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NOW IN THE HOUR OF DEEP DISTRESS, a Palm Sunday Hymn from the Psalter, 8 April 2025 Anno Domini, the Anglican Orthodox Communion Worldwide

¹ My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?   Psalms 1:1

 

            This is a beautiful hymn paraphrased summary of Psalms 22 put to music by the great Isaac Watts (1674-1748) who mastered Latin at the age of four years and was writing verse at six years of age. The tune is Hurlbut. Psalm 22 is a Messianic Hymn of Christ’s suffering on the cross (verses 1-21) followed by the joy of His resurrection (verses 22-31). It is an appropriate Psalm to be sung on Palm Sunday. It is a psalm of the excruciating pain our Lord suffered in His sacrifice of Redemption, as well as the joy of His resurrection to follow. 

NOW IN THE HOUR OF DEEP DISTRESS

 

1 "Now in the hour of deep distress,
My God, support thy Son.
When horrors dark my soul oppress,
O leave me not alone!"

 

2 Thus did our suff'ring Saviour pray,
With mighty cried and tears.
God heard him in that dreadful day,
And chas'd away his fears.

 

3 Great was the vict'ry of his death:
His throne exalted stands;
And all the nations of the earth 
Shall bow to his commands.

 

4 The meek and humble souls shall see
His table richly spread;
And all, that seek the Lord, shall be
With joys immortal fed!

 

1 "Now in the hour of deep distress, My God, support thy Son. When horrors dark my soul oppress, O leave me not alone!" The 22^nd Psalms picks up where His arraignment before the High Priest and trial before Pontius Pilate ended with a pronunciation of innocence and, yet, followed by a sentence of death by crucifixion. The human nature of Christ yearned for relief, yet His Divine Person demanded He endure to the end a terrible and humiliating time of intense pain and suffering. As the son of Glory hung naked upon the cross, He could barely see through the blood flowing from the wounds made by the crown of thorns the multitudes of cursing onlookers who ridiculed Him with inexcusable, wicked utterances. His first utterance, He cried out in sorrow and pain, “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken Me,’ (vs 1 and Matthew 46). He hung between heaven and earth as His tormentors reviled Him there.

2 Thus did our suff'ring Saviour pray, With mighty cried and tears. God heard him in that dreadful day, And chas'd away his fears. We find an exact description of the crucifixion suffering recorded in this Psalm. “They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots. ³⁶ And sitting down they watched him there.” (Matthew 27:35-36 & Psalm 22:18) The pain of the Son is indeed beyond the dimensions of our comprehension; however, consider the pain of a loving Father at the sight of His Son so rudely mistreated by the very ones He came to redeem! Of course, the Father heard Him in great sorrow. The darkness at noonday was evidence of that grief.  Even in the pains of death, the Lord still was full of love and forgiveness evidenced in His reception into paradise by the penitent thief on the cross next to Him. But now comes the soothing reality of the very portico of death and finality in His great sacrifice. As He surrendered the Ghost, he uttered those monumental words that echo down the annals of all time and eternity – “It is finished!” It was at this point that the Veil of the Temple was torn from top to bottom making our approach to God through our Eternally ruling High Priest - Jesus Christ – the only portal of intercession with God the Father.

3 Great was the vict'ry of his death: His throne exalted stands; And all the nations of the earth  Shall bow 

 

to his commands. The details of our Lord’s suffering recorded in Psalms 22 concludes at verse 21 – then begins the absolute joy of His resurrection and His completed work of Redemption at verse 22. “I will declare thy name unto my brethren: In the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.” His death brought relief, but His resurrection brought assurance of the resurrection of His elect who follow bearing their crosses to the end. Every knee shall bow at His return and every lip shall profess Him as Lord. He has earned the crown of King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

4 The meek and humble souls shall see His table richly spread; And all, that seek the Lord, shall be With joys immortal fed! Whether we serve the bread from His Table, or else beg the crumbs thereof as the poor and destitute of riches, it is still the Bread of Life of which we partake. Quite often it is the beggar who becomes host, and the host, beggar. It is such a joy to know the security of election in Christ. We are His children and the sheep of His pasture. No better Shepherd was ever appointed to be Shepherd and Master of the flock of His ownership. We shall all be fed with the Bread of Heaven in abundance, and the Waters of Life ever flowing from the gushing Fountain of Life. 

