Sunday's Hymn: Praise the Lord, Ye Heavens Adore Him

Praise the Lord: ye heavens adore him;
Praise him, angels, in the height;
Sun and moon, rejoice before him;
Praise him, all ye stars and light.
Praise the Lord, for he hath spoken;
Worlds his mighty voice obeyed:
Laws which never shall be broken
For their guidance hath he made.

Praise the Lord, for he is glorious;
Never shall his promise fail:
God hath made his saints victorious;
Sin and death shall not prevail.
Praise the God of our salvation;
Hosts on high, his pow’r proclaim;
Heaven and earth and all creation,
Laud and magnify his name.

Worship, honor, glory, blessing,
Lord, we offer unto thee;
Young and old, thy praise expressing,
In glad homage bend the knee.
All the saints in heaven adore thee;
We would bow before thy throne:
As thine angels serve before thee,
So on earth thy will be done.

—Tho­mas Co­ram (stan­zas 1 & 2) & Ed­ward Os­ler

Other hymns, worship songs, or quotes for this Sunday:

• The Church’s One Foundation at The Happy Wonderer
• I Couldn’t Have Paid Anything at The Outspoken Tulip

Selected Reading, September 12, 2020

 

A few suggestions for your weekend reading.

The Church

When Speaking About Jesus’s Bride
“The church (in every form in which it is manifested on earth) is certainly subject to criticism and correction; but, those things must always be done out of love and a desire to treat her for what she is in truth—the very bride of Christ. To speak of the church with disrespect, harshness, malice and judgmentalism is to speak of Christ’s bride in those ways.” —Nicholas Batzig

Christian History

Joshua Janavel and the Plight of the Waldensians
I have a good enough grasp of the big picture of the history of Christianity, but I don’t know the smaller stories—like this one.

Christian Living

Love What’s Near
I suspect Trevin Wax is on to something: “[W]hat if it is in loving what is nearest to us … where we are most likely to find happiness and bring about lasting change in the world? What if it’s in the cultivation of culture at home, with our neighbors, with our church, where the most significant change takes place?”

Bible Study

Context Matters: The Cattle on a Thousand Hills
In the song by John W. Peterson, this bit of scripture is used to assure us that God will care for us. God does take care of us, of course, but this is not how the psalmist applies this truth. 

Theological Term of the Week: Theodicy

theodicy
A vindication of God given the presence of evil in the world he created and rules; an answer to “the problem of evil.” 

• From scripture, the problem stated:

You who are of purer eyes than to see evil
and cannot look at wrong,
why do you idly look at traitors
and remain silent when the wicked swallows up
the man more righteous than he? (Habakuk 1:13 ESV)

• From scripture, a hint—and maybe more—at the solution to the problem:

  In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8 which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight 9 making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ 10 as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory (Ephesians 1:7-14 ESV). 

• From the 1689 London Baptist Confession, Chapter 6:

Although God created man upright and perfect, and gave him a righteous law, which had been unto life had he kept it, and threatened death upon the breach thereof, yet he did not long abide in this honour; Satan using the subtlety of the serpent to subdue Eve, then by her seducing Adam, who, without any compulsion, did willfully transgress the law of their creation, and the command given unto them, in eating the forbidden fruit, which God was pleased, according to his wise and holy counsel to permit, having purposed to order it to his own glory.

• From Concise Theology by J. I. Packer, page 56:

Of the evils that infect God’s world (moral and spiritual perversity, waste of good, and the physical disorders and disruptions of a spoiled cosmos), it can summarily be said: God permits evil (Acts 14:16); he punishes evil with evil (Ps. 81:11-12; Rom. 1:26-32); he brings good out of evil (Gen. 50:20; Acts 2:23; 4:27-28; 13:27; 1 Cor.2:7-8); he uses evil to test and discipline those he loves (Matt. 4:1-11; Heb. 12:4-14); and one day he will redeem his people from the power and presence of evil altogether (Rev. 21:27; 22:14-15).

Learn more:

1. Simply Put: Theodicy
2. Blue Letter Bible: The Problem of Evil
3. W. Gary Crampton: A Biblical Theodicy
4. R. C. Sproul: Why Does God Allow Evil?
5. Don Carson: How can God allow evil and suffering in the world? (video)

Related terms: 

• decretive will
• omnipotence
• omniscience
• providence
• righteousness (as an attribute of God)
• sovereignty of God
• wisdom (of God)

Filed under Apologetics

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