Were You There?

The stanzas of "Where You There" (LSB 456) each contain a response to the question "Were you there when..." The question ends in the following ways: "When they crucified my Lord?" "When they crowned Him with the thorns?" "When they pierced Him in the side?" "When they laid Him in the tomb?" 

The closing of each stanza is "Oh, sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble." This trembling is not a reference to fear, but rather to the emotional impact of the challenge Jesus faced in His going to the cross and most of all to the realization that the God who created the world would undergo such suffering and death to reconcile that world to Himself.

"Were you there when God raised Him from the tomb?" This causes us to tremble in awe each time we celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord, three days after we trembled hearing about His sacrificial death for you and me.

1 Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Oh . . .
Sometimes it causes me to tremble,
tremble,
tremble.
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?

2 Were you there when they nailed Him to the tree?
Were you there when they nailed Him to the tree?
Oh . . .
Sometimes it causes me to tremble,
tremble,
tremble.
Were you there when they nailed Him to the tree?

3 Were you there when they laid Him in the tomb?
Were you there when they laid Him in the tomb?
Oh . . .
Sometimes it causes me to tremble,
tremble,
tremble.
Were you there when they laid Him in the tomb?

4 Were you there when God raised Him from the tomb?
Were you there when God raised Him from the tomb?
Oh . . .
Sometimes it causes me to tremble,
tremble,
tremble.
Were you there when God raised Him from the tomb?

Text: Public domain

Jesus, in Your Dying Woes

The hymn "Jesus, in Your Dying Woes" (LSB 447) features the seven last words of Christ upon the cross and engage the sinner in a personal way with Jesus' dying words from the cross: "Father, forgive them" (Luke 23:34); "Today you will be with Me in paradise" (Luke 23:43); "Woman, behold, your son!... Behold, your mother!" (John 19:26-27); "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" (Matthew 27:46); "I thirst" (John 19:26); "It is finished" (John 19:30); and "Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit!" (Luke 23:46)

The faithful then pray, again and again, "Hear us, holy Jesus."

With Christ's sixth word, "It is finished," the vicarious atonement is accomplished, and the redemptive ransom is paid. (We will know this is truly finished in three days.)

In life or death, God supplies "grace to live and grace to die, grace to reach the home on high." And with one last plea and the promise of the Gospel, the Church sings, "Hear us, holy Jesus."

1 First Word: Luke 23:34
Jesus, in Your dying woes,
Even while Your lifeblood flows,
Craving pardon for Your foes:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

2 Savior, for our pardon sue
When our sins Your pangs renew,
For we know not what we do:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

3 Oh, may we, who mercy need,
Be like You in heart and deed,
When with wrong our spirits bleed:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

4 Second Word: Luke 23:43
Jesus, pitying the sighs
Of the thief, who near You dies,
Promising him paradise:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

5 May we in our guilt and shame
Still Your love and mercy claim,
Calling humbly on Your name:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

6 May our hearts to You incline
And their thoughts Your cross entwine.
Cheer our souls with hope divine:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

7 Third Word: John 19:26–27
Jesus, loving to the end
Her whose heart Your sorrows rend,
And Your dearest human friend:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

8 May we in Your sorrows share,
For Your sake all peril dare,
And enjoy Your tender care:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

9 May we all Your loved ones be,
All one holy family,
Loving, since Your love we see:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

10 Fourth Word: Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34
Jesus, whelmed in fears unknown,
With our evil left alone,
While no light from heav’n is shown:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

11 When we seem in vain to pray
And our hope seems far away,
In the darkness be our stay:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

12 Though no Father seem to hear,
Though no light our spirits cheer,
May we know that God is near:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

13 Fifth Word: John 19:28
Jesus, in Your thirst and pain,
While Your wounds Your lifeblood drain,
Thirsting more our love to gain:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

14 Thirst for us in mercy still;
All Your holy work fulfill;
Satisfy Your loving will:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

15 May we thirst Your love to know.
Lead us in our sin and woe
Where the healing waters flow:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

16 Sixth Word: John 19:30
Jesus, all our ransom paid,
All Your Father’s will obeyed;
By Your suff’rings perfect made:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

17 Save us in our soul’s distress;
Be our help to cheer and bless
While we grow in holiness:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

18 Brighten all our heav’nward way
With an ever holier ray
Till we pass to perfect day:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

19 Seventh Word: Luke 23:46
Jesus, all Your labor vast,
All Your woe and conflict past,
Yielding up Your soul at last:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

20 When the death shades round us low’r,
Guard us from the tempter’s pow’r,
Keep us in that trial hour:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

21 May Your life and death supply
Grace to live and grace to die,
Grace to reach the home on high:
Hear us, holy Jesus.

Text: Public domain

On This Holiest of Weeks...

