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The Overwhelming Importance of the Shed Blood of Jesus at the Cross of Calvary!

04 May 2025 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a day of final reckoning, a new covenant, all my praise for this I bring, all my righteousness, almost all things are purged by the law with blood, an eternal covenant, as by one man's disobedience, as by the offence of one, bearing his reproach, Bible, by his own blood, by the obedience of one, by the righteousness of one, by this I'll overcome, by this I'll reach my home, Christ's death and resurrection, Christ's deeds at Easter, christianity, Christians, confessing his name, delaying the inevitable, don't forget to share, eternal life, faith, fellowship, fellowship one with the other, for my cleansing this my plea, for my pardon, forever and ever, forgiveness of sins, from dead works, giving thanks to his name, go forth unto Jesus, God is well pleased, God's fullness of time, gratitude, heartfelt sincerity, holy spirit, it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to takae away sin, Jesus Christ, Jesus entered in once into the holy place, Jesus shed blood at the cross of Calvary, Jesus suffered outside the gate, judgement came upon all men, justification of life, LOVE, many were made sinners, mercy, naught of good that I have done, neither by the blood of goats, no other fount I know, Nothing but the blood of Jesus, nothing can for sin atone, obtained eternal redemption for us, offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, offered himself without spot, only the blood of Jesus can atone for human sin, outside the camp, precious is the flow, purge your conscience, repeated animal sacrifices, righteousness came through Jesus, Robert Lowry, salvation, sanctifies to the purifying of flesh, shall many be made righteous, sin came through Adam, sincere sacrifices of praise, sprinkling the unclean, sweet sacrifices of praise, Thank you Jesus, that he might sanctify the people, that makes me white as snow, the ashes of an heifer, the biggest change in the story of man since the creation, the blood of animals only covered sin, the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin, the eternal Spirit, the free gift came upon all men, the fruit of our lips, the great significance of, the just penalty for sin is death, the old covenant, the shed blood of Christ also offers sanctitication, the sinful disobedience of Adam and Eve, this I see, this is all my hope and peace, to do good, to serve the living God, truth, walk in the light, we have no continuing city, what can make me whole again, what can wash away my sin, wisdom, with his own blood, with such sacrifice, without blemish, without the shedding of blood is no remission

Hebrews 9:22. And almost all things are by the law purged with (cleansed by) blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission (forgiveness) of sin.

And then it was the Third Sunday after Easter; more time to celebrate God’s awesome goodness to the disobedient children of men, through Christ’s sacrificial death and magnificent resurrection. And all God’s children said a loud and very grateful; ‘Thank You Jesus!’

But yuh know what, some of us still don’t understand the great or the full significance of Christ’s death and resurrection in regards to our having the option of salvation and eternal life, and no longer headed straight for hell fire and eternal separation from God. Many of us don’t take it as seriously as we ought to, and consider it a trifling matter. But the truth is my brethren, Christ’s deeds at Easter produced the biggest change in the story of mankind since creation and the sinful disobedience of our forefathers Adam and Eve.

And the resounding truth is as Bruh Paul writes to the Roman church: ‘Therefore as by the offence (false step) of one judgement came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one (by one righteous act) the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.’ (Rom. 5:18-19)

And that’s the unalterable fact; for as sin came to mankind through Adam, so did righteousness come to man through Jesus. And to kick of today’s fellowship we have a hymn detailing possibly the most important fact of Jesus’ sacrifice. It’s a hymn we know quite well, and oftentimes invoke it’s contents, though without the seriousness it deserves. It’s a traditional American hymn titled ‘Nothing but the Blood of Jesus,’ written by Robert Lowry, a hymn writer who was a Baptist minister and professor at Bucknell University.

The hymn was published in 1897, and deals with the blood atonement and propitiation for sin by the death of Jesus as explained in Hebrews 9. So without further ado, let’s raise our sweet sacrifices of praise to high heaven in an upbeat version of the song, with true heartfelt sincerity and gratitude, because without the shed blood of Christ we’d all be hell bound.

Singing: ‘What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus; What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. (Refrain: Oh! precious is the flow That makes me white as snow; No other fount I know, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.) For my pardon, this I see, Nothing but the blood of Jesus; For my cleansing this my plea, Nothing but the blood of Jesus. (Refrain) Nothing can for sin atone, Nothing but the blood of Jesus; Naught of good that I have done, Nothing but the blood of Jesus. (Refrain)

This is all my hope and peace, Nothing but the blood of Jesus; This is all my righteousness, Nothing but the blood of Jesus. (Refrain) Now by this I’ll overcome; Nothing but the blood of Jesus; Now by this I’ll reach my home, Nothing but the blood of Jesus. (Refrain) Glory! Glory! This I sing; Nothing but the blood of Jesus, All my praise for this I bring, Nothing but the blood of Jesus. (Refrain) Nothing but the Blood…Nothing but the Blood of Jesus.’

