Wayfaring Stranger: Part I

One of my favorite hymns is “I Am A Poor Wayfaring Stranger.” In case you are unfamiliar with it, you can read the lyrics and hear a MIDI of it at Cyberhymnal here (beware of the auto-playing music).

The tune is a traditional melody, that I’ve heard possibly came from either early Irish settlers or slave spirituals. I’ve come across many variations of the lyrics, but the ones I were raised on are the Richard W. Adams lyrics, which are the ones on Cyberhymnal:

I am a poor wayfaring stranger,
While traveling through this world of woe.

A key idea in Christianity (and other religions) is that this present material world is not the final thing- we are only travelers, and our destination is far better than this imperfect world. That leads us to another common idea: this world is flawed and fallen.

Living in the United States (or any other developed country) often makes it hard to grasp this concept that this is a broken and marred world. Our lives are so comfortable and secure, it’s hard to appreciate the thought that we go to  a place far better than here.

Yet, this place is a “world of woe.” The poor and suffering far outnumber the privileged few who have safe and easy lives. Drought, disease, disaster, poverty, and famine plague the world, and these poor people are the ones hit by it, not us. To these people, this different, better world that is our destination speaks volumes to them. They understand that this world is not perfect; they understand how much suffering is in the world. And the hope of someplace better when this world has past means more to them than it can possibly mean to us.

Yet there’s no sickness, toil nor danger
In that bright world to which I go.

The world to where we are traveling will not be fallen and full of suffering. It is a perfect world. Sin, which causes all the evil and suffering in the world, will not exist there- it has been washed by the blood of the Lamb. The world will be back in line with God’s plan and ideal, before pride and rebellion broke the world. It is in that holy land that we have our citizenship, not this suffering, sinful rock.

I’m going there to see my Father;
I’m going there no more to roam.

God himself dwells in that land, and when we get there we will see Him face to face. And when that happens, all our sufferings, all our trials, all our insurmountable problems that we had here on earth will vanish in an instant, and we will realize that our Father has been with us all along, strengthening and protecting us all the way. We will realize how much He loves us and how much He helped us. And we will dwell in His house, forever.

When we reach that land, there will be no more need for tireless, unhappy roaming far away from home. There will be no sad goodbyes, and no long, painful separations. We will be eternally home, with the ones we love and the One whom loves us.

I’m only going over Jordan,
I’m only going over home.

Where is this land to where we are going? It isn’t far. It is merely just across the Jordan, just pass that symbolic river that symbolizes death and finally going out of this world of suffering. For the righteous, death isn’t a bad thing, it’s merely finally passing into the next world, into the better country.

It’s only going home.

Come Home

Recently I’ve been thinking about the attitude regarding evangelism or invitation I’ve had on the site, in the comments and in posts. Right now the current thoughts I’ve wrote about can be summed up in this quote from a post I wrote a month ago titled “The Perfect Judge and Amazing Grace”:

Christians are called to preach the good news, not fire and brimstone. Although warnings may be necessary at times, we need to keep ourselves from passing judgments on others by ordering them to get saved or face hellfire. However, I know that I personally am not even close to perfect, and that I need forgiveness from my sins; I need a savior. We shouldn’t require this feeling of others, but simply spread the good news that, if they also need forgiveness from their sins, they shall find a savior in Jesus Christ the Messiah.

I’m not entirely sure if this is the right stance to take. It may be too lackadaisical or apathetic; what I’m essentially saying is “If you need Jesus, He’s here. Just come to Him whenever you want to, if you feel like it.” This is not how it should be at all.

The message of the Gospel is an immensely important message, and an urgent mesage. If we Christians are correct, we are dealing with the fate of immortal souls. Souls that are in danger, and will be hard pressed to save themselves. Even if one ultimately ends up rejecting Christianity, the extreme and dire claims that it makes, coupled with Chrisitan apologetics, should at least persuade someone to think very long and very hard about the issue.

We should look to the Bible for examples of how we should evangelize. When Jesus began His ministry in Mark 1, He “came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” Jesus wasn’t simply calling those who felt they needed a savior, He was convicting and then calling everyone.

