Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Behind the Praise - May 18, 2008

“All Hail the Power of Jesus Name”
Some years ago, missionary E. P. Scott went to India. He set out to visit a remote mountain tribe which had never heard the name of Christ. As he neared their land, he was suddenly surrounded by a savage band of warriors, all pointing their spears straight at his heart. Expecting a quick death, the missionary pulled out his violin and began playing and singing in their native language the hymn "All hail the power of Jesus' name." He reached the stanza that reads:
Let every tribe and every tongue On this terrestrial ball
To him all majesty ascribe And crown him Lord of all...
The natives lowered their weapons and some were in tears. E. P. Scott spent the rest of his life ministering to these primitive people.
The hymn which so effectively moved this Indian tribe is often referred to as the "National Anthem of Christendom" and has been translated into almost every language where there are Christians. The author of the hymn, Edward Perronet was the descendent of a French Huguenot family which fled first to Switzerland and then to England to escape religious persecution. Perronet was a pastor who worked closely with John and Charles Wesley for many years in England's eighteenth- century revival.
At that time, Methodists were savagely persecuted. According to John Wesley's diary, Edward did not escape his share of abuse either. "Edward Perronet was thrown down and rolled in mud and mire" at Bolton, he wrote.
Edward was uneasy about preaching in front of John Wesley. Wesley urged him to do so several times. Finally, Wesley forced the issue. He announced that Brother Perronet would speak the following week. A week later, witty Edward mounted the pulpit and declared he would deliver the greatest sermon ever preached. He then read Christ's "Sermon on the Mount" and sat down!

Click here to worship along on the song:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=itUNSwS4q9E

Click here to hear an acapella arrangement by Point of Grace:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKT0WZM5aI8

Click here to hear an organ arrangement of the song:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=d54CqTpLW9E

Click here to sing along with Avalon:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucF_C7rYe58


"Praise to the Lord"

The lyrics for this great hymn were written by Joachim Neander
Click here to learn more about this great composer who died at the young age of thirty.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joachim_Neander

Click here to hear the story behind the song
www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7qq_0UNREE

Click here to read the lyrics and sing along
www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/p/t/pttlta.htm

Click here to listen to the hymn played on tubular bells
www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNy8UOvdyNM

Click here to hear a Finger style guitar arrangement
www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0aPO9k037k&mode=related&search=

Click here to hear a hear a solo violin arrangement
www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcOysumrQfc&mode=related&search=


"The Churches One Foundation"

In 1860, a volume entitled "Essays and Reviews" caused controversy in the Anglican Church. It questioned the historical accuracy of Scripture. A few years later this idea was furthered by John William Colenso (1814 -1883), the bishop of Natal in South Africa, who published The Pentateuch and the Book of Joshua Critically Examined (1862-63). This book denied that Moses wrote the Pentateuch, called Joshua a myth, called the books of Chronicles fictitious and disputed the accuracy of Christ’s statements about Moses.
The bishop of Cape Town, South Africa, Bishop Gray, supported by 40 other bishops deposed Colenso for his heresy. A battle ensued, as Colenso refused to submit. A court confirmed his deposition but Colenso appealed to a secular court, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council and he was reinstated. This created a schism in the South African church that lasted until Colenso’s death.
During this time the Reverend Samuel John Stone, one of Bishop Gray’s supporters, was concerned about people saying the Apostles Creed in a perfunctory manner, saying the words without a clear understanding of what they were saying. He wrote a series of twelve hymns, each explaining a section of the creed and defending the fact of the inspiration of Scripture. "The Church’s One Foundation" explains the ninth article – "I believe in the Holy Catholic (Universal) church, the communion of the saints." This series of hymns was printed in Lyra Fidelium (Lyre of the Faithful) in 1866.
The controversy between Colenso and Gray is referenced in this hymn in stanza 3, "Though there be those that hate her, and false sons in her pale" and stanza 4, "With a scornful wonder, men see her sore oppressed, by schisms rent asunder by heresies distressed."
Originally this hymn had 7 stanzas. In 1868 this hymn was included in Hymns, Ancient and Modern with 5 stanzas, omitting the original third stanza and combining the second halves of the sixth and seventh stanzas as stanza 5. Most hymnals use that version. In 1885, three more stanzas were added to the original hymn, giving a total of 10 stanzas, to be used for an ecclesiastical processional hymn in the Salisbury Cathedral.