And that’s for certain sure my fellow believer’s: Nothing but the Blood of Jesus can cleanse us from sin! And let’s note, that it’s not simply Jesus’ blood that brings forgiveness, but His shed blood at the cross of Calvary. That’s what paid for our sins. Because, as Hebrews tells us: ‘And almost all things are by the law purged with (cleansed by) blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission (forgiveness) of sin.’ (Heb. 9:22)

Now, in the Old Testament the blood of animals was used to offer sacrifices for sins, but that blood only covered them for a while, it could not completely wash away their sins. And the high priest had to enter the Holiest of Holies every year to make renewed sacrifices for their sins. But as Hebrews tells us: ‘Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he (Jesus) entered in once into the holy place (the Most Holy Place), having obtained eternal redemption for us.

For if the blood of bulls and of goats and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth (sets apart) to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot (blemish) to God, purge (cleanse) your conscience from dead works to serve the living God.’ (Heb. 9:12-14)

That’s why John in his first epistle could quite unequivocally claim: ‘But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his son cleanseth us from all sin.’ (1 John 1:7) And I like how this commentary explains the overall situation.

‘Because the just penalty of human sin against God is death (Romans 6:23), the death of sanctioned animal sacrifices, through the presentation of their blood, stood in temporarily for the requirement of death for sinners. Yet the high priest had to return year after year, “repeatedly” (Hebrews (9:7; 9:25), because “it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins” (Hebrews 10:4). The repeated animal sacrifices were delaying the inevitable, waiting on God’s fullness of times.

One day a final reckoning for sin must come. Christians, of course, believe and celebrate that now in Christ, and under the terms of a new covenant, the reckoning has come. Jesus willingly “offered himself” (Hebrews 9:14) by “once for all” shedding “his own blood” (Hebrews 9:12), bringing to its intended completion the temporary covenant that came before (the old covenant) and inaugurating in its place an “eternal covenant,” (Hebrews 13:20), which we call the new covenant.’

That shows how important, precious and valuable the shed blood of Christ is to us. It’s the covering that allows us to enter into the presence of a perfect and holy God. And let’s also note that the shed blood of Christ not only offers us forgiveness of sin, but also sanctification, as Hebrews tells us. ‘Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify (set apart) the people with his own blood, suffered without (outside) the gate.’ (Heb. 13:12)

And I believe it is most fitting for us to end with the verses that come after that one. ‘Let us go forth therefore unto him without (outside) the camp, bearing his reproach. For here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come. By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is the fruit of our lips giving thanks (confessing) to his name. But to do good and to communicate (share) forget not: for with such sacrifice God is well pleased.’ (Heb. 13:13-16)

Yes my fellow saints; hopefully we offered up sincere sacrifices of praise today, and we’ll not forget to do good and to share with our fellow believers in the upcoming week! Much LOVE!

…only the blood of Jesus…yes…only the blood of Jesus can atone for human sin…forever and ever…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Man’s Dire Need for God!

30 Jun 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: Annie sherwood hawks, as the hart panteth after the water brooks, bankruptcy of any inherent righteousness, be not far from me, Bible, bless me now my Saviour, christianity, come quickly and abide, come unto me all ye that labour, early will I seek thee, faith, fellowship, filled with the sense of nearness, god, God rested on the seventh day, hallowed it, holy spirit, how one could live without christ, I need thee every hour, I need thee oh I need thee, I will give you rest, in a dry and thirsty land, in joy or pain, in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, Jesus, Jesus Christ, life is vain, LOVE, make haste to help me, make me thine indeed, mercy, my flesh longeth for thee, my hour of sweet serenity and peace, my soul thirsteth for god, my tears have been my meat, no tender voice like thine, oh God my strength, our inconsolable loneliness, our utter poverty without Christ, out of fellowship with God, remember the sabbath to keep it holy, rest from our toil, Robert Lowry, six day shalt thou labour, so panteth my soul after thee O God, stay thou nearby, sweet sacrifices of praise, teach me thy will, temptations lose their power, the colossal truth, the comforting power, the great invitation, the hollow emptiness, the impotence of our own strength, the living God, the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, the need for Jesus is undeniable, the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God, the shadow fell over my way, the world's godless gain, thou blessed Son, touched the great throbbing heart of humanity, trouble is near, truth, uplifting words, When shall I come and appear before God, when thou art nigh, where is thy God, wisdom

Psalm 42:1. As the hart (deer) panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.