In times of uncertainty, we can still be certain of something. We have the sure and certain hope of eternal life, salvation and the forgiveness of our sins by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone!

Beginning with Palm Sunday, throughout Holy Week we remember what the Son of God has done for all of humanity. Now, we remember this all the time, but as the Church, we focus on Christ’s Passion this week.

• §  We remember how Jesus entered into Jerusalem, not upon a war horse, but upon a humble donkey.
• §  We remember how Jesus displayed His love for His disciples on Maundy Thursday as He said, “Take, eat; this is my body” and “Drink of it , all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:26, 27-28).
• §  We remember how Jesus washed His disciples feet following the institution of the Lord’s Supper when Peter asked Him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” Jesus answered him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand” (John 13:6-7). Christ later says, “For I have given you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you” (John 13:15).
• §  We remember how Jesus was betrayed by Judas Iscariot, prayed at Gethsemane, was denied by Peter three times, was judged by Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and buried.

To be continued...

Upon the Cross Extended

The Apostle Peter writes, "[Jesus] Himself born our sins in His body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By His wounds you have been healed" (1 Peter 2:24). Lutheran hymn writer Paul Gerhardt's depiction of the crucifixion in "Upon the Cross Extended" (LSB 453) leads us to the same place, to the healing of the wounds of sin (stanza 5), then to eternal rest in Christ (stanza 7). 

Here are some of the vivid pictures that Gerhardt paints: "Your Lord suspended" (stanza 1), "Your Savior yields His breath" (stanza 1), "To shame and blows and bitter death" (stanza 1), "Blood streams from each pore" (stanza 2), "From His great heart came flowing sighs welling from its deepest core" (stanza 2), "Your head with thorns surrounded" (stanza 5).

The saving power of the cross restores, guides, and sustains each Christian, even in the test of life (2 Corinthians 12:9-10). And even when life is ending, Jesus has led the way to God's great eternal rest (1 Corinthians 15:20-23).

Today, we remember what is so good about Good Friday.

1 Upon the cross extended
See, world, your Lord suspended.
Your Savior yields His breath.
The Prince of Life from heaven
Himself has freely given
To shame and blows and bitter death.

2 Come, see these things and ponder,
Your soul will fill with wonder
As blood streams from each pore.
Through grief beyond all knowing
From His great heart came flowing
Sighs welling from its deepest core.

3 Who is it, Lord, that bruised You?
Who has so sore abused You
And caused You all Your woe?
We all must make confession
Of sin and dire transgression
While You no ways of evil know.

4 I caused Your grief and sighing
By evils multiplying
As countless as the sands.
I caused the woes unnumbered
With which Your soul is cumbered,
Your sorrows raised by wicked hands.

5 Your soul in griefs unbounded,
Your head with thorns surrounded,
You died to ransom me.
The cross for me enduring,
The crown for me securing,
You healed my wounds and set me free.

6 Your cords of love, my Savior,
Bind me to You forever,
I am no longer mine.
To You I gladly tender
All that my life can render
And all I have to You resign.

7 Your cross I place before me;
Its saving pow’r restore me,
Sustain me in the test.
It will, when life is ending,
Be guiding and attending
My way to Your eternal rest.

Text: Public domain

O Dearest Jesus, What Law Hast Thou Broken

Before Paul Gerhardt, Johann Heermann (1585-1647) was the most important Lutheran hymn writer. He wrote more than 400 hymns. One of his hymns is "O Dearest Jesus, What Law Hast Thou Broken" (LSB 439). 

