Open Up Our Eyes -- Chris Brown, London Gatch, Mack Brock, Stuart Garrard, Wade Joyce

 

These fellows were familiar with their bibles…that much probably could be said. There were five of them -- Chris Brown, London Gatch, Mack Brock, Stuart Garrard, and Wade Joyce – who were part of the Elevation Worship Church in Charlotte, North Carolina in 2012 (see the seal of Charlotte here), and they collectively said “Open Up Our Eyes”. But that was not all they had to say to the One their church was elevating. A group of people lifts up a name because of that name-wearer’s reputation, and in this case these five songwriters mentioned several of His characteristics that stood out to them. And if someone opens his eyes to take a look and sees these traits clearly, what follows is a decision that everyone should eventually make for themselves, based upon a simple question: Is He dependable, someone whom I should follow and trust? The response that Chris, London, Mack, Stuart, and Wade recorded also emphasized one other thing to consider: none of us ever has to be alone when He’s in the picture…a big deal when mortality becomes oh so real for each of us.  

 

There’s probably a circumstance or brief story about why these five band members in Charlotte decided to say ‘Open Up Our Eyes’, but it has not been exposed for us to see; perhaps they thought the song’s words said enough about the message they were conveying. Nevertheless, several of the phrases they included in the lyrics provide clues to the song’s genesis. They begin with ‘greater is the One’, so perhaps they were reading what the Hebrews writer had to say about Jesus in several places (3:3, and so much of what follows in the rest of Hebrews). They also refer to the One they trust as ‘mighty’, ‘stronger’, and as ‘Our God…fighting…’, so apparently, they looked to God to help with struggles, an idea that could be found among any number of biblical episodes. But, then there’s also the oft-used phrase ‘His love endures forever’, a pretty common theme in Old Testament history when the people were in a traditional worship space, especially in a tabernacle with the ark of the covenant present, or at the temple, and thus routinely written as part of several psalms (100, 106, 107, 117, 118, and especially 136). But, how about when the people were in fighting mode, when they needed a warrior? There’s one episode, in 2 Chron 20, when a king named Jehoshaphat marshalled the army to fight, and had to instill in them a fervor to take on not just one, but two enemies (Moab and Ammon). At the head of this army were the singers with this phrase in their hearts and on their lips. Can you guess at the outcome of the battle? The men under Jehoshaphat were also under God, and He was the one that mattered most. These men felt that He was with them…there were no foxhole Atheists in that group! The five Elevation worshippers felt the same, for they conclude their own testimonial song with several iterations of ‘We are not alone’ that follow ‘Our God is fighting…’. Was someone named Josh or Jehoshaphat also present as they composed?

 

Jehoshaphat also prayed before the battle (2 Chron. 20:5-12), concluding by saying that …our eyes are on you (God) (v.12). Could that thought also have inspired these 21^st Century songwriters, that our eyes need to be opened to see Him? Could it have also been the episode when the prophet Elisha prayed that the servant with him would see the hills full of horses and chariots to oppose an Aramean army (2 Kings 6:8-23), an army that would be also blinded in the following moments? In either biblical story, God is with those who want to be with Him, to follow Him. Asking to see Him might seem to be a tall order, and in fact it was for Moses (Exodus 33:18-23). But we can see Him now through another (2 Corinthians 3:7-18)…read it and see for yourself how this sight, which was forbidden to Moses, could now be possible.     

 

Read about the group that premiered the song here: Elevation Worship - Wikipedia

 

Read about the album on which the song appeared here: Nothing Is Wasted (album) - Wikipedia

 

See some comments about the song here: Meaning of Open Up Our Eyes by Elevation Worship

 

See information about the seal of Charlotte here: File:New seal of Charlotte, North Carolina.svg - Wikimedia Commons…This file is in the public domain because official item legally exempt from copyright in its country of origin.