Click here for an organ arrangement of the song:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=sevx8cvqs5M&feature=related



We'll be singing the words to the tune of "Stand Up, Stand Up For Jesus"
Click here for this song:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=r11Gmdq__-8



"We will Dance"

David Ruis is a great song writer. He wrote songs like "Sweet Mercies", "You're worthy of my praise", "We will Dance", and "Let your Glory Fall".Here is a portion of Davids' testimony:I was raised in a very conservative religous household and trained classically musically. My musical journey took me through boys' choirs and classical piano and very little more in the church than the classic "hymn sandwich" every Sunday. My theological journey took me through cessasionsim, suits and ties and very little awareness - let alone understanding or application - of what I now know as "worship".That all began to shift as a young church planter with an encounter with the Lord as the result of colliding with the Vineyard movement of churches in February of 1987. The proverbial paradigm shift propelled me into an intimacy with God that I never even dreamed was possible - a roller coaster of a ride through the gifts of the Holy Spirit and power encounters - to an awareness of the kingdom of God, power that is anchored in compassion and community that has the poor and marginalized at its center.
Click here for the lyrics:
www.worship.co.za/solo/renew12.asp

Learn more about David Ruis here:
www.davidruis.com/

Click here to worship along with song:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfIBQRT7UVY



"Let the Church Rise"


Jonathan Stockstill is the worship leader for Bethany World Prayer Center in Baton Rouge, La. Also a songwriter, he has written or co-written over 50 songs for the body of Christ. Stockstill has played the piano and guitar for over 20 years. Born in 1981, he started at 4 years old and eventually received formal training in classical and jazz piano. Son of Bethany's current pastor Larry Stockstill and grandson of church founder Roy Stockstill, Jonathan has attended Bethany his entire life.
Jonathan has a heart to train and equip worship leaders and further believes this is the generation that will usher in the return of Jesus. His music emphasizes both the necessity for holiness before God but also the urgency of speaking out for Jesus. He and his wife Angie have been married since February 2005 and together they are a fresh voice for God's kingdom.



Click here for Jonathon Stockstill's myspace:
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=282501685


Click here to worship along on the song:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=32VJeiDwhJE



“Agnus Dei”

Michael Whitaker Smith has become one of the most enduringly popular artists on the Christian Contemporary Music front and is also finding considerable success as a mainstream artist. He was born in Kenova, West Virginia, the son of an oil refinery worker and a caterer. He became a devout Christian at age ten and spent his teens hanging around with a solid support group of fellow believers who frequently gathered to play and make music. After high school, that support group split up, and Smith turned to alcohol, drugs and wild times. He scraped through a couple semesters of college and began honing his songwriting skills. In 1978, a songwriting company expressed interest in his songwriting, and he moved to Nashville, where he played with local bands, including Rose. He was still heavily into drugs and continued using until October 1979, when he suffered a sort of emotional mental breakdown that culminated in recommitting to Christ. The next day he auditioned for a new CCM group, Higher Ground, as a keyboardist. While touring with them, Smith cleaned up his act.

In 1981, he signed to Meadowgreen Music as a staff writer, where over the next few years he provided gospel hits for such artists as Sandi Patti, Kathy Troccoli, Bill Gaither and Amy Grant. He began touring as a keyboardist with Grant in 1982 and the following year, after releasing his first album, The Michael W. Smith Project, became her opening act. His debut album garnered him a Grammy nomination for Best Gospel Performance.Agnus Dei is a Latin term meaning Lamb of God, and was originally used to refer to Jesus Christ in his role of the perfect sacrificial offering that atones for the sins of humanity in Christian theology, harkening back to ancient Jewish Temple sacrifices.

Click here to worship along with Michael W. Smith and a fantastic boy’s choir:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTWFYRA2j74&feature=related

Click here to worship along with Third Day:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbKXJ1Jm_jg

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