And then it was Sunday, the day on which we rest from our toil and labour, and instead go to the Lord’s sanctuary to praise and worship Him in the company of other believers. Now that was His idea not ours, as He said to the children of Israel when He gave them the law. ‘Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work… For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it (made it holy). (Ex. 20: 9-11)

That’s why we’re in the Lord’s house on a Sunday to offer thanks and praise and receive His awesome blessings for the upcoming week. And as always, we begin the day’s proceedings with a song of praise, which today is one we all know and LOVE, one that’s ever so timely. It’s titled, ‘I Need Thee Every Hour.’ Now that’s the gospel truth friends! We need Jesus Christ…and badly too…every hour of every single day. The lyrics of the song were written in 1872 by American poet and gospel hymnist Annie Sherwood Hawks with her Pastor Robert Lowry adding the music.

Mrs. Hawks described the song and its origins thus: ‘One day as a young wife and mother of 37 years of age, I was busy with my regular household tasks. Suddenly, I became so filled with the sense of nearness to the Master that, wondering how one could live without Him, either in joy or pain, these words, I Need Thee Every Hour, were ushered into my mind, the thought at once taking full possession of me…

I did not understand at first why this hymn had touched the great throbbing heart of humanity. It was not until long after, when the shadow fell over my way, the shadow of a great loss, that I understood something of the comforting power in the words which I had been permitted to give out to others in my hour of sweet serenity and peace.’

Yuh see that my bredrin; the song was technically a prophetic gift from God, rather than one born of Mrs. Hawks own personal experience, and it was only long after, when she finally encountered a great loss, that she fully realized the worth and the magnitude of the hymn. So, knowing all of that, let’s finally raise our voices to heaven in sweet sacrifices of praise, in a mid-tempo, sincere, and heart-felt soulful version of the song.

Singing: ‘I need thee every hour, Most gracious Lord, No tender voice like thine, Can peace afford. (Chorus: I need thee oh I need thee, Every hour I need thee, Oh bless me now my Saviour, I come to thee.) I need thee every hour, Stay thou near by, Temptations lose their power, When thou art nigh (Chorus) I need thee every hour, In joy or pain, Come quickly and abide, or life is vain. (Chorus)

I need thee every hour; teach me thy will, and thy rich promises in me fulfill. (Chorus) I need thee every hour, Most holy one, Oh make me thine indeed Thou blessed Son. (Chorus: I need thee oh I need thee, Every hour I need thee, Oh bless me now my Saviour, I come to thee. I need thee, Oh I need thee, Oh bless me now my Saviour, I come to thee…I come to thee…’

Oh my people, are those ever true and uplifting words! And they echo the heartfelt cries of several psalms. For instance these words of Bruh David from Psalm 22 – A Plea for God’s Presence. When he finds himself alone and in trouble, he cries out: ‘I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou art my God from my mother’s belly. Be not far from me; for trouble is near; for there is none to help…But be thou not far from me, O Lord: O my strength, haste thee to help me.’ (Ps. 22:10-11, 19)

And we all know this heartfelt cry from the Sons of Korah in Psalm 42 – My Soul Thirsts for the Lord. They declare: ‘As the hart (deer) panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my meat (food) day and night, while they continually say unto me, Where is thy God?’ (Ps. 42:1-3)

Then what about these faithful words of Bruh David from Psalm 63 – A Thirsting Soul, when he was in the wilderness running for his life from King Saul. He cries out: ‘O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is.’ (Ps. 63:1) And that’s how badly all of us need God in these angry and strife-filled days, where truth and justice don’t seem to amount to anything, while all the negative actions of Satan and his evil cronies rule the roost.

Now, here’s an excerpt from article on the hymn by Jon Bloom from the desiringGod.org website. He writes: ‘One of the sweetest refrains in English Christian hymnody is this: “I need Thee, O I need Thee; Every hour I need Thee; O bless me now, my Savior, I come to Thee.” Thank God for Annie S. Hawks who wrote these lyrics and her pastor, Robert Lowry, who composed the music. The lyrics could hardly be simpler, and yet they capture one of our heart’s most profound longings and can be prayed in the sweetest, most sorrowful, or most mundane moments in life.

The prosody (the patterns of rhythm and sound) of the music, the way the melody and meter aligns with the wording, could hardly be more perfect. But it is not the skill of the hymn’s construction that makes it so powerful. It is the colossal truth it so beautifully expresses. O I Need Thee!

Yes, We need God. It is not until we feel in the depths of our souls our utter poverty without Christ, our bankruptcy of any inherent righteousness, the impotence of our own strength and self-sufficient planning, our inconsolable loneliness when we are out of fellowship with God, the pathetic pretentiousness of our pathological pride, the hollow emptiness of all the godless gain of the world, our utter helplessness in the face of personal, institutional, cosmic, and molecular evil, that we know just how much we need God.’

