A hymn for Thursday (part 1)

What! Never Thirst Again?

This hymn is linked to my last Encounter at the Well post about John 4 and the woman at the well. It is most likely only found in Alliance hymnals and I'll be surprised if anyone reading this even remembers it! So why include this? I like the first stanza and really like the chorus and how it captures Jesus' words to the woman at the well. And the story of May Agnew Stephens is great!
You can hear it here.  The words are different until you get to the chorus, but you can hear the tune. And about the different lyrics, what I have provided below is the original, but it would appear someone has written new lyrics.

There flows from Calvary a stream
For every sinner’s pain,
And he that drinketh, Jesus said,
Shall never thirst again.

What! never thirst again?
No, never thirst again;
What! never thirst again?
No, never thirst again,
For he that drinketh, Jesus said,
Shall never, never thirst again.

Earth’s fountains fair but mock our souls,
Like desert phantoms lure,
And they that drink, the fainter grow,
The keener thirst endure.

This stream from Calvary still flows,
To bless and cleanse and heal,
And he that drinketh, Jesus said,
New life and rest shall feel.

Oh, blessèd stream of pure delight!
Oh, balm for every pain!
To thee I haste, for Jesus said,
I’ll never thirst again.

May Agnew Stephens (1865-1935)
Refrain words and music by anonymous

Mary Agnew joined the Salvation Army in 1890. Around 1897, she began serving as song leader and pianist at the Gospel Tabernacle with A.B. Simpson. In 1899 she helped found the Eighth Avenue Mission, and in 1902 married Harold Stephens. For the next two and half decades she and her husband were traveling evangelists in America, Canada and Britain. This hymn was first published in 1903.

As I said earlier, this is found in the Alliance hymnal, Hymns of the Christian Life (all three editions in my possession). This is one of three of her songs in the hymnal. She also wrote the music for two others, both A.B. Simpson songs, including Living in the Glory (I really like this one!).

Encounter at the well

The pastor who started me on this journey said, “If you take all of the stories about things that happened at the well out of the Bible, the Bible would be a lesser book for it.” I looked into it was surprised by the number of references to wells. While there are many more references we could consider, this will be my final post on encounters at the well. But I saved the best for last . . .

John 4 The woman at the well

1-4   This is the background for this story - he must needs go through Samaria...

5  Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.
6  Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour.
It’s like we are in Genesis: he’s journeying and stops at a well.
About the sixth hour - noon.

7  There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink.
8  (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.)
Jesus had to wait for someone to come to the well. Someone? He was there for her.
Give me to drink - sounds rude to our ears but I don’t believe it is, for she takes no offense to his manner.

9  Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.
She is surprised that he spoke to her at all! She recognized him right off as a Jew.

10  Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.
This is precisely why Jesus sat down at this well, to speak to her.
If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee – If you only knew. He could’ve just said, “Hey, I’m Messiah and I have eternal life for you” but He is stirring her curiosity.
he would have given thee living water – the term refers to running water but this is clearly a play on words, he means water that gives life.

11  The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water?
12   Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle?
from whence then hast thou that living water? – her curiosity is aroused as well as her sarcastic wit – You have nothing to draw with, just how do you plan to get me water?
Art thou greater than our father Jacob – this well has served us for many generations and you, a helpless man who has to ask me for water, you have better water??

13  Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again:
14  But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
In a word, Yes! What a wonderful promise! Just reading this is like a drink of cold water. “I asked you for a drink from this well, if you ask me I will give you a well on the inside, it will give you everlasting life and you will never thirst again.”

15  The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.
“I’m in!” But she has missed something, her thinking is still carnal.

16  Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither.
What?? What does this have to do with living water? Rather than correct her misunderstanding he changes subjects. Somebody needs to talk to Jesus about how to witness, instead of ‘reeling her in’ he changes subjects? What??

17  The woman answered and said, I have no husband. 
Oooh, the entire tone of this conversation has just changed. Can you hear the surliness in her voice? She was interested, but not any more. What is Jesus after?

17  Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband:
18  For thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly.
And here it is! What is he doing? He is pointing out her sin, but not in a mean, hurtful way, he is letting her admit it herself. He is also telling her that he knows her heart.

