Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage;
be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee
whithersoever thou goest.
(Josh
1:9)
If ye keep My commandments, ye shall abide in My love. (John 15:10)
Today's hymn serves as a reminder those who abide in Christ also abide in love
and security. The lyrics are composed by Anna Waring in 1850. Anna was born in
Wales in 1823 and was baptized into the Church of England (Anglican) in 1842.
She was an accomplished student of the Hebrew language and bore a special
burden for prisoners behind bars. The 1940 hymnal suggest NYLAND. a
Finnish folk melody, for the tune; however, there are two other tunes that seem
more fitted, in my view, to the hymn's sentiments - SEASONS by Felix
Mendelssohn (1809-1847), and ANGEL'S STORY by Arthur H. Mann (1881).
The principle point of the hymn is the benefit of heavenly love. Love is divine
and is produced and imported to our hearts from Heaven itself. Even that love
of a heathen mother for her little child is a divine love that God, whom she
knows not, secreted in her mother's tender heart just as He has done for the
mothers of even the animal kingdom for the perpetuation of the race and
creatures.
In Heavenly Love Abiding
In heavenly love abiding,
no change my heart shall fear;
and safe is such confiding,
for nothing changes here:
the storm may roar without me,
my heart may low be laid;
but God is round about me,
and can I be dismayed?
Wherever he may guide me,
no want shall turn me back;
my Shepherd is beside me,
and nothing can I lack:
his wisdom ever waketh,
his sight is never dim,
he knows the way he taketh,
and I will walk with him.
Green pastures are before me,
which yet I have not seen;
bright skies will soon be o'er
me,
where darkest clouds have been;
my hope I cannot measure,
my path to life is free;
my Saviour has my treasure,
and he will walk with me.
1 In heavenly love abiding, no change my heart shall fear; and safe is such
confiding, for nothing changes here: the storm may roar without me, my heart
may low be laid; but God is round about me, and can I be dismayed? To abide in love does not mean
to sojourn or vacation - it means that we make our living there. The unchanging
nature of Christ (Hebrews 13:8) assures us of a constant love
and security. Abide in me, and I in you. As the
branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can
ye, except ye abide in me. (John 15:4)
Remember how we, as children, felt secure when mother came to say goodnight by
our beds and then turned the lights out? If mother turned the lights out, all
must be well for mother loved us, right? Our dream sleep is nothing more than a
shadow of the glorious night of the sleep of death from which we shall awake,
when the lights have been turned out by our loving Lord for a brief time, and
we shall awake to an unending day of brilliant Light. The love of God secures
that Day for us.
2 Wherever he may guide me, no want shall turn me back; my Shepherd is
beside me, and nothing can I lack: his wisdom ever waketh, his sight is never
dim, he knows the way he taketh, and I will walk with him. If we have a shepherd at all,
that Shepherd is the Lord. All others are beast and mortals such as we are. The
wolves of the wilderness often pose as the shepherd and devour the sheep. The
Shepherd always leads the way. Today, we see often that the sheep of the church
attempt to lead the Shepherd in ways that are not true and wholesome. We
sometimes desire to do it our way and not His. If so, we have become goats
instead of sheep. We know our desires readily; but we sometimes do not
know our wants.
We often, erroneously, use the two terms interchangeably; but a want is a need
and not a wish. Our wants are those values that are needful for the soul even
when the soul may not be aware. The sheep do not know to avoid the lair of the
wolves, They may wish to venture there; but the Shepherd knows the dangers of
the wilderness and cares for our wants. He is forever alert and awake. The
sheep that are most prized by Him are those who remain near and prize Him most.
In the covert of His fold, He tells us, 4 And whither I go
ye know, and the way ye know.... I am the way, the truth,
and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. If ye had known me, ye
should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have
seen him.
(John 14:4)
3 Green pastures are before me, which yet I have not seen; bright skies will
soon be o'er me, where darkest clouds have been; my hope I cannot measure, my
path to life is free; my Saviour has my treasure, and he will walk with me. Those pastures are before us
because we have followed the Shepherd. He maketh me to lie down in green
pastures. (Psalms 23:2) The sheep feel absolute
security in the green pastures of the Shepherd because they lay down there. It
is difficult for a lamb to rise up from the lying position for they have no
knees; so they lie down willingly knowing that the Shepherd will be their
protector. Our full hope is in Christ: 3 Blessed be the God and Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us
again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. (1
Peter 1:3) The long
home to which we go at God's own timing is long, not because we are long dead,
but because it is a divine eternity with Him after the twinkling of an eye when
the shadows lengthen.
That treasure that is on safe deposit with our Lord Jesus Christ are those
treasures that we have laid up in Heaven. 19 Lay not up for
yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where
thieves break through and steal: 20 But lay up for
yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and
where thieves do not break through nor steal: 21 For where your
treasure is, there will your heart be also. (Matt
6:19-21)
The Lord walks with us every step of our journey (often when we are unaware of
His presence). Just as He walked with the two on the Road to Emmaus while they
questioned the meaning of His Passion. He walked ALL of the WAY to their home,
and even remained for the breaking of Bread. On days of our hurt and
discouragement, He is right beside. Our problems loom as dark and threatening
storm clouds whose burdens are beyond bearing; but He is with us (He bears our
burdens) and we find that near our journey's end, the clouds of dismay part,
and the splendor and brilliance of the morning sunrise bursts through. Do you
treasure your heart? Then turn it over on deposit to Christ our Lord. He will
not lose it, and He will fill it to the brim with joys unspeakable.
