The Story of Our Hymns Part 49

When at last I near the sh.o.r.e, And the fearful breakers roar 'Twixt me and the peaceful rest, Then, while leaning on Thy breast, May I hear Thee say to me, "Fear not, I will pilot thee."

A Rally Hymn of the Church

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, Ye soldiers of the cross; Lift high His royal banner, It must not suffer loss; From victory unto victory His army He shall lead, Till every foe is vanquished, And Christ is Lord indeed.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, The trumpet call obey; Forth to the mighty conflict In this His glorious day: Ye that are men, now serve Him Against unnumbered foes; Your courage rise with danger, And strength to strength oppose.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, Stand in His strength alone; The arm of flesh will fail you, Ye dare not trust your own; Put on the gospel armor, And watching unto prayer, Where duty calls or danger, Be never wanting there.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, The strife will not be long; This day the noise of battle, The next the victor's song: To him that overcometh, A crown of life shall be; He with the King of glory Shall reign eternally.

George Duffield, 1858

A TRAGEDY THAT INSPIRED A GREAT HYMN

The Christian Church has many stirring rally hymns, but none that is more effective when sung by a large a.s.sembly than George Duffield's "Stand up, stand up for Jesus." Who has not been moved to the depths of his soul by the inspiring words and resounding music of this unusual hymn?

A tragedy lies in its background. It was in the year 1858, and a great spiritual awakening was gripping the city of Philadelphia. Men referred to this revival afterwards as "the work of G.o.d in Philadelphia."

One of the most earnest and zealous leaders in the movement was a young pastor, Dudley A. Tyng, not quite thirty years old. Because of his evangelical convictions and his strong opposition to slavery he had shortly before been compelled to resign as rector of the Church of the Epiphany, and in 1857 he had organized a little congregation that met in a public hall.

In the midst of the revival in 1858 he preached a powerful sermon at a noon-day meeting in Jayne's Hall to a gathering of 5,000 men. His text was Exodus 10:11: "Go now, ye that are men, and serve the Lord." It is said that the effect was overwhelming, no less than a thousand men giving themselves to the Lord.

A few weeks later the young pastor was watching a corn-sh.e.l.ling machine when his arm was caught in the machinery and terribly mangled. Though every effort was made to save his life, he died within a few hours.

Shortly before the end came he cried to the friends who were gathered about him, "Sing, sing, can you not sing?" He himself then began the words of "Rock of Ages," with the others trying to join him in the midst of their grief. When his father, the distinguished clergyman, Stephen H.

Tyng, bent over him to ask if he had a last message for his friends, the dying soldier of the cross whispered:

"Tell them to stand up for Jesus!"

Rev. George Duffield, also of Philadelphia and a close friend of the greatly lamented Tyng, felt that the words were too impressive to be lost. On the following Sunday he preached a sermon in his own church on Ephesians 6:14, "Stand, therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness." As he concluded his sermon, he read the words of a poem he had written, "Stand up, stand up for Jesus."

Not only did Duffield preserve the dying words of his devoted friend, but it will be noted that the second stanza also contains the challenge of Tyng's last revival sermon: "Go now, ye that are men, and serve the Lord."

The superintendent of Duffield's Sunday school printed the words of the poem for distribution among his scholars. One of these leaflets found its way to a religious periodical, where it was published. Soon it began to appear in hymn-books, being generally set to a tune composed by George J.

Webb a few years earlier. It is said that the first time the author heard it sung outside of his own church was in 1864, when the Christian men in the Army of the James sang it in their camp, just before they were about to enter into a b.l.o.o.d.y battle.

As originally written, the hymn contained six stanzas. The second and fifth are omitted from most hymn-books. These stanzas read:

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, The solemn watchword hear; If while ye sleep He suffers, Away with shame and fear; Where'er ye meet with evil, Within you or without, Charge for the G.o.d of Battles, And put the foe to rout.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, Each soldier to his post: Close up the broken column, And shout through all the host: Make good the loss so heavy, In those that still remain, And prove to all around you That death itself is gain.

The omission of these lines is really no loss, since they sink far beneath the literary level of the remaining verses. They also carry the military imagery to needless length.

A Hymn of Spiritual Yearning

We would see Jesus, for the shadows lengthen Across this little landscape of our life; We would see Jesus, our weak faith to strengthen For the last weariness, the final strife.

We would see Jesus, the great Rock-foundation Whereon our feet were set by sovereign grace: Nor life nor death, with all their agitation, Can thence remove us, if we see His face.

We would see Jesus: other lights are paling, Which for long years we have rejoiced to see; The blessings of our pilgrimage are failing: We would not mourn them, for we go to Thee.

We would see Jesus: this is all we're needing; Strength, joy, and willingness come with the sight; We would see Jesus, dying, risen, pleading; Then welcome day, and farewell, mortal night.

Anna Bartlett Warner, 1851.

ANNA WARNER AND HER BEAUTIFUL HYMNS

In the last week of our Saviour's life, a very beautiful and touching incident occurred in the city of Jerusalem. The Evangelist John tells the story in the following words:

"Now there were certain Greeks among those that went up to worship at the feast: these therefore came to Philip, who was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, Sir, we would see Jesus. Philip cometh and telleth Andrew: Andrew cometh, and Philip, and they tell Jesus. And Jesus answereth them, saying, The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified."

It was the pet.i.tion of these Gentile pilgrims from the land of the Spartans and Athenians that inspired an American young woman to write one of our beautiful hymns, "We would see Jesus."

Her name was Anna Bartlett Warner, and for almost a century she lived at a beautiful retreat in the Hudson river known as Const.i.tution island, under the very shadows of the great military academy at West Point. She had a sister named Susan who achieved even greater literary fame than she, but it is Anna's name, after all, that will live on and be cherished for her songs. We wonder if any child in America during the last half century has not learned to know and to love the little hymn--

Jesus loves me, this I know, For the Bible tells me so.

Children throughout the world are singing it now, and missionaries tell us that the simplicity of its message also makes a wonderful appeal to the newly-converted heathen. This hymn is one of the reasons why the name of Anna Warner will never be forgotten.

An exquisite lullaby, also written by Miss Warner, begins with the words, "O little child, lie still and sleep."

Two volumes of sacred song were composed by this gifted young woman. The first bore the t.i.tle, "Hymns of the Church Militant," and was published in 1858. The second, called "Wayfaring Hymns, Original and Translated,"

appeared in 1869. "We would see Jesus" was included in the first of these collections. It appears, however, that it was written at least seven years before its publication. An interesting item from her sister Susan's diary, under date of February 8, 1851, tells of the impression the hymn made on her when she first read it. She writes:

"The next day, Sunday, in the afternoon, Anna had been copying off some hymns for Emmelin's book, and left them with me to look over. I had not read two verses of 'We would see Jesus,' when I thought of Anna, and merely casting my eye down, the others so delighted and touched me that I left it for tears and pet.i.tions. I wished Anna might prove the author--and after I found she was, I sat by her a little while with my head against her, crying such delicious tears."

Another hymn that has found a place in many hearts bears the t.i.tle, "The Song of the Tired Servant." It was inspired by a letter received by Miss Warner from a friend who was a pastor, in which he spoke of the weariness he felt after the tasks of an arduous day, but of the joy that his soul experienced in serving the Master. The first stanza reads:

One more day's work for Jesus, One less of life for me!

But heaven is nearer, And Christ is dearer Than yesterday, to me; His love and light Fill all my soul tonight.

Although the two Warner sisters lived in a corner apart from the busy world, they made their influence felt in widespread circles. They felt a particular responsibility in reference to the many thousands of young men from all parts of the United States who were being trained at West Point for service in the army, and for many years they conducted a Bible cla.s.s for the cadets.