Ah my fellow believers, unfortunately it’s not until we are wallowing deep in the mire of sin and Satan, with the slime up to our necks, that we truly realize how much we need Almighty God. And we are certainly blessed to know that if we sincerely cry out Him even at that late stage, He will indeed help us. Because that’s the kind of gracious, merciful, forgiving and LOVING God we serve.

But please, let’s be wise nuh, and don’t wait until we’re drowning to cry out to Him for help. Instead, let’s take the proverbial bull by the horns and go to Him right now, regardless of what state we’re in, for He’s ready and waiting to welcome us. Don’t you hear Him calling: ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.’ (Matt. 11:28) So in wisdom, let’s accept that Great Invitation right now, and thus turn our lives and our world around, because there’s none greater than it! Much LOVE!

…the need for Jesus is undeniable…because that’s how we were created…to need Him…and ONLY Him…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Today’s Scrip-Bit 14 April 2024 Hebrews 9:22.

14 Apr 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: all my hope and peace, almost all things, are by the law purged with blood, Bible, cleanseth us from all sin, enhances our souls, enter into the presence of a holy God, faith, fellowship, fellowship with each other, for my cleansing this my plea, for my pardon, forgiveness, forgiveness of sins, from which everything flows, god, God's sinless Son, Jesus, Jesus Christ, justification, LOVE, made peace, New Covenant, no other fount I know, Nothing but the blood of Jesus, once and for all time, precious is the flow, propitiation, ransomed by the blood, reah my home, redeemed, redeemed with corruptible things, redemption, remission of sins, right standing with God, righteousness, Robert Lowry, salvation, shedding his own blood, sweet sacrifices of praise, that makes me white as snow, the blood of Christ, the death and resurrection of Christ, the forbearance of God, the riches of his grace, through the blood of the cross, to reconcile all things, walk in the light, what can make me whole again, what can wash away my sin, wisdom, without the shedding of blood is no remission

Hebrews 9:22. And almost all things are by the law purged (cleansed) with blood; and without the shedding of blood is no remission (forgiveness).

Sunday, oh Sunday, it’s so good to encounter you once again! For you are one of the very best days of the week. You take me to the Lord’s sanctuary, where I give Him thanks and praise in concert with other worshippers, and He enhances our souls and spirits with His awesome Word, filled with many great promises and doings, especially that of the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, from which everything in our Christian lives flows.

And to celebrate our fellowship today, we’ll sing a much favoured and very doctrinally important hymn, titled, ‘Nothing but the Blood of Jesus.’ It’s a traditional American hymn about the blood atonement and propitiation for sin by the death of Jesus, composed in the late 19^th century by hymn writer, Baptist Minister and Bucknell University Professor, Robert Lowry. And since we’re all anxious to sing this much LOVED and oh so important hymn, let’s get right to it, and raise our sweet sacrifices of praise in a mid-tempo, heart and gut-wrenching version, that will let all the world, and heaven too, see that we’re very sincere about Christ in our great LOVE and appreciation for Him!

And there’s no greater truth in this world my fellow believers! No! For nothing but the precious, spilled blood of Jesus Christ; God’s sinless Son, on the cross of Calvary can wash away mankind’s abominable sins. And that’s the very reason the Father sent Him to earth. And why was that necessary? Because as Romans 6:23 tells us, the just penalty of human sin against God is death. But as Hebrews writes: ‘And almost all things are by the law purged (cleansed) with blood; and without the shedding of blood is no remission (forgiveness).’ (Heb. 9:22)

That means for any forgiveness of sins to occur, blood must be shed. However, the death of sanctioned animals used in the Old Testament, through the offering of their blood was only a temporary reprieve, and every year, the High Priest had to go into the Holy of Holies and make atonement for the sins of the people (Heb. 9:7 & 25) since ‘It is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins.’ (Heb. 10:4)

And according to one commentator: ‘The repeated animal sacrifices were delaying the inevitable, waiting on God’s fullness of times. One day a final reckoning for sin must come. Christians, of course, believe and celebrate that now in Christ, and under the terms of a new covenant, the reckoning has come. Jesus willingly “offered himself” (Heb. 9:14) by “once for all” shedding “his own blood” (Heb. 9:12), bringing to its intended completion the temporary covenant that came before (the old covenant) and inaugurating in its place an “eternal or everlasting covenant,” (Heb. 13:20), which we call the new covenant.’

Now there are a few questions on the subject that have been asked down through the ages, like; why is blood so important in the human’s life, and what does it symbolize in the Bible? Blood is the ONLY part of our body that is continually on the move, it continually courses through our bodies, and any time it stops flowing, or we lose it all, like it drained out of Jesus’ body on the cross, then our life also ceases. ‘And so, blood is the premier biblical symbol of life.’ Then there’s this question: Does the blood of Jesus cover us from all sin? Yes. John in His first epistle tells us: ‘But if we walk in the light, as he (God) is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth (purifies, covers) us from ALL sin.’ (1 John 1:7) And why do we need to be covered by the blood of Jesus? ‘The blood of Jesus is the covering that allows us to enter into the presence of a perfect and holy God.’

