What a Wonderful Savior

What a Wonderful Savior

Text and music written in 1891 by Elisha A. Hoffman (1839-1929)

Romans 5:11 Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

1 Peter 1:18 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors.

V. 1 Christ has for sin atonement made,

What a wonderful Savior!

We are redeemed! the price is paid!

What a wonderful Savior!

Isaiah 6:9 He said, “Go and tell this people:

“ ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding;

be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’"

Refrain: What a wonderful Savior is Jesus, my Jesus!

What a wonderful Savior is Jesus, my Lord!

Romans 5:10 For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!

V. 2 I praise Him for the cleansing blood,

What a wonderful Savior!

That reconciled my soul to God;

What a wonderful Savior!

Refrain

1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. 

V. 3 He walks beside me all the way,

What a wonderful Savior!

And keeps me faithful day by day;

What a wonderful Savior!

Refrain

1 Corinthians 15:57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

V. 4 He gives me overcoming power,

What a wonderful Savior!

And triumph in each trying hour;

What a wonderful Savior!

Refrain

Lord, I'm Coming Home

Lord, I'm Coming Home

Text and tune written in 1902 by William J. Kirkpatrick (1838-1921)

Luke 15:18, 20 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you....So he got up and went to his father. “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

V. 1 I've wandered far away from God,

Now I'm coming home;

The paths of sin too long I've trod;

Lord, I'm coming home.

Refrain: Coming home, coming home

Nevermore to roam;

Open wide Thine arms of love;

Lord, I'm coming home.

V. 2 I've wasted many precious years,

Now I'm coming home;

I now repent with bitter tears;

Lord, I'm coming home.

Refrain

V. 3 I'm tired of sin and straying, Lord,

Now I'm coming home;

I'll trust Thy love, believe Thy word;

Lord, I'm coming home.

Refrain

Galations 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 

V. 4 My only hope, my only plea,

Now I'm coming home;

That Jesus died, and died for me;

Lord, I'm coming home.

Refrain

Isaiah 1:18 “Come now, let us settle the matter,”

says the Lord.

“Though your sins are like scarlet,

they shall be as white as snow;

though they are red as crimson,

they shall be like wool."

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

V. 5 I need His cleansing blood I know,

Now I'm coming home;

O wash me whiter than the snow;

Lord, I'm coming home.

Refrain

Like Jesus

Like Jesus

Text written by A. D. Ellington, reformatted by Harold A. Miller

Tun composed in 1931 by Harold A. Miller, arranged in 1984 by Wayne Hooper (1920-?)

Romans 8:26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.

V. 1 Teach me, Father, what to say;

Teach me, Father, how to pray;

Teach me all along the way

How to be like Jesus.

1 John 3:2 Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.

Refrain: I would be like Jesus,

I would be like Jesus!

Help me, Lord, to daily grow

More and more like Jesus!

V. 2 Teach me as the days go by,

Teach me not to reason why,

Teach me that to do and die,

Is to be like Jesus.

Refrain

Ecclesiastes 9:10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom. 

V. 3 Teach me that the time is short,

Teach me how to live and work,

Teach me that to never shirk

Is to be like Jesus.

Refrain

John 17:21 ...that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

V. 4 Teach me how we may be one,

Like the Father and the Son;

And when all is overcome,

I will be like Jesus.

Refrain

My Jesus, I Love Thee

My Jesus, I Love Thee

Text written by William Ralf Featherstone (1845-1873)

Sung to GORDON, composed by Adoniram J. Gordon (1836-1895)

Isaiah 43:3, 14 For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead....This is what the Lord says—your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “For your sake I will send to Babylon and bring down as fugitives all the Babylonians, in the ships in which they took pride."

John 21:17 The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep."

V. 1 My Jesus, I love Thee, I know Thou art mine;

For Thee all the follies of sin I resign;

My gracious Redeemer, my Savior art Thou;

If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

Mark 15:17 They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him. 

1 John 4:19 We love because he first loved us.

V. 2 I love Thee because Thou hast first loved me,

And purchased my pardon on Calvary's tree;

I love Thee for wearing the thorns on Thy brow;

If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

Psalm 146:2 I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.

V. 3 I'll love Thee in life, I will love Thee 'til death,

And praise Thee as long as Thou lendest me breath;

And say when the death dew lies cold on my brow,

If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

John 14:2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?

Revelation 2:10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.

V. 4 In mansions of glory and endless delight,

I'll ever adore Thee in heaven so bright;

I'll sing with the glittering crown on my brow,

If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

God Himself Is With Us

God Himself Is With Us

Text written in 1729 by Gerhard Tersteegen (1608-1769), Tr. by "Hymnal 1940"

Sung to WUNDERBARER KONIG, composed in 1680 by Joachim Neander (1650-1680)

Psalm 33:8 Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the people of the world revere him.

V. 1 God Himself is with us;

Let us all adore Him,

And with awe appear before Him.

