Blest Be the Father of Our Lord

This Sunday, All Saints' Day, our first grandchild is being baptized at St. John-Amelith!  (She will be wearing the baptismal gown first made for my brother, which I wore when I was baptized in 1955, which all our children have worn for their baptisms, which my cousins and nieces and nephew have worn, and which now will be worn by our little Alina...the twelfth child to be baptized in this christening gown.)  This hymn text is written for this happy occasion to the glory of God at Alina's baptism into Christ Jesus.  I chose the wonderful tune KIRKWOOD by Joseph Herl.

1.  Blest be the Father of our Lord
     For His intended mercy toward
     Our lost and fallen race:
     In Christ, before the world began,
     He chose us in a wondrous plan
     Of His most glorious grace!

2.  Now at this font by faith we see
     Time intersect eternity,
     As here God's will is shown:
     One born without His saving Name
     He comes to cleanse; He comes to claim,
     Adopting as His own.

3.  We bring, dear Lord, our infant small;
     She shares the sin of Adam's Fall,
     A stranger to Your love.
     Come with Your life, invigorate;
     Her second birth initiate--
     An heir of bliss above.

4.  O Christ, by You our child is prized,
     Our little one by You baptized,
     Redeemed and reconciled;
     A spotless robe You freely give:
     Your precious blood that she might live
     Forever as Your child.

5.  Let us no little ones despise;
     In heav'n their angels fix their eyes
     Upon the Father's face.
     Good Shepherd, guard and keep we pray
     This lamb, that she might never stray
     From Your rich fold of grace.

O God the Father, Your True Being

This text is my English translation of the baptism text written in 1941 by Jochen Klepper, "Gott Vater, du hast deinen Namen" :

Gott Vater, du hast deinen Namen                O God the Father, Your true being
in deinem lieben Sohn verklaert                    You have in Your dear Son declared;
und us, so-oft wir zu dir kamen,                   We come, with eyes of faith here seeing
die Vatergnade neu gewaehrt.                     Your tender favor newly shared.

So rufe dieses Kind mit Namen,                    You give Your Spirit in this water;
das nun nach deinem Sohne heisst.               Your Word invites in Jesus' name:
Wir glauben, du Dreiein'ger!  Amen!            "Beloved son, beloved daughter,
Zum Wasser gabst du Wort und Geist            You may as heir My heaven claim!"

Erhalte uns bei deinem Namen!                     In Your strong Name, Lord, keep us growing
Dein Sohn hat es fur uns erfleht.                    In all Your Son for us has prayed;
Geist, Wort und Wasser mach zum Samen      Come, make this bath the seed bestowing
der Frucht des Heils, die nie vergeht!            Salvation's fruit that will not fade.

The Holy Word of God Endures Forever

This text was commissioned by CPH for the release of The Lutheran Study Bible, a hymn on the Word of God for Reformation, 2009. Stanza 1, the power of God's Word to bring sight for those blind in sin.; stanza 2, the Gospel call goes out to all enemies of God, made such by their sin; stanza 3, the work of the Holy Spirit who makes spiritually dead people alive by the power of God's Word; stanza 4, God's Word as Law and Gospel, to cut (Law) and to heal (Gospel) with the result that our lives become Christ's letter to a fallen world. Jeffrey Blersch wrote a tune for this 11 10 11 10 D text and he named it CONCORDIA CINCINNATI.

1. The holy Word of God endures forever

With living truths the Spirit has revealed.

These are not myths conceived by authors clever;

They never fade like flowers of the field.

No Scripture came by human inspiration;

God breathed His life in each and ev'ry part,

So Christ, the Morning Star of our salvation,

Might dawn with sight for ev'ry blinded heart.

2. Christ Jesus is the content of this writing,

The banner of God's love for all unfurled,

For through the Word the Father is inviting:

"O wayward one, forsake your rebel world;

No greater gift I have than what I gave you--

My only Son for sin--that you might know

The distance that My grace stretched out to save you

And make your scarlet sins as white as snow."

3. O Spirit--calling, gathering, uniting--

Come, breathe Your life in all whose hope is lost

And in such lives with power come, igniting

The flames of faith first lit on Pentecost;

To those long dead, the victims of sin's vi'lence,

To all forgotten casualties of strife,

Now speak to driest bones and break the silence--

Where there is death, now raise enfleshed new life!

4. The holy Word of God endures forever!

It comes to hearts where sin remains concealed,

And like a two-edged sword, to pierce and sever,

It cuts the heart so that it might be healed.

With Gospel salve renew us, faith's Begetter;

Write living words, yet not with ink on stone,

But write upon our hearts, that as Christ's letter

We tell of how God saves by grace alone.

By All Your Saints in Warfare

This hymn text is by Horatio Bolton Nelson, 1823-1913.

1. By all Your saints in warfare,

For all Your saints at rest,

Your holy name, O Jesus,

Forevermore be blest!

For You have won the battle

That they might wear the crown;

And now they shine in glory

Reflected from Your throne.

St. Mary Magdalene (July 22)

20. All praise for Mary Magdalene,

Whose wholeness was restored

By You, her faithful master,

Her Savior and her Lord.

On Easter morning early

A word from You sufficed;

For she was first to see You,

Her Lord, the risen Christ.

3. Then let us praise the Father

And worship God the Son

And sing to God the Spirit,

Eternal Three in One,

Till all the ransomed number

Fall down before the throne,

Ascribing pow’r and glory

And praise to God alone.

Thanks to Thee, O Christ, Victorious

Text: Thomas Hansen Kingo, 1634-1703, translated by George A. T. Rygh, 1860-1942.  Tune:  WERDE MUNTER by Johann Schop, c. 1590-1667.

1.  Thanks to Thee, O Christ, victorious!

     Thanks to Thee, O Lord of Life!

     Death hath now no power o'er  us,

     Thou has conquered in the strife.

     Thanks because Thou didst arise

     And hast opened paradise!

     None can fully sing the glory

     Of the resurrection story.

2.  Thou hast died for my transgression,

     All my sins on Thee were laid;

     Thou hast won for me salvation,

     On the cross my debt was paid.

     From the grave I shall arise

     And shall meet Thee in the skies.

     Death itself is transitory;

     I shall lift my head in glory.

3.  For the joy Thine advent gave me,

     For Thy holy, precious Word;

     For Thy Baptism, which doth save me,

     For Thy blest Communion board;

     For Thy death, the bitter scorn,

     For Thy resurrection morn,

     Lord, I thank Thee and extol Thee,

     And in heav'n I shall behold Thee.