A Much Loved Hymn - “Blessed Assurance"

     Among my favorite hymns is one penned by Fanny J. Crosby (1820-1915) entitled “Blessed Assurance”.  She wrote over 8,000 hymn texts during her lifetime despite the fact that she had lost her sight at the age of six weeks. She actually began writing hymns at the age of six years old and continued through her long life. Despite what some would call a handicap or disability, Fanny Crosby’s life was filled with not only academic success at the New York Academy for the Blind where she was a student and later a teacher of rhetoric and history, but she also found joy in her faith which she so readily expressed in her hymns.

      In the first verse the words are:  “Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!

                                  O what a foretaste of glory divine!

                                  Heir of salvation, purchase of God,

                                  Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.

                                  This is my story, this is my song,

                                  Praising my Savior, all the day long.”

There is comfort when we have the assurance of our salvation, for, indeed we have been bought with the price of Christ’s blood.  We are heirs with Christ, and in this hymn we see a glimpse of heaven. There is an anticipation of that day when we will be with Him in “perfect submission” and “perfect delight”, and though she was physically blind, she described “visions of rapture now burst on my sight” as she thinks about the beauty of heaven.  This is encouragement for all Christians as we await the return of our Lord.

     There are times when we allow the burdens of this fallen world system overwhelm us. Responsibilities at work and home at times seem insurmountable and we tend to forget that we are citizens of God’s Kingdom that will never end. Revelations 21:4 reminds us that when we come into His Kingdom we shall live in perfect relationship with our King:  “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”  Who is not looking forward to that day?

     Certainly, there must have been times when Fanny Crosby felt the weight of her disability, but she didn’t let it stop her from living a full productive life.  Instead she turned to the Lord and expressed her continual praise through the hymns she wrote as we are commanded to do in Philippians 4:4:  “Rejoice in the Lord always; and again, I will say rejoice.” Peace of heart and mind come to those who put their faith and focus on the Lord Jesus Christ.  We are hidden in Him, and as His bride, He will one day present us without spot wrinkle or blemish (Ephesians 5:27). This is our future, our Blessed Hope and should dispel all the anxiety that comes with an ever changing culture that denies God’s rule and reign.

     Like Fanny Crosby, let us affirm the words in stanza three when life brings us discouragement or despair:

     “Perfect submission - all is at rest,

      I in my Savior am happy and blest;

      Watching and waiting, looking above,

      Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.”

When we focus on our Lord and seek to tell others about Him, we can be at rest even in this turbulent world.  We have “blessed assurance” that He is coming again and that we belong to Him.  Selah! 

That Dirty, Gritty Feeling

     

     A few days ago, I spent a good deal of time cleaning our tile and wood floors.  We have a good sized home so it takes a while to do the job.  I cannot stand to walk on floors that feel dirty or gritty and having a dog who loves to run in our back yard through the bushes doesn’t help.  He always finds a patch of dirt to go through and then happily brings it into the house.  We have a vacuum, a robo cleaner and a dust mop, but no matter what I try, the Florida sand keeps coming back.  That’s the price we pay for having a dog and living in sand country.

     As I thought about it though, our lives are a lot like that gritty sand on the floor. When we come to Christ in true repentance, He cleans us up and fills us with His Holy Spirit. Then, before we know it, old sinful habits, unkind words, or thoughts we ought to avoid can come creeping back into our lives just like that nasty sand.  We can feel it in our hearts as the Holy Spirit convicts us.  It seems like a never ending cycle, but we must remember that while Jesus Christ has forgiven us of our sins and made us new creations in Him, we still carry with us the old flesh until we go home to be with Him.

     Paul knew all about that struggle. Read all of Romans chapter 7 for a full exposition, but let me highlight verses 15-20:  “For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have a desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing.  Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.” Then Paul asks a good question in verse 24b: “Who will deliver me from this body of death?” He concludes by saying in verse 25a “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” It is only through the blood of Christ that we find forgiveness for those daily sins that still way us down in the body.  One day, we shall see Him and be made perfect as He is but until then, we have a great remedy given to us to get rid of that sin in our soul.

     I John 1:9 tells us: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”  That is why, along with Paul, we can thank Jesus Christ for what He has done for us. We do not have to keep that grit in our souls any more than I need to keep it on my floor. Long ago, I learned that a good practice is to stop and take a daily moral inventory as we pray each morning asking God to reveal to us where we have fallen short of His glory. Then, we confess those sins He brings to mind and ask forgiveness for those things which we did that we are not even aware of doing. This clears our heart, and sets us free to begin the day walking by the Spirit.

     God is at work in each of us conforming us to the image of His dear Son. He will finish the work He has begun in us, but we must make certain to keep our hearts clean before Him. We should rejoice along with Paul in saying “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” One day we will leave the flesh behind, but until that day, we have the privilege of coming to God to repent when we stumble. I wish it was that easy in keeping my floors clean, but that is another story! May God help us to quickly turn to Him when we have sinned that we might walk by His Spirit and not in the flesh.  Selah! 

Grace for Today and Tomorrow

     Grace is one of those words we hear often in the Christian faith.  It means undeserved favor, mercy or kindness towards another, and we think of this when we think of God.  We are saved by His grace...not because we deserved God’s love and forgiveness but because He chose us before the foundation of the world to be His own through Christ our Lord (Ephesians 1:4). This is a type of love that the world cannot comprehend.

 

   Beyond saving us, God provides grace for us to face each day through its hardships as well as the good times.  However, there are times when we wish we had a little more information about the future or what tomorrow might bring our way.  This can lead us to worry or anxiety.  Even the Apostle Paul was acquainted with this concern when he dealt with his thorn in the flesh.  2 Corinthians 12:8-9 tells us:  “Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me.  But He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’  Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” Oh that we could say this when we fall into trials! So what is Paul’s secret?  He trusted God.

     Building trust in God comes from knowing Him intimately and believing that He is good.  Prayer is one key to developing that relationship.  Obviously, Paul did a lot of praying and crying out to God over his affliction. The result came when the Lord answered him.  His illness would not go away, but he found reassurance in the fact that God’s power would be made perfect in his weakness. Paul could go on knowing that the grace of God would be sufficient for him.

     In addition to prayer, we can drive out our doubts and worries by knowing the Word of God. Do we read it every day?  We should because it reveals to us God’s character and all that we need to know to lead a godly life. Jesus said in John 15:15:  “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business.  Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” Jesus knew the Father’s innermost thoughts. Through the pages of the Bible we are given the revelation of God. It gives us our bearings and the Spirit gives us the power to obey. This is how we develop the trust that drives fear away.

     God’s grace is not just for today but for the future just like His provision of manna in the wilderness which He provided for the Children of Israel.  They never went hungry because the Lord provided their food daily.  Their clothes never wore out during the forty years of wandering in the wilderness. In the same manner, God’s grace is sufficient for whatever we are called to face, and we know there are hard times as well as times of rejoicing. God will give us the grace just when we need it and not before.  Therefore, we need not worry or fret. Instead start each day with a prayer: “Lord, help me and give me your grace today.”  Then, say thank you and rest in Him! He won’t disappoint!  Selah!