And it’s generally recognized that the blood of Jesus does 5 basic things for us. The first one is propitiation for our sins; to remove God’s righteous wrath from humanity. As Bruh Paul writes to the church at Rome. ‘(Christ Jesus) Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation (mercy seat, atonement) through faith in his blood, to declare (demonstrate) his righteousness for the remission (forgiveness) of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.’ (Rom. 3:25) Then there’s Justification; to bring us into right standing with God. Bruh Paul writes, again to the Romans: ‘Much more then, (having) being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.’ (Rom. 5:9) What about Redemption, or the purchasing of our freedom? Bruh Paul writes thus to the Ephesians: ‘In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace.’ (Eph. 1:7)

There’s also forgiveness; to restore our best relationship. And to the Ephesians, Bruh Paul notes: ‘But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes (once) were far off and made nigh (near) by the blood of Christ.’ (Eph. 2:13) What about pacification, or peace with God Himself? Bruh Paul writes to the Colossians. ‘For it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness (deity) dwell. And having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in (on) earth, or things in heaven.’ (Col. 1:19-20)

Yes friends, by Christ’s death, God reconciled the universe to Himself. Finally, we’ve been ransomed by the blood of Jesus Christ. Peter writes in his first epistle. ‘Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible (perishable) things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation (aimless conduct) received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.’ (1 Pet. 1:18-19)

And there we have it my fellow saints, some of the basic things that the blood of Christ has done for us, and overall, why it’s ever so important in our Christian faith! So, please, let’s spend some time today meditating on the incomparable blood of Christ and how it affects us as believers’ in His holy name. Much LOVE!

…the blood…oh the blood…there’s nothing like the sinless blood of Jesus…

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ

Today’s Scrip-Bit 6 August 2023 Psalm 42:1.

06 Aug 2023 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: Annie sherwood hawks, as the hart panteth after the water brooks, believer fellowshipping, bless me now my Saviour, Christian uplifting, confidence building, faith growing, for the living God, I come to thee I come, I count all things but loss, I need thee every hour, Jesus is the answer to every question and every need, joyful God worshipping, my lips shall praise thee, my soul thirsteth for god, neither is there salvation in any other, no tender voice like thine, on the wings of love and joy, renew our souls bodies and spirits, Robert Lowry, so panteth my soul after thee O God, temptations lose their power, that I may know him, the power of his resurrection, the storne that was set at nought, the stress of personal sorrow, thy loving-kindness is better than life, wafted out to the world

Psalm 42:1. As the hart panteth after (the deer longs for) the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.

Sunday, oh Sunday, our day of confidence building, faith growing, Christian uplifting, believer fellowshipping and joyful God worshipping! Wow! Yes friends, those are some of the things that happen in and to us when we gather in the Lord’s sanctuary on a Sunday. No wonder we hunger for Sunday to come so that we can get there and refresh and renew our souls, bodies and spirits!

And today we open our God worshipping with a song of praise that describes our situation to a T. It’s most appropriately titled: ‘I Need Thee Every Hour.’ It’s referring to our everlasting need for Jesus every single hour of every day! I would further like to add though, that it’s not only every hour we need Him, but we desperately need Him, every single minute of every hour of every day, especially in these very turbulent and ungodly times.

So, let’s gather round and sing this very uplifting hymn written by American poet and gospel hymnist Annie Sherwood Hawks and her Pastor Robert Lowry. The hymn is said to have been translated into more foreign languages than any other modern hymn at the time of her death. And it’s very interesting to know how the hymn was birthed. Hawks apparently stated – “For myself, the hymn was prophetic rather than expressive of my own experiences, for it was wafted out to the world on the wings of LOVE and joy, instead of under the stress of personal sorrow.”

And isn’t that strange that such a personal and emotional hymn was not born from her own personal sorrowful experiences, as so many of our other touching hymns are. It was truly prophetic, the awesome work of the Holy Spirit. Meanwhile, Lowry, who wrote the music reputedly said: ‘”I believe it was the expression of her own experience. It came to me in the form of five simple stanzas, to which I added the chorus to make it more serviceable. It inspired me at its first reading.’

