Future Fame

“I will…  praise thy name for Thy lovingkindness and for Thy truth: for Thou hast magnified Thy Word above all Thy name.  In the day when I cried Thou answeredst me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul.… Though I walk in the midst of trouble, Thou wilt revive me: Thou shalt stretch forth Thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies, and Thy right hand shall save me.  The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me: Thy mercy, O LORD, endureth forever” (Psalm 138:2-8). 

We praise our Savior’s reputation:   

As Scripture promised, Jesus came

And gave His life for our salvation,

Thus adding glory to His name. 

Our great Creator, God the Son,

Who made the heavens and the earth,

Was faithful as God’s Holy One,

To come to us in lowly birth. 

We praise the Lord for what He did,

Yet by His Word, we don’t stop there,

For future fame has not been hid,

So things to come we now declare! 

So God has magnified His Word,

Declaring things He yet will do,

And we delight in what we’ve heard,

Assured that every word is true. 

Now as we praise His name today

For all He’s done throughout the past,

The Word of God has made a way

To see His future fame at last. 

We see it in the great events

Foretold to us in prophecy;

And thus we say with confidence:  

As He has said, so shall it be. 

The Lord who heard my cry in youth

And saved my soul with wondrous grace,

Assures me by His Word of truth,

That I shall see Him face to face. 

This is the very principle

That helps me now to understand,

That God will yet perfect my soul,

And none shall pluck me from His hand. 

Your future fame, O Lord, foreknown

Along with all the past combined,

Has thrilled our hearts by what You’ve shown

With all the glory there we find! 

Lord, send us to declare the news

Of future fame You’ve magnified,

So those who trust Your Word will choose

To flee from wrath and in You hide.  

Seasons for Singing

“The leper in the day of his cleansing… shall be brought unto the priest: and the priest… shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the living bird loose into the open field” (Leviticus 11:2-7).  “How shall we sing the LORD'S song in a strange land?” (Psalm 137:4).  “Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth… My son, be wise, and make My heart glad” (Proverbs 27:1,11).  “We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come” (Revelation 11:15-17). 

As lepers cleansed that day would bring

A bird released into the field,

It was a season then to sing,

Rejoicing that they had been healed.

That newfound joy should still be ringing

Which we received with our salvation 

To guard our hearts and keep us singing,

Though seasons change our situation.   

We are not blind to what is wrong;

This land is strange and filled with sorrow,

And yet today God gives a song 

That should not wait until tomorrow. 

How can we sing within these seasons

When sin and sorrow fill the land? 

We ought to contemplate the reasons;

The Lord will help us understand. 

The first of all the reasons is

That God has saved us by His grace! 

It is enough to know we’re His

To put a smile on our face! 

Though seasons change, our Lord does not;

His love for us is still the same. 

Our songs to Him embrace this thought

By which we praise our Savior’s name. 

When we are wise, we make Him glad,

So this should also move our hearts

To trust Him though the times are sad

And sing with joy that He imparts. 

We give You thanks, O Lord, our Savior,

As we consider who You are,

And what You did to grant us favor

Which brought us near who once were far. 

O Lord, the joy You give remains,

And yet You call us now to weep

For those yet bound in sorrow’s chains

In fields where we’re called to reap. 

Almighty God, forevermore

Around Your throne we shall rejoice

And sing with those who shall adore

And praise You with their grateful voice.  

We know, Lord, You will come again,

And every knee to You shall bow,  

Yet we’re not waiting until then;

We sing, rejoicing in You now! 

Curse and Consequence

“O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good… Who remembered us in our low estate: for His mercy endureth forever” (Psalm 136:1,23).  “The curse causeless shall not come… The great God that formed all things… rewardeth transgressors” (Proverbs 26:2,10).  “The angel which I saw… sware by Him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven… and the earth… that there should be time no longer… And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings” (Revelation 10:5-11). 

How rightly we now give our thanks

To God who has remembered us,

Who looked on us from heaven’s banks

With mercy that was marvelous! 

He saw our sin and knew the scope

Of judgment’s curse and consequence. 

He knew we had no other hope

Unless He died in our defense. 

The great God who has formed all things

Throughout the heavens and the earth,

The Lord of lords, and King of kings,  

Has come to us in lowly birth. 

Because the curse was caused by sin,

He came to take our sin away. 

He knew the trouble we were in;

He knew the price that He must pay. 

The causeless curse shall never come,

Yet this was surely not our case,

But as a speechless lamb is dumb,

Our Lord defended us with grace.

He suffered as the silent Lamb

For those who by their sin were cursed.

Behold the Lord, the great I Am,

Who cried upon the cross, “I thirst!”

Should not we thirst for souls as well  

For whom our Lord and Savior came?

Our time is limited to tell

The Gospel we should now proclaim!   

O Lord, it’s hard to take it in,

And yet we know that it is true

That You have washed us from our sin,

Since all our sins were laid on You!

The consequences, Lord, were great

Awaiting us eternally,

Yet You beheld our low estate,

And gave Yourself to set us free! 

O Lord, the prophecies You proved   

Equip us well as we are sent

To show the curse has been removed

From those who humbly will repent!  

Imitated Idols

“The idols of the heathen are silver and gold, the work of men's hands.  They have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they, but they see not; they have ears, but they hear not; neither is there any breath in their mouths.  They that make them are like unto them: so is every one that trusteth in them” (Psalm 135:15-18).  “The rest of the men… repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk” (Revelation 9:20-21). 

There is a tragic imitation

Of idols that today appear

Displayed by those without salvation,  

Who neither see, nor can they hear. 

Like idols, they have ears and eyes;

They have a mouth to speak their thought,

Professing thus that they are wise,

Though God declares that they are not. 

Such idols are the fool’s invention,

Reflecting things that don’t exist,

Which sinners craft with the intention

Of shunning God, whom they resist. 

In fact, there should be less confusion

With God displayed through evidence!

Yet souls may choose a strong delusion,

But they shall be without defense.

Such hardened hearts are surely odd,

Which evidence does not compel

To flee from wrath and turn to God

Who would deliver them from hell! 

This deadly imitation shows

That there is more than meets the eye: 

We wrestle not with human foes;

The gates of hell we now defy. 

We see the idols, Lord, today

Which neither hear, nor see, nor walk, 

As those who imitate their way

Now in their willful blindness mock. 

Lord, help us reach those by Your Spirit

Who yet will listen to Your Word,

As by You persuade them now to hear it,

Obeying then what they have heard. 

We thank You, Lord, that there is power

For idol strongholds to be broken!

We preach Your Gospel in this hour

And show the proof that You have spoken.