The first seven stanzas narrate events in the Passion history: "They crown Thy head with thorns, they smite, they scourge Thee" (stanza 2). Stanzas 8-14 deal with a believer's actions that follow saving faith. The final stanza speaks of the fulfillment of the new life of the redeemed, who have not been saved because of Jesus' trip to the cross.

For many congregations, this is the hymn that is played during the stripping of the altar on Maundy Thursday. What law hast Thou broken? Jesus, the sinless One, died so that all would be found faultless before God the Father. We each receive this gift all by grace through faith in Christ alone!

1 O dearest Jesus, what law hast Thou broken
That such sharp sentence should on Thee be spoken?
Of what great crime hast Thou to make confession,
What dark transgression?

2 They crown Thy head with thorns, they smite, they scourge Thee;
With cruel mockings to the cross they urge Thee;
They give Thee gall to drink, they still decry Thee;
They crucify Thee.

3 Whence come these sorrows, whence this mortal anguish?
It is my sins for which Thou, Lord, must languish;
Yea, all the wrath, the woe, Thou dost inherit,
This I do merit.

4 What punishment so strange is suffered yonder!
The Shepherd dies for sheep that loved to wander;
The Master pays the debt His servants owe Him,
Who would not know Him.

5 The sinless Son of God must die in sadness;
The sinful child of man may live in gladness;
Man forfeited his life and is acquitted;
God is committed.

6 There was no spot in me by sin untainted;
Sick with sin’s poison, all my heart had fainted;
My heavy guilt to hell had well-nigh brought me,
Such woe it wrought me.

7 O wondrous love, whose depth no heart hath sounded,
That brought Thee here, by foes and thieves surrounded!
All worldly pleasures, heedless, I was trying
While Thou wert dying.

8 O mighty King, no time can dim Thy glory!
How shall I spread abroad Thy wondrous story?
How shall I find some worthy gifts to proffer?
What dare I offer?

9 For vainly doth our human wisdom ponder—
Thy woes, Thy mercy, still transcend our wonder.
Oh, how should I do aught that could delight Thee!
Can I requite Thee?

10 Yet unrequited, Lord, I would not leave Thee;
I will renounce whate’er doth vex or grieve Thee
And quench with thoughts of Thee and prayers most lowly
All fires unholy.

11 But since my strength will nevermore suffice me
To crucify desires that still entice me,
To all good deeds O let Thy Spirit win me
And reign within me!

12 I’ll think upon Thy mercy without ceasing,
That earth’s vain joys to me no more be pleasing;
To do Thy will shall be my sole endeavor
Henceforth forever.

13 Whate’er of earthly good this life may grant me,
I’ll risk for Thee; no shame, no cross, shall daunt me.
I shall not fear what foes can do to harm me
Nor death alarm me.

14 But worthless is my sacrifice, I own it;
Yet, Lord, for love’s sake Thou wilt not disown it;
Thou wilt accept my gift in Thy great meekness
Nor shame my weakness.

15 And when, dear Lord, before Thy throne in heaven
To me the crown of joy at last is given,
Where sweetest hymns Thy saints forever raise Thee,
I, too, shall praise Thee.

Text: Public domain

When You Woke That Thursday Morning

"When You Woke That Thursday Morning" (LSB 445) asks the question of our Lord: "[Did you know] how the day would end?"

Yes, Christ knew. But, notice how the hymn is not directed at Jesus. Instead, the hymn is directed at the singer - you and me. So, this hymn is about our reflection upon that original Maundy Thursday. Upon this reflection, we remember what the institution of the Lord's Supper truly is: Christ's very Body and His very Blood for the forgiveness of sins, which also strengthens our weak faith. And, most importantly, we partake of the Lord's Supper with unity of doctrine and heart, so we do not condemn ourselves or unbelievers at His table of grace.

1 When You woke that Thursday morning,
Savior, teacher, faithful friend,
Thoughts of self and safety scorning,
Knowing how the day would end;
Lamb of God, foretold for ages,
Now at last the hour had come
When but One could pay sin’s wages:
You assumed their dreadful sum.

