Hallelujah, Praise Jehovah Tune to “Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah” 8.7.8.7.8.7.7. Words by Jim Byrd
1. Hallelujah, praise Jehovah, Author of redeeming grace; He ordained to save a people, Gave His Son to take our place. Chosen in the blest Redeemer, He would be our Substitute, He would be our Substitute.
2. Hallelujah, praise Jehovah, May His praises never cease; He redeemed His captive people, Brought in everlasting peace. Jesus died to seal our pardon, Died to save His chosen race; Died to save His chosen race.
3. Hallelujah, praise Jehovah, By His pow’r we live again; Now by faith we trust the Savior, Who has saved us from our sin. We are safe in Him forever, Sing the praises of the King; Sing the praises of the King.
“There are many devices in a man’s heart; nevertheless the counsel of the LORD, that shall stand.” (Proverbs 19:21) *****
From Grace to Glory Your conversion is a greater act of our gracious God than it is for Him to crown that conversion with glory. It was God’s choice as to whether He would give you grace or not, but having ordained you unto salvation before the world began, His covenant with you in His Son obligates Him to make you righteous through the obedience of Christ. Having chosen us unto salvation, the Lord is sure to glorify us. “For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will He withhold from them that walk uprightly” (Psalm 84:11). –Pastor Jim Byrd, Thirteenth Street Baptist Church *****
The Obedience of Christ “By the obedience of One shall many be made righteous” (Romans 5:19). “The obedience of One” has reference to the Savior’s substitutionary, justice-satisfying death, by which the demands of a broken law were satisfied. We know the Lord Jesus lived a life of exact obedience to the law. He always did those things that pleased the Father (John 8:29). But His life of perfect compliance with the demands of God did not put sin away, rather it showed His qualification to put sin away. His sinless life proved He was the suitable Savior and that He met the requirements necessary to carry out the great work of redemption, but His righteous life saved none. The just punishment for sin had been declared, “The soul that sinneth shall die” (Ezekiel 18:4). A perfect Substitute had to be sacrificed in the stead of God’s people, therefore it is written of Christ, “He was obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:8) –Pastor Jim Byrd
****** “Nevertheless at Thy Word” The Lord Jesus boarded a ship in which His disciples had been fishing and instructed them to sail into deeper waters and then cast out their net. Peter felt obliged to tell the Lord that they had fished all night and had nothing to show for their labors, but then he spoke these words, “nevertheless at Thy word I will let down the net” (Luke 4:4). This is true faith. There was no evidence to rely upon. It wasn’t that the disciples saw other fishermen catching fish in the area to which the Lord directed them. No, there was nothing tangible to depend upon, nothing visible to cause them to think they would catch an abundance of fish. Merely relying upon the word of the Master, they ventured into deeper water, the net was lowered and a tremendous catch resulted. Learn this about genuine faith, it hangs upon nothing but the Word of God. It needs and relies upon no outward evidence, it just believes God. Genuine faith believes that the Lord has done what He declared that He has done and that He will do what He has promised He will do. Here is a valuable lesson for all who proclaim the gospel of substitution. Sometimes, due to seeing little or no conversions, we might become so discouraged that we are tempted to quit and ask, as did the prophet in Isaiah 53:1, “LORD, who hath believed our report?” In the text, the disciples had caught nothing so they ceased to fish and were “washing their nets” (verse 2). Let us continue to declare “Christ and Him crucified,” even when we do not see conversions, believing that the gospel will be successful “in the thing whereto He sends it” (Isaiah 55:11). Trust the Lord to do His work in His time. –Pastor Jim Byrd
***** Cease thy fears then, weak believer, Jesus Christ is still the same, Yesterday, today, forever, Savior is His blessed name. Lowliness of heart and meekness, To the bleeding Lamb belong, Trust in Him, and by thy weakness, Thou shalt prove that Christ is strong. --William Mason from The Believer's Pocket Companion
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