God is here within us;

Soul, in silence fear Him,

Humbly, fervently draw near Him.

Now His own who have known 

God, in worship lowly, 

Yield their spirits wholly.

1 Corinthians 3:16 Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?

V. 2 Come, abide within me;

Let my soul, like Mary,

Be Thine earthly sanctuary,

Come, indwelling Spirit,

With transfigured splendor;

Love and honor will I render.

Where I go here below,

Let me bow before Thee,

Know Thee and adore Thee.

Matthew 22:37 Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."

1 John 3:16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. 

V. 3 Gladly we surrender

Earth's deceitful treasures,

Pride of life, and sinful pleasures:

Gladly, Lord, we offer

Thine to be forever,

Soul and life and each endeavor.

Thou alone shalt be known

Lord of all our being,

Life's true way decreeing.

Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken

Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken

Text written in 1779 by John Newton (1725-1807)

Sung to AUSTRIA, composed in 1797 by F. Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)

Psalm 87:3 Glorious things are said about you, city of God. Selah

Isaiah 60:18 Violence will never again be heard of in your land; devastation and destruction will be gone from your borders. But you will name your walls salvation and your gates, praise.

Matthew 16:18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the forces of Hades will not overpower it. 

V. 1 Glorious things of thee are spoken,

Zion, city of our God;

He whose word cannot be broken

Formed thee for His own abode;

On the Rock of Ages founded,

What can shake thy sure repose?
With salvation's wall surrounded,

Thou mayst smile at all thy foes.

Revelation 22:1 Then he showed me the river of living water, sparkling like crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb....

V. 2 See the streams of living waters

Springing from eternal love,

Well supply thy sons and daughters,

And all fear and want remove;

Who can faint when such a river

Ever flows their thirst to assuage?

Grace, which, like the Lord, the Giver,

Never fails from age to age.

Exodus 13:21 The Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to lead them on their way during the day and in a pillar of fire to give them light at night, so that they could travel day or night. 

Revelation 1:5 ...and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead and the ruler of the kings of the earth.To Him who loves us and has set us free from our sins by His blood,...

Revelation 5:10 You made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they will reign on the earth.

V. 3 Round each habitation hovering,

See the cloud and fire appear

For a glory and a covering,

Showing that the Lord is near;

Blest inhabitants of Zion, 

Washed in the Redeemer's blood;

Jesus, whom their souls rely on ,

Makes them kings and priests to God.

Psalm 105:3 Honor His holy name; 

let the hearts of those who seek Yahweh rejoice.

1 John 2:17 And the world with its lust is passing away, but the one who does God’s will remains forever.

V. 4 Savior, if of Zion's city 

I, through grace, a member am,

Let the world deride or pity,

I will glory in Thy name;

Fading is the worldling's pleasure,

All his boasted pomp and show;

Solid joys and lasting treasure

None but Zion's children know.

Nearer, Still Nearer

Nearer, Still Nearer

Text written by Mrs. C. H. Morris (1862-1929)

Sung to MORRIS, composed in 1898 by Mrs. C. H. Morris

John 6:44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day.

1 Peter 2:4 As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him—....

V. 1 Nearer, still nearer, close to Thy heart,

Draw me, my Savior, so precious Thou art;

Fold me, O fold me close to Thy breast,

Shelter me safe in that haven of rest,

Shelter me safe in that haven of rest.

Psalm 51:17 My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

V. 2 Nearer, still nearer, nothing I bring,

Nought as an offering to Jesus my King--

Only my sinful now contrite heart;

Grant me the cleansing Thy blood doth impart,

Grant me the cleansing Thy blood doth impart.

V. 3 Nearer, still nearer, Lord, to be Thine;

Sin, with its follies, I gladly resign,

All of its pleasures, pomp and its pride;

Give me but Jesus, my Lord crucified,

Give me but Jesus, my Lord crucified.

V. 4 Nearer, still nearer, while life shall last;

Till safe in glory my anchor is cast;

Through endless ages, ever to be,

Nearer, my Savior, still nearer to Thee,

Nearer, my Savior, still nearer to Thee.

I Will Sing of Jesus' Love

I Will Sing of Jesus' Love

Text written in 1886 by F. E. Belden (1858-1945)

Tune composed in 1886 by F. E. Belden

Psalm 9:2 I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High.

1 John 4:19 We love because he first loved us. 

V. 1 I will sing of Jesus' love, 

Sing of Him who first loved me;

For He left bright worlds above,

And died on Calvary.

Psalm 59:16 But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.

Refrain: I will sing of Jesus' love,

Endless praise my heart shall give;

He has died that I might live--

I will sing His love to me.

V. 2 O the depths of love divine!

Earth or heaven can never know

How that sins as dark as mine

Can be made as white as snow.

Refrain

Isaiah 1:18 "Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool."

