Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty / Heber / Dykes
Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee.
Holy, holy, holy! Merciful and mighty,
God in three persons, blessed Trinity!
Holy, holy, holy! All the saints adore thee,
Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea;
Cherubim and seraphim falling down before thee,
Which wert, and art, and evermore shalt be.
Holy, holy, holy! Though the darkness hide thee,
Though the eye of sinful man thy glory may not see,
Only thou art holy; there is none beside thee,
Perfect in power, in love and purity.
Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
All thy works shall praise thy name, in earth and sky and sea.
Holy, holy, holy! Merciful and mighty,
God in three persons, blessed Trinity.
Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening. I read I Thessalonians 2, but before I read it, while I was still in prayer, the Lord brought to mind Philippians 2, so I asked the Lord to help me to put this into practice in my life:
• Make myself of no reputation
• Take on the nature of a servant
• Humble myself (not prideful)
• Be obedient to Christ
- even to death to self, but alive to God in Christ Jesus, my Lord
Lord, show me my heart. Change me, and make me holy unto you for your service, I pray in Jesus’ precious and holy name – the name that is above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (see Phil. 2:10-11).
1 Thessalonians 2:1-12:
Paul’s Ministry in Thessalonica
You know, brothers, that our visit to you was not a failure. We had previously suffered and been insulted in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you his gospel in spite of strong opposition. For the appeal we make does not spring from error or impure motives, nor are we trying to trick you. On the contrary, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts. You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed—God is our witness. We were not looking for praise from men, not from you or anyone else.
As apostles of Christ we could have been a burden to you, but we were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children. We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us. Surely you remember, brothers, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the gospel of God to you.
You are witnesses, and so is God, of how holy, righteous and blameless we were among you who believed. For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.
My Understanding: Yesterday I read 1 Thessalonians 1. I learned in reading that chapter that Paul was, in giving words of encouragement to the church of the Thessalonians, sharing with us a role model for what the true church of Jesus Christ should look like and act like. Today I am seeing another role model depicted in this second chapter, and that is the model of a servant of Jesus Christ. So, this chapter, I believe, pictures for us the nature of a true servant of Jesus Christ and the characteristic traits of that servant of the Lord. Yet, the Lord began this passage with a reminder, first of all, of the greatest servant of all, Jesus Christ, and the model he set for us, as is recorded in Philippians 2. Paul and his companions followed that model, which is why they were able to serve, too, as a model for us.
Make Myself Nothing (of no reputation)
Paul and his companions were often targets of strong criticism, false accusations, strong opposition, persecution, beatings, imprisonments, insults, and cruel and unjust treatment. And, Paul frequently addressed those false accusations from his strong opponents, not to lift himself up or to glorify himself and his own righteousness, but for the sake of the truth of the gospel message, for which he had been called of God as a herald and as a witness. He knew God’s calling upon his life and he knew that his opponents were out to destroy him, contradict him, discredit him and do anything they could to stop the spread of the gospel message. Yet, Paul and his companions were not deterred by this strong opposition. They continued to preach the word of God despite suffering greatly and being the object of insults and false accusations against them. They did so because they were not trying to build reputations for themselves, but truly their goal and mission was to please God in all that they did and to share the truth of the gospel so that people could be saved from sin.
Humble Myself (Not Prideful)
So, their visit was not a failure, because the truth of the gospel was not hindered, and they did not give way to the persecution against them, though man may have seen them as failures, because man sees from a different perspective than God. Yet, the apostles did not stand strong for the gospel in their own strength or out of some kind of personal determination of their own wills and/or a fleshly stubborn resistance against anyone who opposed them. No, they were able to stand strong in the strength of the Lord Jesus Christ at work in them and through them for his glory and praise. And, they were able to do this in spite of all that was being said against them, because they had learned to make themselves of no reputation, i.e. their goal in life was not for the praise and approval of man, but their goal was that God would approve them and their work would be for his praise and honor. So, they didn’t use manipulation and man’s methods of attracting the world with the world to get people inside “church” doors or to “believe” in Jesus Christ. They just told the truth.
Take on the Nature of a Servant
I love the images here of mother and father. I am a mother of four and a grandmother to ten wonderful grandchildren, one of which I have had in my care the past two days, which has made this really fresh in my mind, especially since he is a one year old and still so innocent and trusting. Paul compared his and his companions’ treatment of the church as that of parents of young children. They were gentle among the believers. Their appeal was through gentle persuasion, not through trickery or harshness. They demonstrated great love for the believers by giving their very lives for them, often without receiving any physical reward in return. They gave of their time, energies, resources, and reputations to serve the believers and to share with them the truth of the gospel so that they could be saved and so they could grow in their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. They encouraged, comforted and urged the believers in Jesus to live holy lives for Jesus Christ and for his kingdom work. And, they often worked night and day in order to not be a financial burden to the believers in Christ. That is why they could say with confidence and assurance of heart that their motives were pure, they didn’t use manipulation tactics, and they were not greedy.
Be Obedient to Christ, even to Death
Not only did they preach Christ for no physical reward on the earth and out of pure motives of heart, but their lives served as examples of Christ’s righteousness and holiness at work within their hearts, too. God himself, as well as the believers in Thessalonica, served as witnesses as to how holy, righteous and blameless they were among those who believed. I find it no coincidence here that the Lord began my day and this writing with the song, “Holy, Holy, Holy,” because it is the Lord God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – who is holy and it is his holiness and righteousness at work within and out through us that makes us holy. So, all the praise, honor and glory belong to God. Great things He has done!!
And, I also find it no mistake that the Lord pointed me to the servant example of Jesus as recorded in Philippians 2 prior to me reading today’s passage, because truly it is because of what Jesus Christ did for us on the cross in dying for our sins that we are able to have Christ’s righteousness and holiness within us, working in us and out through us for the glory of God. The apostles, thus, merely appropriated God’s holy character to their own lives when they made the conscious decisions they made each and every day to reject sin and sin’s deceitfulness and to walk in humble obedience to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thus, they serve as examples to us of the kind of holy living that God wants from all his children (his servants).
Refiner’s Fire / Doerksen, Brian
…Refiner's fire,
my heart's one desire
is to be holy;
set apart for You, Lord.
I choose to be holy;
set apart for You, my Master,
ready to do Your will.
Song on video
Thank You, Lord / An Original Work / May 19, 2011
Thank You, Lord, for saving me;
From my sins set free.
Crucified and risen Lord,
They hung on a tree.
They thought they had finished You.
You came back to life;
Triumphed over hell and sin;
You gave eternal life.
Thank You, Lord, for victory
Over all my sin,
So that I might live with You;
You cleansed me within;
Filled me with your love and pow’r;
Give me strength each day,
So that I might live for You,
To love You and obey.
Thank You, Lord, for your return.
Soon You will arrive
To receive Your bride to You;
Meet You in the sky.
You’ll wipe away all our tears;
Free us from our fears;
Crown our heads in victory.
We’ll praise You with our cheers!
Song Lyrics @ Public Domain
Audio, song lyrics and sheet music
Song on video
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