This week much attention will be given to the subject of love. Many will celebrate Valentine's Day in a variety of ways. Huge amounts will be spent on cards, flowers, dining out, jewelry, and other gifts. And experiencing true human love is something special, especially when it is love between a husband and wife. But we all can experience true sacrificial love through our relationship with God, through Jesus Christ. God showed his love for us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). And that love is far beyond any that can be shown or known on this earth. O love of God, so rich and pure, so measureless and strong. It shall forever more endure. And that is the stirring message of this week's hymn choice. The words were penned in 1917 by Frederick M. Lehman and were based on the Jewish poem written in Aramaic in 1050 by Meir Ben Isaac Nehorai, a cantor in Worms, Germany. Ironically, verse three was penciled on the wall of a narrow room in an insane asylum by a man said to have been demented. The profound lines were discovered when they laid him in his coffin. The general opinion was that this inmate had written the words in rare moments of sanity. I think one of my best memories of this hymn is hearing it sung by George Beverly Shea in many Billy Graham crusades. Shea recently celebrated his 103rd birthday. His solos have ministered to many millions over the decades. At the close of this blog you can hear a classic edition of Shea sharing this message of God's love.
(1) The love of God is greater far
Than tongue or pen can ever tell;
It goes beyond the highest star,
And reaches to the lowest hell;
The guilty pair, bowed down with care,
God gave His Son to win;
His erring child He reconciled,
And pardoned from his sin.
Refrain
O love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure
The saints' and angels' song.
(2) When years of time shall pass away,
And earthly thrones and kingdoms fall,
When men, who here refuse to pray,
On rocks and hills and mountains call,
God's love so sure, shall still endure,
All measureless and strong;
Redeeming grace to Adam's race—
The saints' and angels' song.
Refrain
O love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure
The saints' and angels' song.
(3) Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade,
To write the love of God above,
Would drain the ocean dry.
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.
Refrain
O love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure
The saints' and angels' song.
Listen to it being sung by George Beverly Shea.
No comments:
Post a Comment