One of many sources of theological reflection that I feel is uncared for at the moment is hymnody. We are inclined to look to sermons, books, movies, or podcasts as sources of theological studying, and but we don't take note of what we will be taught from hymns. Nonetheless, I feel we might profit from doing so, and on this article I’ll illustrate why I feel that is the case by contemplating what we will be taught by utilizing two verses from the hymn Wonderful Issues of Thee Are Spoken from Anglican hymnist John Newton as a place to begin.
Newton wrote this hymn in 1799 when he was Vicar of Olney in Buckinghamshire. He primarily based it on two Outdated Testomony passages, Psalm 87:3 and Isaiah 33:20-21, and its first two verses are as follows:
'Well-known issues are mentioned about you,
Zion, the town of our God.
One whose Phrase can’t be damaged
he fashioned you for his personal seat.
Based mostly on the Rock of Ages,
what can shake your positive relaxation?
With partitions of salvation surrounded,
it’s essential to not smile at all of your enemies.
Behold streams of residing waters,
springing from everlasting love,
present effectively to your little children
and all worry of desirous to be eliminated.
Who can faint at such a river
does it ever circulate to quench their thirst?
Grace, which as Lord, Giver,
by no means fails age after age.'
In Psalm 87 and Isaiah 33, “Zion” is an alternate title for the town of Jerusalem, however within the New Testomony, in addition to referring to this earthly metropolis, “Jerusalem” can be used to seek advice from the heavenly metropolis of which God's new covenant individuals are residents. So in Galatians 4:26 Paul contrasts the earthly Jerusalem with the 'Jerusalem above' which is 'our mom', and in Revelation 21:2 John refers to 'the holy metropolis, the brand new Jerusalem, popping out of heaven from God'.
In gentle of this New Testomony utilization, the following Christian custom understood the references to Jerusalem/Zion within the Outdated Testomony as having a double which means, referring to each the earthly metropolis and the heavenly metropolis referred to within the New Testomony. That is the custom during which Newton stands, and he says that the guarantees of God's safety of Jerusalem discovered within the Outdated Testomony are to be understood as additionally referring to the safety God provides to all who belong to the heavenly Jerusalem at the moment.
When requested what the heavenly Jerusalem means, a frequent reply is that it refers back to the church. The Church is the heavenly Jerusalem. Nonetheless, the true reply is extra sophisticated. It’s because the time period “church” has two meanings.
As Archbishop Thomas Cranmer famous within the sixteenth century:
“Within the Scriptures the phrase church has two primary meanings… one among them means the meeting of all of the saints and true believers who really imagine in Christ the Head and are sanctified by his Spirit. That is the residing and really holy mystical physique of Christ, however recognized solely to God, who alone understands the hearts of males. The second which means is the meeting of all who’re baptized into Christ, who haven’t overtly denied him or been excommunicated by legislation and by his Phrase. This which means of the church corresponds to its place on this life, in that it mixes good with evil.
In different phrases, there’s the invisible church, which is the magical physique of Christ, and which consists of all true believers (no matter their denomination), and there’s the seen church, a human establishment, divided into varied denominations, during which those that are true believers, and people who should not stay blended just like the wheat and tares in Jesus' parable (Matthew 13:24-30) till the ultimate judgment.
Newton is referring to the invisible church as a result of God's guarantees of safety don’t lengthen to those that should not really his individuals. This then raises the query of who belongs to the invisible church. A primary reply to this query is supplied by Augustine in his ebook The Metropolis of God, during which he states that there are 'two sorts of cities created by two varieties of affection'. There’s an “earthly metropolis” marked by “self-love to the purpose of contempt for God” and there’s a “heavenly metropolis” created by “love of God delivered to the purpose of self-contempt.” The earthly metropolis 'seeks glory in males', whereas the 'heavenly metropolis boasts within the Lord'. The Invisible Church is Augustine's Heavenly Metropolis, a physique consisting of people that reside, are marked by love of God moderately than love of self, and who search glory in God moderately than in different individuals.