Ephesians 3:18, 19 ...may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

V. 3 Nothing good for Him I've done;

How could He such love bestow?

Lord, I own my heart is won,

Help me now my love to show.

Refrain

Now Praise the Hidden God of Love

Now Praise the Hidden God of Love

Text written in 1975 by Fred Pratt Green (1903-2000)

Sung to CANONBURY, composed by Robert Schumann (1910-1856)

Psalm 23:1 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.

V. 1 Now praise the hidden God of love

In whom we all must live and move,

Who shepherds us, at every stage

Thro' youth, maturity, and age.

1 John 2:13 I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one.

V. 2 Who challenged us, when we were young

To storm the citadels of wrong;

In care for others taught us how

God's true community must grow.

John 9:4 As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work.

V. 3 Who bids us never lose our zest,

Tho' age is urging us to rest,

But proves to us that we have still

A work to do, a place to fill.

V. 4 Then talk no more of wasted time,

But Godward look, and upward climb,

Content to sleep, when day is done,

And rise refreshed, and travel on.

It Is Well With My Soul

It Is Well With My Soul

Text written in 1876 by Horatio G. Spafford (1829-1888)

Sung to VILLE DU HAVRE, composed by Philip P. Bliss (1838-1876)

2 Kings 4:26 Run to meet her and ask her, 

‘Are you all right? Is your husband all right? Is your child all right?’ ” 

“Everything is all right,” she said.

Isaiah 48:18 If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your well-being like the waves of the sea.

V. 1 When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,

When sorrows like sea billows roll--

Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,

It is well, it is well with my soul.

Refrain: It is well with my soul,

It is well, it is well with my soul.

Colossians 2:14 Having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. 

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

V. 2 My sin--O the joy of this glorious thought--

My sin, not in part, but the whole,

Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more:

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

Refrain

Revelation 6:14 The heavens receded like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.

V. 3 And, Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,

The clouds be rolled back as a scroll:

The trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend,

"Even so--"it is well with my soul.

Refrain

Just as I Am

A Hymn for Ash Wednesday

Just as I Am

Text written in 1834 by Charlotte Elliott (1789-1871)

Sung to SAFFRON WALDEN, composed by Arthur H. Brown (1830-1926)

John 6:37 All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.

1 Thessalonians 5:10 He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him.

V. 1 Just as I am, without one plea,

But that Thy blood was shed for me

And that Thou bid'st me come to Thee,

O Lamb of God, I come.

Philippians 4:19 And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.

V. 2 Just as I am, and waiting not

To rid my soul of one dark blot,

To Thee whose blood can cleanse each spot,

O Lamb of God, I come.

2 Corinthians 7:5 For when we came into Macedonia, we had no rest, but we were harassed at every turn—conflicts on the outside, fears within. 

V. 3 Just as I am, though tossed about

With many a conflict, many a doubt;

"Fightings within, and fears without,"

O Lamb of God, I come.

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

V. 4 Just as I am, poor, wretched, blind;

Sight, riches, healing of the mind,

Yea, all I need, in Thee I find,

O Lamb of God, I come.

1 John 4:16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.

V. 5 Just as I am, Thou wilt receive,

Wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve;

Because Thy promise I believe,

O Lamb of God, I come.

V. 6 Just as I am, Thy love I own

Has broken every barrier down;

Now to be Thine, and Thine alone,

O Lamb of God, I come.

The God of Abraham Praise

The God of Abraham Praise

Text written by Thomas Olivers, c. 1770

Sung to the hymn tune LEONI, arr. from a Jewish Melody by Meyer Lyon, 1770

Exodus 3:14, 15 God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM"; and He said, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'" 15God, furthermore, said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.' This is My name forever, and this is My memorial-name to all generations. 

Daniel 7:9 "I kept looking until thrones were set up, and the Ancient of Days took His seat; His vesture was like white snow and the hair of His head like pure wool. His throne was ablaze with flames, its wheels were a burning fire.

1 John 4:8 The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.

V. 1 The God of Abraham praise, 

Who reigns enthroned above;

Ancient of everlasting days,

And God of love;

Jehovah! Great I AM!

By earth and heaven confessed;

I bow and bless the sacred name, 

Forever blest.

Psalm 16:11 You will make known to me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; in Your right hand there are pleasures forever.

Psalm 144:2 My lovingkindness and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield and He in whom I take refuge, who subdues my people under me.

V. 2 The God of Abraham praise,

At whose supreme command

From earth I rise, and seek the joys

At His right hand;

I all on earth forsake,

Its wisdom, fame, and power;

And Him my only portion make,

My shield and tower.

Revelation 4:8 And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night they do not cease to say, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come." 

Revelation 5:12 ...saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing."

V. 3 The whole triumphant host

Give thanks to God on high;

"Hail, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost!" 

They ever cry;

Hail, Abraham's God and mine!

I join the heavenly lays;

All might and majesty are Thine,

And endless praise.