19  The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet.
20  Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.
She is impressed – this is not just some wandering Jew, he is a prophet. But what does she do here? She quickly moves the spotlight from her life to religion: “Where is the real place to worship?” People do this all the time.

21  Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.
Now Jesus begins to talk plainly: “Your question is irrelevant. Worship is not tied to a place.”

22  Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.
Why does Jesus press the point? He is eliciting repentance - her thinking about spiritual things has been wrong so she must have a change in her thinking.

23  But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
the hour cometh, and now is – ‘where’ doesn’t really matter, only ‘how’
in spirit and in truth – in spirit as opposed to a place; worship involves external things (singing, praying, giving, preaching etc) but begins on the inside, in the heart. in truth, according to the revelation of God in Christ: we approach the Father through the Son; and according to His Word: He has told us what constitutes acceptable worship; we are not free to just make up whatever we want. Sincerity is no substitute for truth, nor is form for spirit.

24  God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
This is a powerful truth, God is a spirit. But this probably means, God is spirit. This is His essence. I am spirit, soul, and body. God is spirit.

“God is a Spirit - This is one of the first, the greatest, the most sublime, and necessary truths in the compass of nature! There is a God, the cause of all things - the fountain of all perfection - without parts or dimensions, for he is Eternal - filling the heavens and the earth - pervading, governing, and upholding all things: for he is an infinite Spirit! This God can be pleased only with that which resembles himself: therefore he must hate sin and sinfulness; and can delight in those only who are made partakers of his own Divine nature. As all creatures were made by him, so all owe him obedience and reverence; but, to be acceptable to this infinite Spirit, the worship must be of a spiritual nature - must spring from the heart, through the influence of the Holy Ghost: and it must be in Truth, not only in sincerity, but performed according to that Divine revelation which he has given men of himself. A man worships God in spirit, when, under the influence of the Holy Ghost, he brings all his affections, appetites, and desires to the throne of God; and he worships him in truth, when every purpose and passion of his heart, and when every act of his religious worship, is guided and regulated by the word of God.” (Adam Clarke)

25  The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things.
Jesus has confronted her with her lack of living water, her failure to worship the right way, and her misunderstanding of God. This is her last refuge – “Well, I know that Messiah is coming.” Which being translated is, “I’m not a dummy.”
He will tell us all things – “I known what you’ve said, but when Messiah comes he will settle this [question of where to worship] once and for all.”

26  Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.
“Yes, he will. And I am he.” Isn’t it neat that while Jesus spoke in parables to so many in Israel, to this woman he speaks plainly, “I am the Messiah.”

What an encounter she had at the well that day! She went to get water, just like she did every day, and

she meets the Messiah!!





This is truly the best encounter at a well in the whole Bible!!! Jesus told her plainly who he was (I that speak unto thee am he, the long awaited, promised Messiah) and what he offered (whosoever drinks of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life). Amen! And in this encounter he tells us a lot about God: God is Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. This is awesome!!

Thinking about my father-in-law at supper last night

Last night at supper Mary and I were talking about different parents we knew who are financially helping their grown children. As we discussed this, we sometimes shook our heads, but concluded, “The coolest thing about this is, this is their life and we don’t have to worry ourselves about it.”

Then I mentioned Mary’s dad. He’s been gone now for 20 years, but we still miss him and talk about him. I remember when I asked him if Mary and I could get married. Yes, I asked his permission. I believed I needed to do this, but I was a little intimidated by him. You see, he had a gruff exterior, plus I was afraid he would say no! I recall talking with a friend of mine about this: “What if we says No?” Hal said, “You just have to trust God.” (That friend is now the Executive Pastor at some mega-church in Florida; I think I asked the right brother for advice!)

Anyway, one day when we were in the car driving back to the house I asked him. I think he was as shocked as I was nervous! He batted his eyes (only family will appreciate this), and after stammering a bit, he said, “I don’t know what you want from me, but if you want my blessing, you have it.” Whew, I survived and I’m gonna get married!