Offering -- Paul Baloche

 

He told them to stop singing. What a thing to say, especially if you’re a minister in charge of the music! Paul Baloche felt like worship should be about an “Offering” in 1997, as he told a group that was gathered in a Tyler, Texas area church (in Lindale; in Smith County – see the map of Texas with Smith County in red, here). Is there something that makes God feel like worship must be suspended, like an emptiness or apathy among the worshippers? Paul just looked out over the assembled crowd, and in that moment felt as if something was missing. Most people when they think of ‘offering’ probably think in $$ signs, especially if the setting is a church where the word is often used when a collection tray is passed. But, that kind of offering can also be offensive to God, if you read very far in your bible, like the following: In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord (Genesis 4:3). What happened in the next several verses is clear – murder. But, what was at the root of Cain’s offering that was not accepted? Only he and God could know that. The Lord will know if something is not ‘right’ (Gen. 4:7) with your offering…or with the heart of the giver.

 

Paul Baloche remembered that as he opened his eyes, he didn’t like what he saw, for the people assembled in the church were sitting and seemingly liking the music that he and the band were making. But he stopped the music and said something that sprung from his spirit. He didn’t want to sound critical or judgmental (as the prophets Amos [5:23] and Ezekiel [26:13] did when they said God was disgusted with the people’s ‘noisy’ music), but he reminded the onlookers that he and the band were not there for a concert, but rather to enable worship. Paul admonished them to come with an ‘offering’ of worship, to be ‘proactive, not passive’ in worship. And as he mentioned this ‘offering’, he began to think that there should be a song that actually says that. Consequently, Paul mulled over that idea for a couple of weeks to write the song, and with another piece of the puzzle that had actually already been present, in the form of a song remnant he’d crafted earlier, he soon completed his own ‘Offering’. The chorus he’d actually conceived on the church’s stage – ‘I bring an offering…’ -- was combined with the other fragment (the first verse of ‘Offering’) to complete the song. And then Paul added still more, in the form of another verse, when Christmas came closer. The three wise men once made their own gift offerings, and Paul evidently wanted to remind believers that Christmas-time should always be a reminder that God’s appearance in the world spawned great wonder, hope, and praise from a people looking for Him, and that offering Him worship today, two millennia later, should be with the same attitude as that of the shepherds and wise men.   

 

‘What’s in a worshipper’s heart is between him and God’. You’ve probably heard that one before. Maybe it’s a way to fend off someone who’s unimpressed with your stoic expression while singing. ‘Focus on your own attitude’, someone says, and correctly so. But, in a family where people can have the power to edify one another, as well as discourage one another, we do take notice of worship that seems lackluster. It’s part of the reasoning capacity that He gave us. He said to love Him completely, with  ‘…heart…soul…strength…and mind’. None of us are immune from boredom at times, but if that affects how I’m addressing the One who made me, I need someone with sharp elbows to nudge me in the side, like what Paul did to a group in 1997. Reconnect with what He’s done, who He is, and how that relates to yourself, and what you and I cannot do for ourselves. Try reading Paul’s lyrics first, and think about whether they’re true for you (they are, unless you aren’t human). Then try singing them.    

 

See/hear the song’s story here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNHdsArUO8I

 

Read about the songwriter here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Baloche

 

This query suggests the song was written in 1997, though song released in 2003: https://www.google.com/search?q=baloche+Offering+song+lyrics+year+written&client=firefox-b-1-d&sca_esv=17464399d8dea453&ei=8pxhaN3mKYKg5NoP3NztmQw&ved=0ahUKEwjdp9iot5eOAxUCEFkFHVxuO8MQ4dUDCBA&uact=5&oq=baloche+Offering+song+lyrics+year+written&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiKWJhbG9jaGUgT2ZmZXJpbmcgc29uZyBseXJpY3MgeWVhciB3cml0dGVuMgUQIRigATIFECEYoAEyBRAhGKABSMU8UNcLWN41cAF4AZABAJgBlwGgAeIMqgEEMjAuMbgBA8gBAPgBAZgCFqACkQ3CAgoQABiwAxjWBBhHwgIFECEYqwLCAgYQABgWGB7CAgsQABiABBiGAxiKBcICBRAAGO8FwgIIEAAYogQYiQWYAwCIBgGQBgiSBwQyMC4yoAelWLIHBDE5LjK4B4wNwgcGMS4yMC4xyAcc&sclient=gws-wiz-serp

 

See information on the map-graphic here: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Map_of_Texas_highlighting_Smith_County.svg …Public domain…I, the copyright holder (David Benbennick) of this work, release this work into the public domain. This applies worldwide. In some countries this may not be legally possible; if so: I grant anyone the right to use this work for any purpose, without any conditions, unless such conditions are required by law.