Three years later, soon after Jesus had been crucified, and after His resurrection and ascension, the apostle Peter finished preaching to a gathering of Jews at the Jewish feast of Pentecost:

“Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”

With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

Peter wasn’t saying “Come to Jesus if you need to, and if not, that’ll be fine too.” No, Peter was saying, warning, pleading that his audience come to Christ. He knew the dire consequences of rejecting Christ, so out of love he begged people to turn to Christ.

That is a very important point to remember. The Gospel is a message of urgency, but it is a message of love. “Love your neighbor” is the second greatest commandment (only behind “Love God”), and the Parable of the Good Samaritan certainly shows that it applies to those we evangelize to. We must make sure to preach the Gospel with love, not with threats.

How then should we preach the Gospel? This urgent message can’t be preached by simply saying “Jesus is here if you need Him,” but we also have to be sure to spread the good news in love. What is the solution?

I believe the old, well-known, and well-loved hymn “Softly and Tenderly” states the answer better than I have the ability to do. Here are the lyrics, and the melody available at The Cyber Hymnal here (beware of auto-playing music):

Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling,
Calling for you and for me;
See, on the portals He’s waiting and watching,
Watching for you and for me.

Why should we tarry when Jesus is pleading,
Pleading for you and for me?
Why should we linger and heed not His mercies,
Mercies for you and for me?

Time is now fleeting, the moments are passing,
Passing from you and from me;
Shadows are gathering, deathbeds are coming,
Coming for you and for me.

O for the wonderful love He has promised,
Promised for you and for me!
Though we have sinned, He has mercy and pardon,
Pardon for you and for me.

Come home, come home,
You who are weary, come home;
Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
Calling, O sinner, come home!

Jesus is calling, waiting, watching, pleading for you to come to Him. You don’t have forever; we know that life is but a vapor that vanishes in an instant – either tomorrow, or today, or eighty years from now. Nothing can save you from the wrath of God against your sins except the blood of Jesus, which he freely offered out of love for you. Don’t tarry. Accept the gift. It is an issue of urgent and vital importance.

The Two Crosses

I was thinking about the hymn “The Old Rugged Cross” the other day. For those of you who don’t know it, the lyrics and a MIDI file playing it can be found here (the MIDI file is auto-playing, so be careful if you’re in a place where you need to be quiet).

When people sing the line “I will cling to the old rugged cross,” most probably sing about the cross Jesus died on. This is certainly a worthy thing to cling to, and may be the song’s original message. However, I believe there is a double meaning.

There are two crosses we must cling two. First, like the song stipulates, there is the cross of Jesus. Literally, this is the cross Jesus died on, after being betrayed and denied by his disciples and friends. Figuratively, this cross represents the atonement for sin. Our sin; yours and mine. Paradoxically, this cruel cross also represents God’s love for us- how He sent His only Son to die for us, and how Jesus could have easily escaped His fate, but chose not to. We must cling to and cherish this cross, for all it represents of suffering and love.

There is another cross, though, that we must also cling to. This is our own personal cross. Instead of bearing our sin, we bear the responsibility of its forgiveness. Since God gave us this marvelous gift, we must try to use it to the best of our ability.

This means we need to give our lives to God, for without his forgiveness, we wouldn’t even have our lives. We need to try our hardest to do what he wants us to do, we need to resist temptation with all our might, and finally we need to tell others of the good news of the forgiveness.

Many obstacles come with this cross. For early Christians, and still some Christians around the world, this cross comes with the threat of torture and death. Our dangers are much less severe, yet for some reason we still have a hard time clinging to the cross (sometimes a harder time than Christians facing death).

When you sing “The Old Rugged Cross,” you are singing that you will cling to your own cross. You are saying that you will cherish the difficulty and the suffering we undergo for trying to follow Jesus. This is a big statement. Be sure you don’t make it unless you mean it.

One final thing. This effort will not go unrewarded. As the song says, we will someday exchange our sufferings and trials for a crown. When we hear the mighty trumpets sounding and this veil that we call real life is lifted away, and when we see that the mighty and eternal God, Lord of the universe, has been bearing our cross with us all along, then it shall all be worthwhile.

Matthew 16:24: “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. “