2 Never so alone and lonely,
Longing with tormented heart
To be with Your dear ones only
For a quiet hour apart:
Sinless Lamb and fallen creature,
One last paschal meal to eat,
One last lesson as their teacher,
Washing Your disciples’ feet.

3 What was there that You could give them
That would never be outspent,
What great gift that would outlive them,
What last will and testament?
“Show Me and the world you love Me,
Know Me as the Lamb of God:
Do this in remembrance of Me,
Eat this body, drink this blood.”

4 One in faith, in love united,
All one body, You the head,
When we meet, by You invited,
You are with us, as You said.
One with You and one another
In a unity sublime,
See in us Your sister, brother,
One in ev’ry place and time.

5 One day all the Church will capture
That bright vision glorious,
And Your saints will know the rapture
That Your heart desired for us,
When the longed-for peace and union
Of the Greatest and the least
Meet in joyous, blest communion
In Your never-ending feast.

Text: © 1991 Concordia Publishing House. Used by permission: CPH Limited Promotional License no. 119000000

Jesus, I Will Ponder Now

The hymn "Jesus, I Will Ponder Now" (LSB 440) is personal. Note the lyrics: "I will ponder now... Your Spirit me endow... that I in love and faith... that I may not perish. Make me see... make me see... ah! I also and my sin... Grant that I your passion view with repentant grieving." This is an expression of personal faith.

The first stanza is a prayer for the Holy Spirit to help the singer meditate or ponder on the Passion of Christ. The second stanza proceeds to review the facts of the Passion. The third stanza identifies the sin of the world as the cause of Christ's Passion.

The last three stanzas are a prayer for Christ's Passion to have its proper effect as a help in fighting against sin, overcoming the grieving of conscience, and enduring suffering with a thankful heart.

Although we do not deserve forgiveness, Jesus accomplished forgiveness for our sake upon the cross and with His resurrection from the grave. We each receive this forgiveness by grace through faith in Jesus alone. Because of this, Jesus, I will ponder now.

1 Jesus, I will ponder now
On Your holy passion;
With Your Spirit me endow
For such meditation.
Grant that I in love and faith
May the image cherish
Of Your suff’ring, pain, and death
That I may not perish.

2 Make me see Your great distress,
Anguish, and affliction,
Bonds and stripes and wretchedness
And Your crucifixion;
Make me see how scourge and rod,
Spear and nails did wound You,
How for them You died, O God,
Who with thorns had crowned You.

3 Yet, O Lord, not thus alone
Make me see Your passion,
But its cause to me make known
And its termination.
Ah! I also and my sin
Wrought Your deep affliction;
This indeed the cause has been
Of Your crucifixion.

4 Grant that I Your passion view
With repentant grieving.
Let me not bring shame to You
By unholy living.
How could I refuse to shun
Ev’ry sinful pleasure
Since for me God’s only Son
Suffered without measure?

5 If my sins give me alarm
And my conscience grieve me,
Let Your cross my fear disarm;
Peace of conscience give me.
Help me see forgiveness won
By Your holy passion.
If for me He slays His Son,
God must have compassion!

6 Graciously my faith renew;
Help me bear my crosses,
Learning humbleness from You,
Peace mid pain and losses.
May I give You love for love!
Hear me, O my Savior,
That I may in heav’n above
Sing Your praise forever.

Text: Public domain

Go to Dark Gethsemane

When James Montgomery (1771-1854) wrote "Go to Dark Gethsemane" (LSB 436) he first called it "Christ our example in suffering." The author wrote his text as a meditation upon the Passion of Christ that we remember especially each Holy Week.

In the hymn, the Gospel invites us to contemplate Christ in His Passion as our Savior from sin. The Law is also presented as a model for Christian living. Each stanza concludes with a final command that presents a lesson to be learned from critical moments in Jesus' life from Maundy Thursday to Easter.

1 Go to dark Gethsemane,
All who feel the tempter’s pow’r;
Your Redeemer’s conflict see,
Watch with Him one bitter hour;
Turn not from His griefs away;
Learn from Jesus Christ to pray.

2 Follow to the judgment hall,
View the Lord of life arraigned;
Oh, the wormwood and the gall!
Oh, the pangs His soul sustained!
Shun not suff’ring, shame, or loss;
Learn from Him to bear the cross.