At this level one may ask the place the grace that Newton mentions comes into the image. Is Augustine saying that a part of the Heavenly Metropolis is our personal choice to like God? The reply isn’t any.' For Augustine, as for the New Testomony and the orthodox Christian custom as an entire, we’re in a position to love God to the purpose of self-loathing as a result of in his love for us God provides us new life by means of Christ and the Spirit by means of religion and baptism. , frees us from sin and allows us to like him in return. Within the phrases of 1 John 4:19: 'We love as a result of he first liked us.' It’s this gracious, life-changing, divine love given to us by means of the Spirit that Newton refers to when he writes of “streams of residing water flowing from eternal love” (see John 7:38-39).
One other query that one may ask is what does it imply in follow to reside as a part of the heavenly metropolis? If I’m a citizen of Zion, what distinction ought to it make? The traditional reply to this query is given by one other early church author, the nameless creator of a second-century apologetic work generally known as the Epistle to Diognetus. It explains that:
“Christians don’t differ from different individuals both in international locations, or in language, or within the customs they observe. For they don’t inhabit their very own cities, nor use a peculiar type of speech, nor lead a life marked by any singularity. The course of conduct which they comply with was not urged by any speculations or issues of inquisitive males; nor do they, like some, profess to be the advocates of any purely human doctrines. However they inhabit each Greek and barbarian cities, because the destiny of every has decided, and based on the customs of the natives, in costume, meals, and the remainder of their widespread conduct, they present us their great and admittedly hanging methodology of life. They reside of their international locations, however merely as immigrants.
“As residents they share all issues with others, and but endure all the things as foreigners. Each overseas nation is to them like their native nation, and each nation of their delivery like a overseas nation. They get married, like everybody else [others]; begets youngsters; however he won’t destroy his offspring. They share a desk however not a mattress. They’re within the physique, however they don’t reside after the physique. They spend their days on earth, however they’re residents of heaven. They comply with the prescribed legal guidelines and on the similar time overcome the legal guidelines with their lives. They love all individuals and are persecuted by all. They’re unknown and condemned; they’re put to dying and restored to life. They’re poor, and but many develop wealthy; they lack all, and but abound in all; they’re disgraced, and but they’re glorified of their disgrace. They’re spoken evil of, and but they’re vindicated; they’re reviled and blessed; they’re insulted and return the insult with honor; they do good however are punished like criminals. When they’re punished, they rejoice as in the event that they have been revived.'
This quote highlights the strikingly paradoxical nature of Zion's citizenship. Those that belong to it reside on the earth, and but reside in it as resident aliens whose true citizenship lies elsewhere. They adapt to the customs and legal guidelines of the locations the place they reside, and but additionally they reside a really distinctive life in obedience to the legal guidelines of God. They do good, however in return they obtain insults, persecutions and punishments, and when this occurs, they reply with pleasure, blessings, honor and love. They die and but they nonetheless reside.
Briefly, Newton's hymn is in regards to the lifetime of God's individuals. It’s about accepting God's grace, changing into a part of his individuals because of this, and being protected by God as we reside as a part of his individuals.
This safety doesn’t imply that nothing dangerous will occur to us. Because the Epistle to Diognetus makes clear (and as many Christians at the moment all over the world can testify), dangerous issues can occur to us exactly as a result of we belong to God and reside in obedience to his will. Slightly, the “partitions of salvation” that Newton refers to guard when dangerous issues occur to us. It protects us from giving up. They permit us to remain heading in the right direction as we journey this world as God's resident aliens. They preserve us a part of God's individuals till we attain our closing house on the earth to return.
Newton's phrases and the classical Christian theology on which they’re primarily based thus maintain nice promise for us. Nonetheless, they’re additionally an enormous problem for us and for different individuals we all know. The query is whether or not we’re really members of the town of God. As now we have seen, the issue shouldn’t be whether or not we go to church (as a result of one can go to church and nonetheless not be a part of the Heavenly Metropolis). It’s about whether or not now we have believed in Christ, acquired his Spirit in baptism, and allowed him to vary our lives in order that we start to turn out to be somebody who places God earlier than himself and seeks glory from God moderately than from our neighbors. .
If we can’t actually say that that is the case, we should change the scenario whereas there’s time. Likewise, if we all know others who haven’t but believed in Christ, acquired the Spirit in baptism, and allowed God to vary their lives, then the identical is true for them. To cite Isaiah, the message is, “Search the Lord whereas he’s discovered, name upon him whereas he’s close to” (Isaiah 55:6).