O The Blood -- Thomas and Mary Beth Miller

 

What was it that they might have read that spurred Thomas and Mary Beth Miller onward, and especially as they thought about worship at the church where they lived in 2010? This couple was in Southlake, Texas (near Fort Worth, see here the map-graphic of Tarrant County in which Southlake resides), and thinking about “(O) The Blood” was probably a very fundamental idea for the Gateway Church whose focus was on the central figure of their lives, now and in the eternal future. Could it have been that they were reading and comparing the various episodes of animal sacrifice, especially of lambs, that the Hebrews practiced for many hundreds of years, especially in light of what happened in the 1^st Century? Two of the 1^st Century’s chief proponents of a very special lamb – The Lamb, in fact – wrote some letters that just may have influenced the Millers as they thought about the blood spilled by this one sheep. In fact, millions have believed in this lamb, and knowing His story is the most crucial piece of information in life, they would say. See what you think when you too hear it.  

 

Neither Thomas nor Mary Beth have indicated what inspired ‘O The Blood’, but that its basis in some pretty important scripture handed down to generations of Christian believers is certainly true. It began with a people who were trying to escape from Egypt, and with so many signs showing their God’s nature and purpose for them, they did not question why He required a lamb sacrifice, the use of its blood to secure their release from captivity (Exodus 12:7). The Levitical code He set up for them perpetuated this practice (Leviticus 14:25; many scriptures in Numbers), and throughout the rest of Jewish history (including 2 Chron. 29:22; 35:11; Isaiah 1:11 – even though God would say He had ‘no pleasure’ in this) the Hebrews continued dutifully to obey, though the practice could not render them clean for long. And then came One whose blood was enough, as two 1^st Century apostles would tell all succeeding generations (1 Peter 1:19; Revelation 7:14 and 12:11). The Lamb is the one to whom Thomas and Mary Beth Miller would point, some 20 centuries later. It’s ‘crimson love’ that purges ‘shameful sin’ that is ‘placed on Him’ (v.1). That’s because He’s the ‘Savior son’, ‘holy One’, and we all can ‘see the Lamb’ and simultaneously appreciate that He’s also ‘The great I Am’ (v.2). ‘O what love’, ‘no greater love’ in v. 3 initiates a question that the Millers ask for us all: How could ‘grace’, ‘that in my sin’, ‘yes even then’, compel Him to be the sacrifice? Their short, crisp phrases (mostly three- or four-syllables apiece) that describe this life-giving fluid’s power are all that the Millers needed to convey their message. It’s like a perfectly spotless mirror that reflects vividly Him and what He’s done. Not many words are needed. Just look at Him. Consider what He’s done.

 

Though not expressed, the Millers also hint at what anyone honestly looking at Jesus can expect to gain. ‘Hope’ (v.1), ‘victory’ and ‘saved…life’ (chorus), ‘so I can live’ (v.2) – how could any reasonable person not want these things? But what so many people seem to avoid is what the Millers’ words also require any mistake-ridden person – and that’s all of us – to acknowledge. It’s just a tiny three-letter word, but it’s mentioned in all three of their verses. Sin. Two of those times it is labeled as ‘my sin’. It’s a separation from the perfect, holy Creator, and I cannot purge it from my experience. I just am not perfect the way He is, despite being His image-bearer. I try to be good, but stuff happens. Are you any different? He’s got the answer, the only one that He’s said is acceptable. He’s the only God, among all the religions in practice on this planet, that has done what Jesus did to pave the path for humans. He became one of us, gave up His blood. What more can a God do?

 

Read about the primary songwriter here: Thomas Miller (pastor) - Wikipedia

 

See information about the map-graphic of Tarrant County here: File:Tarrant County Texas Incorporated Areas Southlake highlighted.svg - Wikimedia Commons…I, the copyright holder of this work, release this work into the public domain. This applies worldwide. In some countries this may not be legally possible; if so: I grant anyone the right to use this work for any purpose, without any conditions, unless such conditions are required by law.