  

 Please click on the URL to see video by Bishop Ogles:

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THE CROSS, Sermon Summary for Passion Sunday, 6 April 2025 Anno Domini, the Anglican Orthodox Communion Worldwide (Bishop Jerry Ogles)

 

11 But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; 12 Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. Hebrews 9:11-12

 

            Judaism has its Day of Atonement, and the Christian Faith has its Day of Redemption. Judaism has its High Priest, and the Church has its High Priest in the Lord Jesus Christ. The difference is this: the High Priest of the Jews no longer exists, but that High Priest of the Church rules in glory. In Him, we have the true Day of Atonement certain.

      In the Collect, we observe in our prayer, that our High Priest observes us in mercy and grace, and that 

we are governed and preserved forevermore by His Sovereign grace – both in body and soul. Christ made that certain on the cross at Calvary. Looking from the vantage point of the cross, our Lord looked down upon those who ridiculed and scorned, and those who stood pitifully at the foot of the cross such as His mother and John, the Apostle of Love. But He not only looked down upon those near at hand, but those throughout the centuries future - to you and me. He tells us in Isaiah 49:15-16: “Can a woman forget her sucking child, That she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, Yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven (CUT) thee upon the palms of my hands; Thy walls are continually before me.”

                  The High Priest of the Temple sought forgiveness of the sins of the people through a blood sacrifice of animals, but Christ, the High Priest of our Atonement, purchased our redemption at the cost of His own blood sacrificed for us. We are His Tabernacle, and He is our sacrifice – no higher could be offered.

            The latter part of today’s Epistle of Paul to the Hebrews assures us that “ . . . they which are called might receive the ^tpromise of eternal inheritance.” (vs 15) 

“As all sacrifices had a double object, that is, to convey the sense of pardon, and at the same time to increase men’s compunction for sin, we may consider that these two objects were present in the sacrifice of Christ. Pardon given without some method of emphasizing guilt might make men think little of sin, but this is wholly prevented by the death of the Son of God, at once our hope and our condemnation.” Melville Scott

THE HARMONY OF THE COLLECTS, EPISTLES, AND GOSPELS. 

            “He that is of God heareth God’s words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.” John 8:47 Herein we learn that we know we are the sheep of the Lord if we hear the voice of the Lord in speaking to our hearts. The Church is a family of God who is our Father, and we must bear the likeness of a child to the parent. The Roman penny was impressed with an image of Caesar. The Christian is impressed with an image of the Son. We follow the Shepherd in faith and righteousness. He knows the Way, and it is His Way that we must follow if we expect good pastures and still waters. 

            The Old Testament Law and Prophets forever pointed to Christ as our Redeemer by demonstrated our utter failure of possessing any native righteousness. It was, indeed, our school master. But it did not point to a completely new covenant of grace, but to that same promise of a Redeemer made to Abraham back in Genesis.

            We find assurance that Abraham was saved in the same fashion as we today are saved – by faith in the promise of a Redeemer to come; while we today look back in faith to the accomplished fact. “Your father, Abraham, rejoiced to see my day, and he saw it, and was glad.” John 8:47

            Please note the unchangeability of the Triune God – He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. His plan of salvation has not changed from the day of Abraham – in fact all the way back to the Beginning in Genesis 3 – until our own day. The Old Testament is simply a darkened shadow of its fulfillment in the New. Abraham believed in the eternal Christ. “Verily, Verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I Am.” John 8:58 Herein we see Christ as the great ‘I Am ‘of the Burning bush, and the ‘I am’ of Moses. He is the eternal I Am from Eternity Past to Eternity Future. He is the Eternal Presence at all points of the time scale, but also beyond that created scale of time at the beginning.

            There is no remission of sin without the shedding of blood, but only the Blood of the Lamb of God will suffice completely to redeem us. Do you have that assurance of your blood sacrifice in Christ?

 

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

 

 Names & Titles of our Lord  &  SAVIOR. 

 

A savior is a person who saves, rescues, or delivers someone or something from danger or harm. In Christianity, the Savior is a title of God, especially of Jesus, who brings salvation from sin and hell. 

 

A savior is someone who saves us out of trouble when we are helpless to help ourselves. If we are drowning and unable to swim, a savior is someone who lifts us up and saves our lives. 

 

Our Lord Jesus Christ is a Savior that saves completely – He lifts us up from spiritual death and places our feet on solid ground. He may save us, as well, from mortal danger in a physical sense when he heals us of drugs, alcohol or other afflictions. 

 

He saved Peter from drowning in the Sea of Galilee when Peter exclaimed the shortest and most effective of prayers: LORD SAVE ME! 