So let’s get it to inspire us on this its umpteenth singing, by raising our voices in sacrificial praise in a rich, soulful, scintillating version, not the dirge like manner in which so many people sing it. With feeling now: ‘I need thee every hour, Most gracious Lord, No tender voice like thine, Can peace afford. (Chorus: I need thee oh I need thee, Every hour I need thee, Oh bless me now my Saviour, I come to thee.) I need thee every hour, Stay thou near by, Temptations lose their power, When thou art nigh (Chorus)

I need thee every hour, In joy or pain, Come quickly and abide, or life is vain. (Chorus) I need thee every hour; teach me thy will, and thy rich promises in me fulfill. (Chorus) I need thee every hour, Most holy one, Oh make me thine indeed Thou blessed Son. (Chorus: I need thee oh I need thee, Every hour I need thee, Oh bless me now my Saviour, I come to thee. I need thee, Oh I need thee, Oh bless me now my Saviour, I come to thee…I come to thee…’

And for our own sinful sakes, we had better be sincere in our sentiments and truly go to Jesus, otherwise things bad with us mih people! Now what scriptures can we find to corroborate those amazing sentiments of Ms. Hawkes? I think the first and most appropriate are these words of the Sons of Korah from Psalm 42: ‘As the hart panteth after (the deer longs for) the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?’ (Ps. 42:1-2) Now that’s how we ought to long for the God of Abraham, Jacob and Isaac, my fellow believers!

Or, as Bruh David declared when he was running from King Saul in the wilderness of Judah. ‘O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is. To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen (looked for) thee in the sanctuary. Because thy LOVING-kindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee. Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.’ (Ps. 63:1-4)

That’s the kind of desire we need to have for God, especially in these very trying and uncertain times! But unfortunately, not enough of us have that overwhelming desire to seek Almighty God, our Creator and Controller. Why? I don’t know. We either don’t believe, don’t believe enough, or simply don’t care. But as Peter and John so rightly and boldly proclaimed before the Jewish rulers, when they were questioned as to the healing of a blind man at the temple gates.

‘Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone that was set at nought of (rejected by) you builders, which is become the head of the corner (chief corner stone). Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.’ (Acts 2:10-12)

That says it all my brethren! Jesus is the ONLY ONE who can save us from ourselves and our sins, so if we don’t truly believe in Him, then things won’t go very well for us. And it’s not like we don’t know it nuh, but we just seem to take it for a joke, or we’re besotted by the empty, short-term pleasures of sin, and we put it off until some later date. But sadly friends, then it might just be too late. So, if you know of Jesus, please accept Him today, RIGHT NOW! It will be the wisest and most timely decision you’ll ever make in this life!

And I want to quote one last scripture re the depth of need we ought to feel for Jesus. This one comes from Bruh Paul, the great apostle of the New Testament, who was himself a persecutor of the brethren, until the Lord set him straight and recruited him to spread the good news of His gospel all around the then known world. Bruh Paul wrote to the church at Philippi:

‘But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count ALL things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung (rubbish), that I may win Christ, And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death.’ (Phil. 3:7-10)

Wow! Now that’s powerful faith in and LOVE for Christ! And until we come to approximate that kind of faith in Christ, that kind of hunger and thirst for Him, we’ll not become truly mature Christians. That’s the kind of level of maturity we need to aspire to. So hopefully those scriptures will put a jolt in our system and wake us up today, to the reality that we need Jesus even more desperately than we think we do! Much LOVE!

…Jesus is the ANSWER…to EVERY question that we have… the fulfillment of EVERY need…

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ

Today’s Scrip-Bit 5 July 2020 Acts 4:12.

05 Jul 2020 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a delight, a roaring wind, Annie sherwood hawks, become the head of the corner, come unto me, Comforter, Day of Pentecost, Holy Ghost, I am meek and lowly in heart, I come to thee, I need thee every hour, if ye love me, intercessor, Jesus, keep my commandments, my burden is light, my yoke is easy, neither is there salvation in any other, none other name under heaven', on the wings of love and joy, our all in all, reassurance, Robert Lowry, salvation, temptations lose their power, the great invitation, the living truth, the only name for one stop shopping, the Prince of Peace, the Sabbath Day, the stone the builders rejected, tongues of fire, wafted out to the world, when thou art nigh, whereby we must be saved

Acts 4:12. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

It’s the Sabbath Day friends! And hear what the Lord had to say about its observance through the prophet Isaiah nuh. ‘If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places (hills) of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.’ (Is.58:13-14)

Glory be mih people! That’s how important the Sabbath is to our God! So let’s be wise and do as He says nuh, so we can enjoy His delights; yuh know there’s nothing that compares to them! (smile) And as always, we begin with a song of praise and worship, today’s being the ever popular hymn ‘I Need Thee Every Hour.’ But before we get into it, here’s the story behind it, according to the website GodTube.

‘Annie Sherwood Hawks was an American poet and gospel hymnist who wrote a number of hymns with her pastor, Robert Lowry. The hymn by which Hawks is most widely known, “I Need Thee Every Hour”, was written in 1872. It is said to have been translated into more foreign languages than any other modern hymn at the time of her death. Hawks stated: — “For myself, the hymn was prophetic rather than expressive of my own experiences, for it was wafted out to the world on the wings of LOVE and joy, instead of under the stress of personal sorrow.”

