “He that lives to live forever never fears death.” William Penn

May God bless you on your daily walk.

© Our Daily Walk, Mike Baker, 2007. Permission is granted to copy these articles provided they are not sold and the author's name and copyright are included.

Almost Persuaded

Good morning and welcome to Our Daily Walk.

Audio version at http://tinyurl.com/2quarr

More than a few times I have looked out over the audience as an invitation hymn was sung and wondered why some people had not yet obeyed the gospel. They know God and they love Jesus. They want to live a righteous life and they know the penalty for sin which is death or separation from God. Yet, somehow, they have not yet been convinced to obey the gospel and become a Christian.

Some have approached me after a sermon or after a Bible study and have said that they were impressed, but not yet ready to make a commitment to God. I haven’t had anyone yet who has actually said that they were “almost persuaded,” but in fact, I think many would fit that description.

Paul wrote of salvation through God in Romans 1:16 when he said, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.” That gospel is simple to understand and simple to obey. But some will remain unconvinced that they need to take action.

Philip Bliss was a renowned composer, who at the young age of 12 made the good confession and was baptized by a Christian Church minister. Through his life, which ended tragically in 1876, he remained very active in evangelism.

His powerful baritone voice and his ability to write lyrics and compose tunes caused him to be in great demand for revival meetings. He and his wife Lucy made the circuits especially around Chicago and he worked with many notable evangelists.

One Sunday night in 1870 he was waiting for a train and decided to slip in to hear a Mr. Brundage give his sermon. Brundage was reading from Acts 26:28-29 which says, “Then Agrippa said to Paul, ‘You almost persuade me to become a Christian.’ And Paul said, ‘I would to God that not only you, but also all who hear me today, might become both almost and altogether such as I am, except for these chains.’”

The preacher then added the following. “He who is almost persuaded is almost saved. But to be almost saved is to be entirely lost.” Upon hearing these words Bliss set about to write the famous song, Almost Persuaded.

When this song was first sung publicly in 1871, Lucy Bliss wrote that the entire audience was affected and both she and her husband realized the tremendous power of a well crafted hymn. They soon decided to dedicate their lives to working with evangelists to spread the gospel to all who would hear.

“Almost persuaded,” now to believe;

“Almost persuaded,” Christ to receive;

Seems now some soul to say, “Go Spirit, go thy way;

Some more convenient day

On Thee I’ll Call.”

Preachers will preach their hearts out. Parents and spouses will love, forgive, lead, teach and compel their loved ones to obey the gospel. Friends and others will show concern and ask directly, “what is keeping you from obeying the gospel?” Yet many will never do so. They are not yet persuaded that they must.

Paul writes a chilling account of what will happen to those who do not obey the gospel. In 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9, he tells that “those who do not know God,” and “those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ,” will be punished for eternity and will be separated from God.

No one would willingly state today that they want to go to hell or miss out on heaven. Yet so many are not quite ready to make the commitment to obey the gospel.

Why is that so? Who knows for sure? My speculation is that either they believe that they will be saved without obeying the gospel or that they have plenty of time to come to God after they have worshipped at the altar of sin for a while. Either way, they are not yet persuaded of the seriousness of this matter.

On Our Daily Walk today, may we spend a few extra minutes in prayer and specifically name those whom we know are not yet Christians. May we think of ways to help persuade them to come to Jesus and obey that precious gospel before it is eternally too late.

Our thought for the day: Mr. Brundage said, “He who is almost persuaded is almost saved. But to be almost saved is to be entirely lost.”

May God bless you on your daily walk.

© Our Daily Walk, Mike Baker, 2007. Permission is granted to copy these articles provided they are not sold and the author's name and copyright are included.

Hallelujah, What A Savior

Good morning and welcome to Our Daily Walk.

Audio version at http://tinyurl.com/2jwn86

The biographies of successful men and women often inspire others to greatness. Such is, and should be, the case with men like Philip Bliss. A talented man, gifted with not only a wonderful voice but also a keen sense of musical compositions, Bliss died tragically at the age of 38. But in his years of life, he was able to direct our minds and hearts to God through his inspiring lyrics and moving music.

Much can be known about a man by watching how he lives and by listening to those who know him. A two-faced man will be watched by all but trusted by few. But a man of noble and righteous character will be watched and followed by many.

One of the peers of Philip Bliss had this to say about the composer. “There has been no writer of verse since his time who has shown such a grasp of the fundamental truths of the gospel, or such a gift for putting them into poetic and singable form.”

Bliss worked for several years with notable evangelists like D. L. Moody and Daniel Whittle. Moody said this about Bliss. “In my estimate, he was the most highly honored of God of any man of his time as a writer and singer of gospel songs, and with all his gifts he was the most humble man I ever knew. I loved him as a brother.”

Indeed Bliss was a very talented man, writing hundreds of hymns over the course of his shortened life. Some speculate that had he lived a normal lifespan his influence would have surpassed that of the writers such as Fanny Crosby, Charles Wesley and Ira Sankey. But still his talent is felt even today.

His songs included such favorites as Wonderful Words Of Life, Almost Persuaded and Let The Lower Lights Be Burning. And he wrote the music to other songs such as It Is Well With My Soul and I Gave My Life For Thee.

When he wrote, Hallelujah, What A Savior, no doubt he drew inspiration from the words of Isaiah 53:3.

He is despised and rejected by men,

A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.

And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him;

He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

And Paul writes of Jesus in Philippians 2:9-11.

Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Bliss wrote the following verse to this song.

“Man of sorrows!” what a name

For the Son of God who came;

Ruined sinners to reclaim!

Hallelujah! What a Savior!

Jesus did come to reclaim the sinners of the world. This song praises Jesus for coming to earth, standing in our place, experiencing the pain and death of the cross. But it also looks for the day when Christ will come again and bring all the ransomed ones home to God. What a savior!

Just a month before his untimely death, Bliss lead this song for the inmates of the Michigan State Prison. Many of the inmates wept openly and confessed Christ as their Savior. With the truths of God set to verse Philip Bliss was able to help draw men to their Savior.

On Our Daily Walk today, may we realize that someone may be looking to us for inspiration to walk the Christian walk today. May we examine ourselves and make sure that all that we do is for the glory of God and that nothing we do will cause others to stumble.

Our thought for the day: “Jesus Christ, the condescension of divinity and the exaltation of humanity.” Philip Bliss

May God bless you on your daily walk.

© Our Daily Walk, Mike Baker, 2007. Permission is granted to copy these articles provided they are not sold and the author's name and copyright are included.