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I am the
voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as
said the prophet Esaias. (John 1:23)
This
is a Latin Hymn of Advent written by Charles Coffin (1736) and translated by
John Chandler in 1837. The recommended tune in the Hymnal is Winchester
New (William H. Monk, 1837) but, as usual, I have a favorite alternate
tune – Puer Nobis Nascitur (Michael Praetorius, 1609) and
harmonized by George R. Woodward (1910).
After
400 years of pervasive silence from Heaven (from Malachi to Matthew), John the
Baptist, the promised forerunner appeared to prepare the way for the coming of
the Lord Jesus Christ. He was first made mention of in the prophecy of Moses: The Lord
thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy
brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken; According to all that thou
desiredst of the Lord thy God in Horeb in the day of the assembly,
saying, Let me not hear again the voice of the Lordmy God, neither let me
see this great fire any more, that I die not. And the Lord said unto
me, They have well spoken that which they have spoken. I will raise
them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my
words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. (Deut 18:15-18)
There
is an interesting parallel to the Rock at Horeb and the Lord Jesus Christ. As
you will recall from Exodus, the Children of Israel complained at Rephidim for
lack of water. God commanded Moses to go up Mount Horeb and smite the stone
there. 6 Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in
Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it,
that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of
Israel. (Ex 17:6) It was here at Horeb, which stands just before Sinai, that God
granted mercy to the people of life-giving water. It was also at Horeb God
appeared unto Moses in the Burning Bush with the appointment to go down into
Egypt and lead His people out of bondage. Both Sinai and Horeb are
referred to as the Mountain of the Lord – one (Sinai) represents LAW, the
other, Mercy. Mercy has been fulfilled in our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Moreover,
brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were
under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; 2 And
were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; 3 And
did all eat the same spiritual meat; 4 And
did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock
that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. (1 Cor 10:1-4) God always places mercy above the law just as the Mercy Seat is
above the Ark of the Covenant behind the Temple Veil.
On
Jordan’s Bank, the Baptist’s Cry
On Jordan’s bank the Baptist’s cry
Announces that the Lord is nigh;
Come, then, and hearken, for he brings
Glad tidings from the King of kings!
Then cleansed be every breast from sin;
Make straight the way for God within;
Prepare we in our hearts a home,
Where such a mighty guest may come.
For Thou art our salvation, Lord,
Our refuge, and our great reward.
Without Thy grace our souls must fade
And wither like a flower decayed.
Stretch forth Thine hand, to heal our sore,
And make us rise and fall no more;
Once more upon Thy people shine,
And fill the world with love divine.
To Him who left the throne of Heaven
To save mankind, all praise be given;
Like praise be to the Father done,
And Holy Spirit, Three in One.
On
Jordan’s bank the Baptist’s cry Announces that the Lord is nigh; Come, then,
and hearken, for he brings Glad tidings from the King of kings! To many
in Israel, the message John bare was not at all glad tidings. The Jewish rulers
had everything just the way they wanted it. They were the undisputed
authorities in matters spiritual, and the keepers of the Temple treasury. Their
vision and love were seared by their own greed and covetousness. But the people
themselves were drawn to John by a different net – their hearts had longed to
hear this message from long ago, and now, John seemed to bring it to them in
terms that ordinary men could grasp. John was the emissary and vicegerent for
the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
Then
cleansed be every breast from sin; Make straight the way for God within;
Prepare we in our hearts a home, Where such a mighty guest may come.
Unfortunately, many have dull ears to hear, and dim vision to see. But those to
whom the quickening voice comes and is comprehended – those He cleanses from
all sin. So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word
of God. (Romans 10:17) There is a straight line
from the lips of God to the heart of the called of the Lord. The hearts of the
people of God are the home in which the Holy Ghost resides. He will allow no
clutter of sin or uncleanness in His presence.
For
Thou art our salvation, Lord, Our refuge, and our great reward. Without Thy
grace our souls must fade And wither like a flower decayed.
There is only one hope of salvation, and that is in the Lord Jesus Christ. Neither
is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven
given among men, whereby we must be saved. (Acts 4:12) He is as surely our Ark of Salvation as was the Ark of Noah to
the people who then were. We are nothing more than dust without the Lord. We
are dead before we ever come to know Him, but His Holy Spirit makes us alive
through the means of GRACE! The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because
the spirit of the Lord bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass.The
grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for
ever. (Isaiah 40:7-8) That Word has never
changed despite the feeble attempts of wicked profiteers who sell corrupt new
versions of it.
Stretch
forth Thine hand, to heal our sore, And make us rise and fall no more; Once
more upon Thy people shine, And fill the world with love divine.
We have a greater hurt than a mere sore! We have the leprosy of sin indwelling
our veins that must be cured by the Redeemer of our Souls. Once we rise in
Christ, we can never fall. The shining face of the Lord upon His people is
reflected in the Family Evening Prayer of the 1928 Book of Common Prayer:
T
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HE Lord bless us and keep us. The Lord
make his face to shine upon us, and be gracious unto us. The Lord lift up his countenance
upon us, and give us peace, this night and evermore. Amen
To
Him who left the throne of Heaven To save mankind, all praise be given; Like
praise be to the Father done, And Holy Spirit, Three in One.
Before the Foundation of the World was laid, our Lord was ordained to save the
people of God as the Lamb, sacrificed, without blemish. 18 Forasmuch
as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver
and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your
fathers; 19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without
blemish and without spot: 20 Who verily was
foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last
times for you, 21 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 Peter 1:18-21) At every worship service
in our Anglican church, we sing the Gloria Patri: Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now and
every shall be; world without end. Amen, Amen. This keeps us on a straight
biblical path with doctrinal purity. Behold, as John says, He cometh!