Lowry, who wrote the music, went on to say: “I believe it was the expression of her own experience. It came to me in the form of five simple stanzas, to which I added the chorus to make it more serviceable. It inspired me at its first reading. It first appeared in a small collection of original songs prepared for the National Baptist Sunday-school Association, held in Cincinnati, Ohio in November 1872, and was sung on that occasion.” Now, knowing some of its history, let’s offer up our sacrifice of praise with strong, sincere, harmonious voices in a heartfelt and soulful rendition of this wonderful hymn.

‘I need thee every hour, Most gracious Lord, No tender voice like thine, Can peace afford. (Chorus: I need thee oh I need thee, Every hour I need thee, Oh bless me now my Saviour, I come to thee.) I need thee every hour, Stay thou near by, Temptations lose their power, When thou art nigh (Chorus) I need thee every hour, In joy or pain, Come quickly and abide, or life is vain. (Chorus)

That was wonderful friends! And it is the living truth: we need Jesus so badly, that as He rightly says, without Him, we can do nothing. (John 15:5) And that’s the understatement of the ages! In the first place it’s only through Him that we can be saved. As Peter so boldly informed the high priest: ‘This is the stone which was set at nought (rejected) by you builders, which is become the head of the corner (chief cornerstone). Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.’ (Acts 4:11-12)

And as the scholars explain: ‘4:12. The name of Jesus Christ is the centre of contention (vs. 7, 10, 12) and ever will be. Salvation for the Jew and Gentile alike is exclusively through the name of Jesus Christ (cf. John 14:6).’ And here’s what that amazing and true scripture says: ‘Jesus saith unto him (Doubting Thomas), I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.’ (John 14:6) What a confident proclamation! But it’s true, whether you believe it or not.

And besides Jesus being our Saviour, He is also our Prince of Peace, through whom we get the divine peace that passes all understanding. (Phil. 4:7) Not the kind of peace that the world gives, but the one where we can rise above the circumstances that daily confront us. ‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.’ (John 14:27) What awesome reassurance!

And don’t talk about comfort and rest…Jesus is the everlasting fount of those things. He promised us through the Great Invitation: ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me; for I am meek and lowly in heart (gentle and humble): and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt. 11:28-30) Oh friends, how can it be any plainer than that eh?

And when we talk about comfort, we talking about His Holy Spirit that He sent to comfort us, to lead and guide us and help us have a close relationship with Him and the Father! Hear Him as He said to the disciples. ‘If ye LOVE me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever.’ (John 14:15-16) And that is exactly what He did. The Holy Ghost came on that Pentecost day after His ascension like a roaring wind with cloven tongues of fire and descended on the disciples and now indwells every believer! (Acts 2:1-14)

Mama Yo! How then can we not need Jesus continually eh my people? He’s our ALL in ALL: Our God, Saviour, Prince of Peace, Comforter, Intercessor, High Priest, etc. etc.! Annie Sherwood Hawks definitely knew what she was talking about when she wrote that hymn! So in these difficult and dangerous times, let’s show true wisdom and come to Him in true trust and surrender nuh, for He is indeed the answer to ALL our prayers! Much LOVE!

…JESUS…the ONLY name…for One Stop Shopping…

Today’s Scrip-Bit 2 September 2018 Romans 5:9.

02 Sep 2018 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a giant our Jesus, a quandary, a wave of his hand, a wise place, aimless conduct, all eternity, all have sinned, Aretha Franklin, being justified by his blood, believe in God, blood, break his own heart, broke his heart, Calvary, cleansing, come short of the glory of God, enemies, entrance to heaven's throne room, eternal life, eternal salvation, fellowship, for sin atone, foreordained, forgivenss, glory, God loved us, gold, Hades, hard currency, have a good ole time, healing, hear God's word, holiness, humility, I'll overcome, I'll reach my home, joy in God, justice, justified, lighten up our spirits, LOVE, Lucifer, make me whole, makes me white as snow, mercy, mired in sin, much more then, my hope, my pardon, Nothing but the blood of Jesus, patience, peace, perishable things, perseverance, power, praise, purged with blood, received the atonement, reconciled, redeemed with corruptible things, remission, renewing our spiritual lives, righteousness, Robert Lowry, sacrifice, salvation, sanctified, saved by his life, saved from wrath, shedding of Christ's blood, silver, sing, sinless blood, soften our hearts, still effective after two thousand years, the faithful singing praises, the Lamb of God, the Lord's Day, the Lord's House, tradition, truer words were never spoken, uplifting visit, vain conversation, wash away my sin, welcome, without blemish, without spot, without the shedding of blood, worship, yet sinners

Romans 5:9. Much more then now being (having been) justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

Welcome, welcome to the Lord’s Day my faithful breddren! And we all know what that means: an uplifting visit to the Lord’s house, to sing and praise and worship and fellowship, hear His Word and just have a good ole time renewing our spiritual lives! Wow! There’s nothing like the faithful together singing the praises of our great and wonderful God my people!

