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NASB | John 12:32 "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself." |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | John 12:32 "And I, if and when I am lifted up from the earth [on the cross], will draw all people to Myself [Gentiles, as well as Jews]." |
Subject: Is lifting His name related to this vs? |
Bible Note: Greetings, Aixen7z4; In our church, we sing three or four "praise songs" prior to our formal worship time. Two of them talk about lifting up the name of Jesus. There may be others, but these are the only two I know. You say that songs should not "just say you are lifting him up. Lift him up. Talk of the things he has done. Describe how wonderful he is." Tell me if these songs don't do all of that: Lord, I lift your name on high. Lord, I love to sing your praises. I'm so glad you're in my life. I'm so glad you came to save us. You came from Heaven to Earth to show the way; From the Earth to the cross, my debt to pay; From the cross to the grave; From the grave to the sky. Lord, I lift your name on high. Majesty, worship His Majesty, Unto Jesus, be all glory, honor and praise! Majesty, kingdom authority, flows from His throne, Unto His own, His anthem raise. So exalt, lift up on high the name of Jesus. Magnify, come glorify Christ Jesus the King. Majesty, worship His Majesty, Jesus who died, now glorified, King of all kings. Both songs contain the essential gospel; both praise Jesus for who he is and what he has done. They are simple songs - the first something of a children's song - they aren't pretentious or sophisticated; neither is worthy of Handel or Bach. But I think their straightforward words sung with grateful hearts are pleasing to Jesus' ears: "he said: 'I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me.'" (Matthew 18:3-5) Further, this blanket condemnation is simply false: "You used to sing, [words from traditional hymn, "How Great Thou Art"]. But you have abandoned songs like that for songs that say you are praising God when that is all they say." This is utter nonsense. We sing "How Great Thou Art" once or twice a year. During the formal worship service, we sing three hymns from the hymnal. Watts, Crosby, Spafford, the Gaithers, you name it. We also sing the Doxology. How much tradition to do you require? Praise songs may not be to your liking, or to the liking of others on this forum who seem to think that "lifting up" Jesus' name is pure heresy. But this is a matter of taste, not substance. I am amazed at the arrogance of fellow believers who presume to dictate which lyrics or which styles of music are acceptable and pleasing to God and which are not. The fact that such narrow-minded foolishness is propogated by people I normally respect is especially disheartening. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |