Thursday evening several families in Greensboro hosted a house concert.  They invited Christian artist, Matthew Smith of Indelible Grace, to share his music to a crowd of about 40 folks from all over the city.  Matthew Smith shared his story of how he came to be a bigger part of the music world and an ambassador of Jesus Christ on tour throughout the United States.  A friend in Nashville, TN asked him to consider putting an old hymn to a new tune to see if the words could be used again after many years of being somewhat lost to the Church.  The result of his first efforts was the modern rendition of Come Ye Sinners.  We have been playing this song in cell groups and Sunday worship at Covenant Fellowship over the past couple of years and have been richly blessed by the words and corporate singing made possible by Matthew and our own worship leaders Angie Schinke and her husband, Carl.  After this first success, Matthew continued to put more and more old hymns to modern tunes, many of which we enjoyed during our time with him on Thursday evening.

 

Matthew’s house concert was divided into three sections.  He played a set of about 10 songs – most of which were hymns of the Church that he and his colleagues at Indelible Grace had placed to modern tunes.  After a Question and Answer time where we learned about Matthew’s home church in Nashville, his love for his wife, and some of his personal history, he led us in 4 familiar songs where we all joined in corporate worship.  What a great honor it was to join with brothers and sisters in Christ from across our community in singing hymns like Jesus, What a Friend for Sinners, ‘Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus, On Jordan’s Stormy Banks, and Be Thou My Vision.  The song On Jordan’s Stormy Banks includes the chorus, ‘I am bound, I am bound, I am bound for the promised land’.  As I sang in unity with fellow Christians that I had never met before, I was reminded of our ultimate home, the place where our hearts will sing in unison our worship of our common Savior.  Matthew did an outstanding job representing the truth of Christianity in the introductions to his songs.  He challenged us to live as a people saved from death and from separation from God.  Even our best deeds are filthy rags without the blood of Jesus covering and cleansing us.  Matthew recalled the story of an old Irish man who had lived a full life and lay dying.  Unlike our modern desire to die quietly in our sleep, the culture of the time thought it a great blessing to be able to share one’s final thoughts from the death bed.  This wise old man was asked how it was with his soul.  He responded, when I come to the gates of heaven, I will take all my deeds both good and bad and pile them in a heap and run away from them into the arms of Jesus, my Savior!  May we know the hope that Jesus brings to the soul and recognize that nothing we do is deserving when brought before an awesome and holy God.  When God looks upon us may we be covered by the pure and perfect cloak of Jesus Christ, our only hope of salvation. 

 

Blessings to you ~ Steadman

 

Come Ye Sinners
text: Joseph Hart
music: Matthew Smith

Introduction by Matthew Smith:

When I set out to write new music to this hymn, I was really taken by its lyric. I had never (to my memory), heard the original music, so there was a blank canvas for me to begin with.

What strikes me about the song is that it’s a celebratory invitation. A declaration of free grace. The King of Kings invites us to enter into the banquet that has been fully paid for. “Without money...come to Jesus Christ and buy.” I tried to capture this feeling of celebration when writing the new music. The final phrase of each verse (often omitted from some modern versions) always points us away from ourselves and towards the perfect Christ. Even though we are not fit to enter his presence, we are urged to in light of the slaughtered lamb. Our fond dreams of being worthy on our own merit to enter God’s presence are an insult to him. Indeed, “All the fitness he requires is to feel your need of him!”

But the prideful human heart will latch on to anything that it may. If the only requirement is to feel a need for Christ, then it will quickly take credit even for that response. But Christ declares that he is the one solely responsible even for our desire for salvation! “This he gives you...tis the Spirit’s rising beam!” What a salvation! What a Savior! I thank God that we do not have a mediator who is standing at the portals “waiting and watching” (as suggested by another popular song). Our redeemer is not just full of pity, but “full of pity joined with power!” He takes an active role in our salvation, not only preparing the banquet and inviting us to it, but dressing us up in his righteousness. We cannot enter without it.

May God turn our eyes away from our own ability to please him. May he direct us to gaze on the beautiful Christ, who has suceeded where we have failed, and credited to us his righteousness. “He is able, he is able! He is willing, doubt no more!” Amen.

1. Come ye sinners, poor and wretched,
weak and wounded, sick and sore.
Jesus, ready, stands to save you,
Full of pity joined with power.
He is able, He is able; He is willing; Doubt no more.

2. Come ye needy, come and welcome;
God’s free bounty glorify:
True belief and true repentance,
every grace that brings you nigh.
Without money, without money
Come to Jesus Christ and buy.

3. Come ye weary, heavy laden,
Bruised and broken by the fall.
If you tarry till you’re better,
you will never come at all.
Not the righteous, not the righteous;
Sinners Jesus came to call.

4. Let not conscience make you linger,
nor of fitness fondly dream.
All the fitness He requireth
is to feel your need of Him.
This He gives you, this He gives you,
’Tis the Spirit’s rising beam.

5. Lo! The Incarnate God, ascended;
pleads the merit of His blood.
Venture on Him; venture wholly,
Let no other trust intrude.
None but Jesus, none but Jesus
Can do helpless sinners good.

I thought I would share the lyrics to a song that I started.  It’s not finished but I like the work in progress that it represents.  There’s a bit about my family, my longing for the return of Jesus Christ, and my heart for the world in here.  When and if I ever finish it I’ll try to share an mp3 so you can get a taste for what it would sound like.

Why Do I Cry?

It was 30 below zero in the New England town of Bangor, Maine and we were
warm in our southern home.
You said, why do I cry and your mother told you about the Holy Ghost and how
all our sins can be forgiven.
There's no ambulance drivers on the golden streets of Paradise, no sick
souls once the King returns and sets things right.
We want free range cattle and grass beneath our feet, the sun upon our
shoulders -- no more cages and no more food coloring.
Here's a picture of you and me and you can see I stayed inside the lines and
we are happy -- God bless my family.

Peter and John sat in the same chair as Jesus Christ and His prayers were
answered as they spoke boldly and were then set free.
Jesus, may your prayer for me be answered soon!
I think of all those cold folks out there with frost bite in the night of
rolling blackouts,
The frozen harbor in Boston and the ships full of fuel oil stuck somewhere
off the coast -- Lord give them hope.

I want a living room to seat a hundred and a backyard full of chickens with
a salt lick for the wild deer and Cheerios strung up to feed the birds.
I know there's robot cars out there on planet Mars and it's cool to point
out that pink star in the sky on a cold clear night.
I love the laughter in my home -- Son you really do have the look of your
mother in your brow and its a beautiful thing.
It makes your Papa proud when you ask, why do I cry and your Momma tells you
about the Holy Ghost and how all our sins can be forgiven.

Blessings to you ~ Steadman

At a youth leaders meeting several months ago we were discussing possible activities and events like fund raisers, retreats, Bible studies, camping trips, and go-carting. For some reason I suggested Christmas Caroling as a fun youth activity. I had in mind this picture of young folks standing in the snow singing to families gathered at the door and hot chocolate waiting in someone’s kitchen when it was all over and done. The next thing I knew, Christmas caroling had been added to the list of youth events and I was designated as one of the adult sponsors. Initially I was trying to conjure up just about any way I could think of to get out of having to go. But, it was my idea so our family stayed in town an extra day and tonight I took my oldest son with me to go caroling with the youth. One of our elders at Covenant Fellowship provided us with some tracks about Christmas to hand out that were produced by Matthias Media, and Australian organization that many of us at our church have grown to appreciate and respect over the past few years. We took along some post cards with our Back Porch logo and Covenant Fellowship information listed on the back. I thought no one would show up and we would quit early and go home. To my surprise there were more than 20 folks that arrived at the designated meeting place on an evening that was predicted to dip down below freezing temperatures. I have to say I was totally blessed by what occurred. We met up in a neighborhood just across the street from where our church gathers on Sundays at Bur Mill Park and headed out door to door looking for well lit houses with Christmas decorations that seemed to present an open invitation for Christmas carolers. There were several houses where the occupants said with big smiles that this was the first time in their lives that they had ever had carolers come to their door. We came to one house where an Asian family lived and they said apologetically that they didn’t know what to do… they rushed to the kitchen and came back with cookies and candy for the children as if we were trick-or-treaters. The joy that our group brought to these families was an incredible thing. The memory I will hold on to forever was the picture of 4 young girls all gathered with their family on the porch of their house looking sleepy and ready for bed with eyes wide open as these strangers sang “Angels We Have Heard On High” and “We Wish You A Merry Christmas”. They looked like something out of a post card with sweet looks of Christmas love on their faces. We sang for about a dozen households and then regrouped at Krispy Kreme Doughnuts for coffee and sugar. I had a beautiful evening and one that I will treasure looking back. If you haven’t been caroling, I highly recommend the experience as one that will bring blessing not only to your neighbors but also to you and your family. Blessings to you this Christmas Eve ~ Steadman

I’ve been listening to an artist by the name of Derek Webb for the last couple of years. Two of our best friends here in Greensboro turned us on to this music and I think I’ve finally found some “Christian” music I actually enjoy. You may have noticed in my music list that the vast majority of musicians that I really like are secular and I think the reason is that they are simply more appealing to my sense of music. Only recently have I found a few Christian artists that play the kind of music I love to hear. Derek Webb just came out with a new album entitled I See Things Upside Down. The album has two songs with really powerful lyrics - “I Repent” and “T-Shirts (What We Should Be Known For)”. Both of these songs are hard hitting on the Christian who has pretty much sold out to the social club Christianity of upper middle class America. So many of us call ourselves Christians today without stopping and really having to count the costs. I was struck by the sensitivity that these songs have to the not-so-subtle hypocrisies of the modern church in America. I, for one, was convicted this morning as I listened to this album driving my kids to their private pre-school in my schnazzy Volvo sporting my leather Gap jacket and stopping off to buy Christmas presents at Target on the way to my white collar job. I have it so easy and I really don’t stop to think of the world of hurting folks around me or to simply thank God for just how good I have it. If we are truly Christians, then we have been called as ambassadors of Jesus Christ to love, support, and defend the outcasts, the unlovely, the poor, the hungry, and the needy. “I Repent” paints the picture of how we Christians should see ourselves if we took a good look in the mirror. We need to check ourselves and turn around rather than hitting the cruise button in our luxury cars and heading on down the highway of ambivalence. Webb’s other power song, “T-Shirts”, gives us some poignant feedback from another lens. This song looks at how the world around us often sees Christianity. Webb reminds us, "They'll know us by the t-shirts that we wear, and they'll know us by the way we point and stare, and anyone who's sin looks worse than ours, who can not hide the scars of this curse that we all bear." He goes on to mention the picket lines and the messages on the signs that are so closely associated with Christians as well. This is what they see rather than the love that Jesus Christ conveyed in the life He lived as an example for us. Instead of the judgmental, divisive reputation that we have given to Jesus in this modern age, we need to return Jesus to His rightful reputation as the man of love who gave His life and shed His blood to save all of us from our sins. Thanks be to God for the ways He works out conviction in our lives and thanks to Derek Webb for singing songs that can be a genuine source of conviction for this generation. Blessings to you ~ Steadman