Now, back to what we were reminiscing about at supper. Before we got married he told us, probably more than once, “Once you get married y’all are on your own. I ain’t helping y’all out.” Truth is, they did help us out from time to time, but it was unsolicited - it sprang from his love for Mary and his pity on me! We laughed about the time he offered to help us buy a car: “You just sit here, I’ll go talk to the salesman and get you a good deal.” When he came back to us it was clear that the salesman was a better negotiator that Mary’s dad!

His “When you’re married I ain’t helping y’all out” sounds harsh, but it was a good word. I was marrying his daughter and he was telling me he expected me to take care of her, that this responsibility was shifting from him to me. That was good. I needed to know this, think about this, be aware of this. We did not start our life together depending on her dad to get us through or bail us out. So, when he did step in and offer help it was purely a loving and kind move. And, I might add, a welcome one!

Oh, there are so many stories! We were both struck with sadness that he is no longer around for our daughters and that our grandchildren do not have the joy of knowing the real granddaddy.

A hymn for Thursday

Satisfied

I remember exactly where I was when I first heard this hymn: I was candidating at Bible Covenant Community Church in York. Just before the Sunday night service, I noticed a few people gathered together, discussing something. When the service started, that group made their way to the choir risers and took their places – this was an impromptu choir special! They sang Satisfied. I enjoyed it that night and ever since. You can hear it here – this is simply piano and starts right away.

All my life long I had panted
For a drink from some cool spring,
That I hoped would quench the burning
Of the thirst I felt within.

Hallelujah! I have found Him
Whom my soul so long has craved!
Jesus satisfies my longings;
Through His life I now am saved.

Feeding on the husks around me,
Till my strength was almost gone,
Longed my soul for something better,
Only still to hunger on.

Poor I was, and sought for riches,
Something that would satisfy,
But the dust I gathered round me
Only mocked my soul’s sad cry.

Well of water, ever springing,
Bread of life, so rich and free,
Untold wealth that never faileth,
My Redeemer is to me.

Words: Clara T. Williams
Music: Ralph E. Hudson

Of this song she said, “About 1875, I was helping in meetings in Troy, Ohio, where Professor R. E. Hudson conducted the singing, when, just before retiring one night, he asked me to write a song for a book he was preparing to publish. Before sleeping, I wrote Satisfied. In the morning, he composed the music.”

Click here for more on Clara Williams. Be sure to click on each of the tabs on the right.

Encounter at the well

spring up O well

Numbers 21

Wow! This is a long chapter and a lot happens in it! It is full of difficulties, mysteries, victories, types, and poetry. What a wonderful chapter. Sadly, I am only taking a look at the encounter at the well...

16 And from thence they went to Beer: that is the well whereof the LORD spake unto Moses, Gather the people together, and I will give them water.
they went to Beer – if you recall, Be’er is the Hebrew word for well. This well became so famous it became known simply as “The Well.” And it was here that the Lord said:
Gather the people together, and I will give them water – this is a wonderful promise, I will give them water. I must confess, I live in a land where water is always, readily, easily available. I have no idea what it is to be traveling through waterless places, which is exactly what they were doing. What a precious promise, Gather the people together, and I will give them water. God is our source, our supply, and this is His promise. And in verses 17-18, they found it!

17 Then Israel sang this song
This was an exciting time. I have read that this is the first time Israel sang since Exodus 15. And what is really exciting is we have the actual song! Verses 17-18:

Spring up, O well; 
sing ye unto it:
The princes digged the well, 
the nobles of the people digged it, 
by the lawgiver, with their staves. 

This is a very ancient poem/song. God promised water and here it is! And so they sing, Spring up, O well. But notice the song. God said, I will give them water, but when they got to the area, there was no water. They had to dig the well. But they didn’t just look for some muscle bound youths. No, the princes dug it, the nobles dug for this water. As they dug the people sang, Spring up, O well. And I can hear the increase in volume as the water began to spring up! God said, “I will give them water” and He did! Cool, sweet water. What refreshment! What joy!
18 . . . And from the wilderness they went to Mattanah:
19 And from Mattanah to Nahaliel: and from Nahaliel to Bamoth:
20 And from Bamoth in the valley, that is in the country of Moab, to the top of Pisgah, which looketh toward Jeshimon.
I am not certain, but I am persuaded that while 18-20 are not part of the song, these verses describe in poetical terms this encounter at the well.
And from the wilderness they went to Mattanah – Mattanah means gift of Yahweh
And from Mattanah to Nahaliel – Nahaliel means torrents of God
and from Nahaliel to Bamoth – Bamoth means high place
This well, this torrent of God, was a gift from Yahweh.

