How do you really feel?

“That I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.” ~ Philippians 3:10-11

As we approach Easter I wanted to post some songs that focus on the resurrection of Jesus Christ. One that my wife and I used to sing growing up is Alfred Ackley’s hymn “He Lives”. Both Alfred and his brother Bentley were hymn writers and between the two of them they have written over 4,500 songs. They were both born in Spring Hill, PA, and both worked for a time with Evangelist Billy Sunday.

He Lives!
Music and Lyrics by Alfred H. Ackley, 1887 - 1960

Stanza 1:
I serve a risen Saviour; He's in the world today.
I know that He is living, whatever men may say.
I see His hand of mercy, I hear His voice of cheer,
And just the time I need Him He's always near.

Chorus:

He lives! He lives! Christ Jesus lives today!
He walks with me and talks with me along life's narrow way.
He lives! He lives! Salvation to impart!
You ask me how I know He lives? He lives within my heart.

Stanza 2:

In all the world around me I see His loving care,
And though my heart grows weary I never will despair.
I know that He is leading, thro' all the stormy blast;
The day of His appearing will come at last.
Chorus:

Stanza 3:
Rejoice, rejoice, O Christian! Lift up your voice and sing
Eternal hallelujahs to Jesus Christ, the King!
The Hope of all who seek Him, the Help of all who find,
None other is so loving, so good and kind.

What is your favorite Easter hymn? I am not talking about songs about the Cross, Christ’s death or the atoning work of His precious blood shed for the sins of the world. I am talking specifically about a song that speaks about His bodily resurrection from the tomb. The resurrection of Jesus Christ was God’s stamp of approval on the work of His Son as the perfect sacrifice for the penalty of our rebellion and sin and the only means that we can be reconciled to God.

The Apostle Paul talks about the importance of the resurrection in I Corinthians 15 and in verse 14 he states; “And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.” The word resurrection is used 41 times in 40 verses in the New Testament and it is the lynch pin of Christianity.

I was pondering songs and hymns about the resurrection and decided to thumb through the hymnal that my church uses. At the top of each page it lists the theme or subject that the song is about. I was surprised to find that there are a total of eight songs in the section titled “Christ’s Resurrection.”

While researching Ackley’s song I stumbled across an excerpt from a book titled “Wonderful Words of Life: Hymns in American Protestant History and Theology” by Richard Mouw and Mark Noll. A writer named Nancey Murphy joined a conservative church in Philadelphia and suggested to the campus music director that for the Easter service that they sing “He Lives!” The music director was aghast that she would want to sing a song that focused on personal experience and that states we know He lives because He lives in our hearts. He warned Murphy; “I certainly hope that’s not the basis for your faith! That’s not how you know that Christ is risen! We have the testimony of the eyewitnesses! We have the account in Scripture! We have the changed behavior of the disciples! To say that you just know He lives within your heart is to appeal to experience.”

The book does not share Ms. Murphy’s response. I am sure she reacted in a much more intelligent and genteel fashion then my gut response of; Well DUH!?! Of course I know that the basis for my faith is not based on my personal experience alone. I cling to the Gospel record in God’s Word and the eye witness testimony. But not only do I read of the changed behavior of the disciples but I also see what the Holy Spirit is doing in my life and the lives my fellow believers. What can serve to draw others to the message of the Gospel is the personal experience of the believer and what Jesus Christ has done for the individual. But we all know it must not stop there.

God wants us to worship Him with the total man; the will, the intellect and emotion. This Easter I hope our worship and celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ will be marked with all three. But if the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ does not elicit any emotional acknowledgment of the sacrifice He made on your behalf, and what He has personally done to deliver you from bondage to death and sin I hope you will ponder why He had to suffer and die. The emotions the resurrection instills in me are joy and happiness, but also a sense of sadness of the suffering, pain and agony that He endured for me when God poured out His wrath on Jesus Christ to provide a way of escape for me. I know He lives because He lives within my heart!

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you” ~ I Peter 1:3-4