3 Calv’ry’s mournful mountain climb;
There, adoring at His feet,
Mark that miracle of time,
God’s own sacrifice complete.
“It is finished!” hear Him cry;
Learn from Jesus Christ to die.

4 Early hasten to the tomb
Where they laid His breathless clay;
All is solitude and gloom.
Who has taken Him away?
Christ is ris’n! He meets our eyes.
Savior, teach us so to rise.

Text: Public domain

See also: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIFUJFj833k for an instrumental version of this hymn.

Stricken, Smitten, and Afflicted for Us

Isaiah 53:3–6
He was despised and rejected by men;
a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
But he was wounded for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his stripes we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned every one to his own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.

"Stricken, Smitten, and Afflicted" (LSB 451) begins with the language of the suffering servant. Not only would the Christ be despised and rejected by men, but the reference to the "tree" calls to mind the words of the Law quoted in Galatians 3:13, "Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree." This One who is dying bears the curse of the fall in order to redeem fallen humanity - you and me. 

Jesus has borne away the sins of the world, canceling them by His blood, declaring us not guilty. Therefore, we can stake our lives on Christ with the utmost confidence, for "whoever believes in Him will not be put to shame" (Romans 9:33).

1 Stricken, smitten, and afflicted,
See Him dying on the tree!
’Tis the Christ, by man rejected;
Yes, my soul, ’tis He, ’tis He!
’Tis the long-expected Prophet,
David’s Son, yet David’s Lord;
Proofs I see sufficient of it:
’Tis the true and faithful Word.

2 Tell me, ye who hear Him groaning,
Was there ever grief like His?
Friends through fear His cause disowning,
Foes insulting His distress;
Many hands were raised to wound Him,
None would intervene to save;
But the deepest stroke that pierced Him
Was the stroke that justice gave.

3 Ye who think of sin but lightly
Nor suppose the evil great
Here may view its nature rightly,
Here its guilt may estimate.
Mark the sacrifice appointed,
See who bears the awful load;
’Tis the Word, the Lord’s anointed,
Son of Man and Son of God.

4 Here we have a firm foundation,
Here the refuge of the lost:
Christ, the Rock of our salvation,
Is the name of which we boast;
Lamb of God, for sinners wounded,
Sacrifice to cancel guilt!
None shall ever be confounded
Who on Him their hope have built.

Text: Public domain

The King Marches to Victory

The stanzas of "No Tramp of Soldiers' Marching Feet" (LSB 444) move from describing what Jesus' entry is not, to what it is, to where it leads, and finally to the result of Jesus' death and resurrection. For Christ's final week before His exultation: it begins in jubilation (not in victory), continues in humble suffering, and ends in triumph by His eternal reign in heaven!

The King of glory (Psalm 24:9), who bore the cross and all its pains as a servant (Philippians 2:5-11), now reigns "in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness."

Through Christ alone, we all sing for joy that the King stands victorious over the powers of sin, death and Satan!

"Behold, behold your King!" (John 19:14)

1 No tramp of soldiers’ marching feet
With banners and with drums,
No sound of music’s martial beat:
“The King of glory comes!”
To greet what pomp of kingly pride
No bells in triumph ring,
No city gates swing open wide:
“Behold, behold your King!”

2 And yet He comes. The children cheer;
With palms His path is strown.
With ev’ry step the cross draws near:
The King of glory’s throne.
Astride a colt He passes by
As loud hosannas ring,
Or else the very stones would cry
“Behold, behold your King!”

3 What fading flow’rs His road adorn;
The palms, how soon laid down!
No bloom or leaf but only thorn
The King of glory’s crown.
The soldiers mock, the rabble cries,
The streets with tumult ring,
As Pilate to the mob replies,
“Behold, behold your King!”

4 Now He who bore for mortals’ sake
The cross and all its pains
And chose a servant’s form to take,
The King of glory reigns.
Hosanna to the Savior’s name
Till heaven’s rafters ring,
And all the ransomed host proclaim
“Behold, behold your King!”

Text: © 1984 Hope Publishing Co. Used by permission: CPH Limited Promotional License no. 119000000