All hail to Thee, Immanuel, we cast our crowns before Thee;
Let every heart obey Thy will, and every voice adore Thee.
In praise to Thee, our Savior King, the vibrant chords of Heaven ring,
And echo back the mighty strain: All hail! All hail! All hail Immanuel!
Let every heart obey Thy will, and every voice adore Thee.
In praise to Thee, our Savior King, the vibrant chords of Heaven ring,
And echo back the mighty strain: All hail! All hail! All hail Immanuel!
All hail to Thee, Immanuel, the ransomed hosts surround Thee;
And earthly monarchs clamor forth their sovereign King to crown Thee.
While those redeemed in ages gone, assembled round the great white throne,
Break forth into immortal song: All hail! All hail! All hail Immanuel!
And earthly monarchs clamor forth their sovereign King to crown Thee.
While those redeemed in ages gone, assembled round the great white throne,
Break forth into immortal song: All hail! All hail! All hail Immanuel!
All hail to Thee, Immanuel, our risen King and Savior!
Thy foes are vanquished, and Thou art omnipotent forever.
Death, sin and hell no longer reign, and Satan’s pow’r is burst in twain;
Eternal glory to Thy Name: All hail! All hail! All hail Immanuel!
Thy foes are vanquished, and Thou art omnipotent forever.
Death, sin and hell no longer reign, and Satan’s pow’r is burst in twain;
Eternal glory to Thy Name: All hail! All hail! All hail Immanuel!
Refrain:
Hail to the King we love so well! Immanuel! Immanuel!
Hail to the King we love so well! Immanuel! Immanuel!
Glory and honor and majesty, wisdom and power be unto Thee,
Now and evermore!
Hail to the King we love so well! Immanuel! Immanuel!
Hail to the King we love so well! Immanuel! Immanuel!
King of kings and Lord of lords, all hail, Immanuel!
Hail to the King we love so well! Immanuel! Immanuel!
Glory and honor and majesty, wisdom and power be unto Thee,
Now and evermore!
Hail to the King we love so well! Immanuel! Immanuel!
Hail to the King we love so well! Immanuel! Immanuel!
King of kings and Lord of lords, all hail, Immanuel!
And now, for the rest of the story. . . .
The above lyrics were penned in 1910 by D. R. Van Sickle, an unbeliever who wrote the song to prove that one doesn’t have to be a Christian to write a Christian song. However, God, with His great patience and marvelous grace, turned the tables on him! Years later, Van Sickle was sitting in a service where a choir sang his hymn. He came under conviction and was saved!
"Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, cast out demons, and perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me you who practice lawlessness.'"
ReplyDelete-Matthew 7:22-23
After a study of this text, it really isn't difficult to understand how such a hymn could be written by an unbeliever. Our Lord here is referring to people who are right in their doctrine concerning His nature and about His person, to people who have recognized Him, and who come to Him and say, "Lord, Lord."
Martyn Lloyd-Jones said, "We are all in danger of being content with an intellectual assent to the truth. There have been people throughout the centuries who have fallen into this trap. They have read the Scriptures and accepted their teaching. They believed the teaching, and sometimes they have been exponents of the truth and have argued against heretics. And yet their whole character and life have been a denial of the very truth they have claimed to believe."
We could just as easily say today, "Lord, did we not help at V.B.S., teach Sunday School, understand Calvinism, preach correct doctrine, champion the cause of biblical manhood and womanhood, and we may still hear the most terrifying words ever spoken, "Depart from Me, I never knew you." Oh, we may have known Him, BUT the question is, "Does He know you?"
Before Christ turned the tables on Paul, he had quite the impressive list of religious credits, and he teaches us how foolish it is to boast in them. We learn that salvation is not by ritual, race, birth, rank, tradition, religion, sincerity, or righteous works. It makes no difference what family you belong to, how many great hymns you can write, or what church you go to.
Salvation is only by grace through faith in His perfect work on the cross. Only then can you be saved and truly sing of His love in glory everlasting. And only then will you drop all the other stuff you have been counting on for salvation and consider it as Paul did...rubbish.
Rob