If you saw Aretha Franklin’s funeral on Friday, you’d have seen how praise and worship can light up the spirits of a crowd of believers. So today, in anticipation of hearing God’s Word, let’s soften up our hearts and lighten up our spirits by singing praises to our God in this old and much LOVED hymn ‘Nothing but the Blood of Jesus,’ written by Robert Lowry and published way back in 1876.

So let’s sing it like we really mean it nuh. All together now: ‘What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus; What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. (Refrain: Oh! precious is the flow That makes me white as snow; No other fount I know, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.) For my pardon, this I see, Nothing but the blood of Jesus; For my cleansing this my plea, Nothing but the blood of Jesus. (Refrain)

Nothing can for sin atone, Nothing but the blood of Jesus; Naught of good that I have done, Nothing but the blood of Jesus. (Refrain) This is all my hope and peace, Nothing but the blood of Jesus; This is all my righteousness, Nothing but the blood of Jesus. (Refrain) Now by this I’ll overcome; Nothing but the blood of Jesus; Now by this I’ll reach my home, Nothing but the blood of Jesus. (Refrain) Glory! Glory! This I sing; Nothing but the blood of Jesus, All my praise for this I bring, Nothing but the blood of Jesus. (Refrain) Nothing but the Blood…Nothing but the Blood of Jesus.’

Ah mih people, truer words were indeed never sung or spoken, for ALL that we are is based on the blood of Jesus shed at Calvary! Without that shed blood we’d still be mired in sin for now and all eternity. As the Good Book says: ‘For all have sinned and, come short of the glory of God.’ (Rom.3:23)

In short friends, it means that ONLY the blood of Jesus that was shed on the cross of Calvary can wash away my sins, cleanse my soul, allow the Father to pardon me. In Him ONLY, can I find peace and hope, righteousness, salvation and eternal life! Glory to God!

Christ’s blood is the most powerful element that ever washed this earth! It atoned for our sins; justified us, sanctified us, reconciled us, made us righteous and gave us entrance to heaven’s throne room! Oh my, my! What other substance on earth can do, or could have done all of that eh? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING ELSE! Nothing but the blood of Jesus!

In it there is power, forgiveness, LOVE, humility, healing, patience and perseverance, so much so that after two thousand years it is still as effective as ever. Wow! The blood of Jesus! We even plead the blood of Jesus in tough times, confidently calling out to the Father for mercy because of the shed blood of His Son! But enough of me spouting off, (smile) let us quote a few scriptures that show the importance of Christ’s blood in our lives.

And the first one that comes to mind is one that we all know: ‘The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.’ (John 1:29) And that He did! Then Bruh Paul elucidates to the church at Rome: ‘But God commendeth his (demonstrates his own) LOVE towards us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then now being (having been) justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more being (having been) reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement (reconciliation).’ (Rom.5:8-11)

Ah friends, it seems quite complicated, but it’s really quite simple: God LOVED us so much that it broke His heart to see us headed to Hades with Lucifer, so He decided to do something about it. The only problem was that because of His holiness and justice, He couldn’t just pardon sin with a wave of His hand. Our sin had to be paid for, for want of a better term, in hard currency, (smile) and that currency under the Old Covenant was animal blood.

As Hebrews reminds us that through Moses, the Lord commanded the Israelites to continually shed animal blood as short term atonement for their sins: ‘And almost all things are by the law purged (cleansed) with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.’ (Heb.9:22) So there had to be blood shed if the Lord wanted to reconcile us to Himself. And besides, the blood had to be sinless blood, and unfortunately His Son was the ONLY One who fit that bill.

No doubt the Lord found Himself in a quandary, but He LOVED His greatest creation so much that He decided to break His own heart and offer up His one Son as the perennial sacrifice for our sins! Now if that isn’t LOVE, I don’t know what is. Hear how Peter puts it. ‘Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible (perishable) things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation (aimless conduct) received by tradition from your fathers.

But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest (revealed) in these last times for you. Who by him do believe in God that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.’ (1 Pet.1:18-21)

Yeh mih breddren, that’s the only wise place to place one’s faith and hope! Much LOVE!

…the shedding of Christ’s blood paid for our sins…and His resurrection pays for our eternal salvation…what a giant is our Jesus…

SCRIP-BITS

Man’s Dire Need for God!

Today’s Scrip-Bit 14 April 2024 Hebrews 9:22.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 6 August 2023 Psalm 42:1.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 5 July 2020 Acts 4:12.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 2 September 2018 Romans 5:9.

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