There’s a lot going on in the world today. There are plenty of reasons for people to be at each other’s throats, and quite often we take advantage of it. People are coming down on every side of these issues, with very few in the middle working for resolution. I’m struggling with how to deal with a number of different interpersonal issues right now, wracking my brain to figure out how they got to the point they’re at, and how to resolve them.
Imagine my surprise when I picked up a hymnal and found an old hymn that pretty much told me what to do, working from biblical themes, using thoughts that would stick in my mind. I guess I should clarify that the hymnal was not my first attempt. I have been praying about this issue, and working through God’s word first. The hymnal was a sideline for me, a brief foray into my escape world.
Here’s the hymn I read. I’ll highlight the text in the third and fourth verses that spoke specifically to me on these issues.
Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee, God of glory, Lord of love;
Hearts unfold like flowers before Thee, opening to the sun above.
Melt the clouds of sin and sadness; drive the dark of doubt away;
Giver of immortal gladness, fill us with the light of day!All Thy works with joy surround Thee, earth and heaven reflect Thy rays,
Stars and angels sing around Thee, center of unbroken praise.
Field and forest, vale and mountain, flowery meadow, flashing sea,
Singing bird and flowing fountain call us to rejoice in Thee.Thou art giving and forgiving, ever blessing, ever blessed,
Wellspring of the joy of living, ocean depth of happy rest!
Thou our Father, Christ our Brother, all who live in love are Thine;
Teach us how to love each other, lift us to the joy divine.Mortals, join the happy chorus, which the morning stars began;
Father love is reigning o’er us, brother love binds man to man.
Ever singing, march we onward, victors in the midst of strife,
Joyful music leads us Sonward in the triumph song of life.
I guess it’s important to start from the right place. That place is always praising God for who He is, regardless of my circumstances. God is always the same, even if my perspective changes. One of the sayings I have on my wall from a study we did in Philippians is “Joy in the Lord is independent of adverse circumstances.” In other words, be joyful wherever you find yourself. So, when Henry Van Dyke starts with “Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee” he is putting our thoughts in order. When he follows that immediately with “God of glory, Lord of love” he is reminding us who God is, and why we should adore Him. He goes on to say “Melt the clouds of sin and sadness; drive the dark of doubt away” and to reassure us that the “Giver of immortal gladness (can) fill us with the light of day.” Only God can do that, nobody or nothing else. No political party, no hashtag movement, no protest or riot can fill you with joy, or light.
But it’s the interweaving of the third and fourth verses that really seal the deal for me. “Thou our Father, Christ our Brother” in the third verse ties in directly with the line in the last verse: “Father love is reigning o’er us” (the love of God, our Father), “brother love binds man to man” (the love of Christ, as our brother puts us in one family, and gives us unity). The two concepts together then “Teach us how to love each other”.
How can we ignore this? We as believers, as a part of the universal church as believers, and a local church as members, are to experience this joy divine as we love each other, “ever singing…, victors in the midst of strife,” singing the “joyful music (that) leads us Sonward in the triumph song of life.”
Who is this “each other”? It is other believers, other members of our local body, other members of the universal church. But Jesus goes much farther than that in His teaching. In Matthew 5, Jesus teaches us exactly how to do it when He says this: “But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” We, as believers, are to love and pray for everyone, so as to present God’s love for them, just as He does. If we don’t show His love to them, who will?