 

^{Matthew 14:28-3028} And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.

²⁹ And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.

³⁰ But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.

 

We learn a lot about prayer from Peter. It doesn’t need to be long or eloquent – it simply needs to express our hearts desire, or our gratitude to our Father in Heaven for His mighty works.

 

There is a subtle difference between Redeemer and Savior – the Redeemer removes the yoke and bondage of sin from our weary shoulders, and the Savior saves us from our sinful natures by bearing the burden of our Sins Himself.

 

The Lord is both Redeemer and Savior among other titles.

 

^{Isaiah 43: 2-3}   When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee;

And through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee:

^hWhen thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned;

Neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

³     For I am the Lord thy God,

The Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour:

 

Isaiah 49:26

And all flesh shall know that I the Lord am thy Saviour

And thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.

 

The first mention of our Savior is in 

Luke 1:47 in the Magnificat – 

⁴⁶    And Mary said,

My soul doth magnify the Lord,

⁴⁷    And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour

&

Luke 2:11 ¹¹ For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord

 

In John 4:42, The men of Samaria proclaimed: 

 

Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.

 

And there are too many other texts that declare our Lord Jesus Christ as Savior to list. The important thing for us to know is Him as our Savior and none other. 

 

This is a beautiful title for the One who saves us.

 

Until next time – God bless and Good bye

TO THE HILLS I WILL LIFT MINE EYES, a Hymn Devotion for 1 April 2025 Anno Domini, the Anglican Orthodox Communion Worldwide

 

^“I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, From whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, Which made heaven and earth.”      Psalms 121:1-2

 

            This is a paraphrase hymn of the 121^st Psalm much in the traditions of the early Reformation Psaltery. The wording is that of Marcus Morris Wells (1815-1895) as well as the tune, GUIDE, itself. Wells is most known for his hymn, Holy Spirit, Faithful Guide, for which he also composed both lyrics and tune. This latter is a favorite of mine as it was sung at my father’s funeral.

 

TO THE HILLS I WILL LIFT MINE EYES

 

To the hills I lift mine eyes;
Whence shall help for me arise?
From the Lord shall come mine aid,
Who the Heav�n and earth has made.
He will guide through dangers all,
Will not suffer thee to fall;
He Who safe His people keeps
Slumbers not and never sleeps.

 

Thy Protector is the Lord,
Shade for thee He will afford;
Neither sun nor moon shall smite,
God shall guard by day and night.
He will ever keep thy soul,
What would harm He will control;
In the home and by the way
He will keep thee day by day.

 

To the hills I lift mine eyes; Whence shall help for me arise? From the Lord shall come mine aid, Who the Heaven and earth has made. He will guide through dangers all, Will not suffer thee to fall; He Who safe His people keepsSlumbers not and never sleeps. With Passion Sunday coming up, these words are a foreshadow of a great hill outside the gates of Jerusalem called Calvary where our Lord is destined to surrender His life for us. We look to that hill as the Hill of our Salvation that rises above the mundane plains of worldly vanity. Our help comes not from that Hill, but from the Lord of that Hill. There is none other who can save us but the man on that solitary cross on the Hill. He made the Hill, and all else that was ever created. He is our Guiding Light through a dark and restless land. He knows the Way, and, in fact, is the Way – the ONLY Way.  He not only knows the Way, but He knows the dangers and pitfalls of that Broad Way against which He counsels us not to tread. Though we, of our own frailty, may stumble along the Way, He will not allow us to finally fall from His sure and certain grasp. Then men sleep in the hours of darkness, there is no darkness with the Lord, and He is watchful of His own at every moment.

Thy Protector is the Lord, Shade for thee He will afford; Neither sun nor moon shall smite, God shall guard by day and night. He will ever keep thy soul, What would harm He will control; In the home and by the way

He will keep thee day by day. We have no other Protector than the Lord, and there is none other who is able to defend against every plague and wicked design. Our great Sentinel is on guard duty day and night so that we may sleep in peace. In the heat of the sun, He will shield and cool our tempers; and in the dark night He will be our candle. He has never lost a single soul that His Father has placed in His hands. You may ask, What of the traitor, Judas? True, Judas was lost, but he was never a chosen child of the Father. Judas was likened to many professing Christian who profess with their mouths, but deny Christ by their thoughts and actions. Though the billows of the sea threaten, He will not allow them to swamp our bark. It is by the power of His powerful, outstretched Arm that He saves us and secures our passage on the sea of life.