I have a chorus book that was published in 1971, and it contains an anonymous song based on this passage:

Spring up, O well, within my soul
Spring up, O well, and overflow
Spring up, O well, flow out from me
Spring up, O well, and set me free

The same chorus book also contains a song written by L. Casebolt, probably based on John 7:38-39:

There’s a river of life flowing out through me
It makes the lame to walk and the blind to see
Opens prison doors, sets the captives free
There’s a river of life flowing out through me

Although I have them, I have never sung these songs. Somebody put them together, altered the melody, and by 1978 it appeared thus, with L. Casebolt as the author:

I’ve got a river of life flowing out from me
Makes the lame to walk and the blind to see
Opens prison doors, sets those captives free
I’ve got a river of life flowing out of me

Spring up, O well, within my soul
Spring up, O well, and make me whole
Spring up, O well, and give to me
That life abundantly

Why all this ado about a simple song? God said, I will give them water. Jesus spoke of  water: the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life and again, He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. This scripture is a beautiful picture of this. Spring up, O well, sing ye unto it. When we believed in Jesus, he placed within us a well of water springing up into everlasting life. Amen! Sing to the well, ask it to spring up and become a river flowing out of you!!

Herman Eckstein

I think about this brother from time to time. He was one of the men in the first church I pastored, Brent Alliance Church in Pensacola, FL. I liked this brother. He was a quiet and shy man who loved the Lord.

Sunday nights, our songs were often chosen by the congregation. I was remembering the night he picked "Consider the Lillies." It must've been on our song list, but I can't recall the list or how it would've gotten there. You see, I didn't know the chorus! 

When Herman called out his choice, I looked at it, said I didn't know this one, then asked him, "Do you know it?" He answered, "No. It just looks like a good one." Isn't that cool?

We didn't sing it that night, I mean, no one knew it, but I promised him I would learn it so we could sing it. I did and we did! We sang it often after that. I liked it so much it made it into the chorus book we published at the next church I pastored, First Alliance Church in Macon, GA. Sadly, we never sang it at the church I pastored in York.

Anyway, I was remembering Herman the other day and thinking about the night he picked this chorus. I looked for it among my song books this morning, found it, and sang it. I really don't know if I know anybody else who knows it, so I have included the sheet music so you can work it out just like I did all those years ago. As you can see, the song spills over onto the next page. Next page? You have to turn the page!

A hymn for Thursday

Where Jesus Is, ’Tis Heaven There

I can’t remember when I learned this hymn, but I can remember sitting at the piano, playing and singing it quite often in the Fellowship Hall in the church in Macon, GA. I love it. And in an interesting note, this is one of the most popular hymns in Korea. You can listen to it here, just a guy and his guitar.

Since Christ my soul from sin set free,
This world has been a Heav’n to me;
And ’mid earth’s sorrows and its woe,
’Tis Heav’n my Jesus here to know.

O hallelujah, yes, ’tis Heav’n,
’Tis Heav’n to know my sins forgiv’n,
On land or sea, what matters where?
Where Jesus is, ’tis Heaven there.

Once Heaven seemed a far off place,
Till Jesus showed His smiling face;
Now it’s begun within my soul,
’Twill last while endless ages roll.

What matters where on earth we dwell?
On mountain top, or in the dell,
In cottage, or a mansion fair,
Where Jesus is, ’tis Heaven there.

Words: Charles J. Butler (in The Chorus of Praise, edited by James M. Black,1898)
Music: James M. Black
Black was an active member of the Pine Street Methodist Episcopal Church from 1904 until his death, serving as a song leader and Sunday school teacher. He also found time to edit a dozen Gospel song books, write almost 1,500 songs, and serve on the commission for the 1905 Methodist hymnal. Perhaps a more familiar hymn of his: When the Roll is Called Up Yonder

Here it is done beautifully in Korean