Of the Father’s love begotten

I found this “lost” verse of “Of the Father’s Love Begotten” on Dr. Gene Edward Veith’s blog. Sure wish it was in our LCMS hymnals.

He was found in human fashion
Death and sorrow here to know
That the race of Adam’s children,
Doomed by law to endless woe,
May not henceforth die and perish
In the depths of hell below. (Evermore and evermore)

1. Of the Father’s love begotten
Ere the worlds began to be,
He is Alpha and Omega,
He the Source, the Ending He,
Of the things that are, that have been,
And that future years shall see
Evermore and evermore.

2. Oh, that birth forever blessed
When the Virgin, full of grace,
By the Holy Ghost conceiving,
Bare the Savior of our race,
And the Babe, the world’s Redeemer,
First revealed His sacred face
Evermore and evermore.

3. O ye heights of heaven, adore Him;
Angel hosts, His praises sing;
Powers, dominions, bow before Him
And extol our God and King.
Let no tongue on earth be silent,
Every voice in concert ring
Evermore and evermore.

4. This is He whom Heaven-taught singers
Sang of old with one accord;
Whom the Scriptures of the prophets
Promised in their faithful word.
Now He shines, the Long-expected;
Let creation praise its Lord
Evermore and evermore.

5. Christ, to Thee, with God the Father,
And, O Holy Ghost, to Thee
Hymn and chant and high thanksgiving
And unending praises be,
Honor, glory, and dominion,
And eternal victory
Evermore and evermore.

The Lutheran Hymnal Hymn #98
Text: 1 Tim. 3:16
Author: Aurelius C. Prudentius, 413, cento
Translated by: John. M. Neale, 1854 and Henry W. Baker, 1861
Titled: “Corde natus ex Parentis”
Tune: “Divinum mysterium”, Plain-song tune, 12th century

Text retrieved from http://www.lutheran-hymnal.com

Savior of the Nations, Come

1. Savior of the nations, come,
Virgin’s Son, make here Thy home!
Marvel now, O heaven and earth,
That the Lord chose such a birth.

2. Not by human flesh and blood,
By the Spirit of our God,
Was the Word of God made flesh–
Woman’s Offspring, pure and fresh.

3. Wondrous birth! O wondrous Child
Of the Virgin undefiled!
Though by all the world disowned,
Still to be in heaven enthroned.

4. From the Father forth He came
And returneth to the same,
Captive leading death and hell–
High the song of triumph swell!

5. Thou, the Father’s only Son,
Hast o’er sin the victory won.
Boundless shall Thy kingdom be;
When shall we its glories see?

6. Brightly doth Thy manger shine,
Glorious is its light divine.
Let not sin o’ercloud this light;
Ever be our faith thus bright.

7. Praise to God the Father sing,
Praise to God the Son, our King,
Praise to God the Spirit be
Ever and eternally.

The Lutheran HymnalHymn # 95
Text: John 1: 14
Author: St. Ambrose, +397
German version translated by Martin Luther, 1524
Translated by: William M. Reynolds, 1860, alt.
Titled: Veni, Redemptor gentium
Tune: Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland
1st Published in: Geistliches GesangbuchleinTown: Wittenberg, 1524, ad.
Text retrieved from http://www.lutheran-hymnal.com/index.html

Walk the Line

Today I saw the Johnny Cash movie, “Walk the Line” with Joaquin Phoenix serving in the starring role. I heard great things before we went and they were all confirmed. The studio did an excellent job of showing enough of Cash’s life to get a good sense of the man, but not so much that it dragged the movie out into a full-life biography. The casting was excellent in all respects and Phoenix did a wonderful job playing Cash. He really brought the film to life. Here is an excellent post on the movie with some excerpts from an editorial in the New York Times. If you haven’t seen the movie… go before it is out of the theatre.

Joy to the World?

As I sat reading the USA today at McDonalds this morning I happened to glance at an advertisement. It is for “Joy to the World” an ABC Christmas Special sponsored by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. It says they will “Repeat the sounding joy through the sights and sounds of six culturally unique Christmas worship celebrations. Tune in as the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America brings Joy to the World.” You can find more information here. Now I haven’t had the chance to watch the video promo they provide for two reasons. One, I’m at home and have horrible internet service and two, I hate real player. Please… if you even feel the need to produce something in real player… don’t. Spend a little extra time and do it in windows movie format or even better… do it in QuickTime.

Okay… back to the topic at hand. Where is Jesus? The ad doesn’t reference Jesus Christ or even the Holy Scriptures. Something like this would have been nice: “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. (John 1:14)” or “Unto you is born … a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. (Luke 2:11)” Maybe I’m being picky or cynical. Maybe I have it out for the ELCA. However the question still remains, “Where is Jesus.” The Rev. Paul McCain asks this question on his blog. You can find his discussion here. While he is addressing the errors of Calvinism the point comes across loud and clear. We need to this Advent season ask the question, “Where is Jesus?”