How Deep the Father’s Love – Stuart Townend

Will Stuart Townend, a 40-something from West Yorkshire (now he lives in Brighton) in Britain, someday be compared to Isaac Watts or Charles Wesley? They’re all English Christians, and all songwriters of some renown. And, Stuart Townend has probably sung some of Watts’ or Wesley’s hymns, since he mentions their history in talking about the song “How Deep the Father’s Love”, his own effort at hymn-writing that he created in 1995. Townend says he had a feeling that he was going to write a hymn one day, and what he’s produced is an essay, his personal reflection on the meaning of Christ’s sacrifice. You can read the story behind the song in Townend’s own words (see the link below).

If you’re a traditionalist, and believe an abundance of verses and a variety of words are what make a hymn a hymn, then you’ll probably examine Townend’s song and say ‘yep, that’s a hymn’. But, this hymn, like those of Watts and Wesley, also contains deep truths from God, has phrases to remind us of His messengers’ words, and is a fusion of lyrics and music that draw out the profound emotion of a believer. Townend says the music’s melody came first, and rather easily as he dwelled on Christ’s cross, about his own debt to Him. Though he says the words took longer, the end product makes one suspect that the Spirit was surely at work in this British modern-day hymnist. Townend’s effort makes me identify with what Peter and Paul must have felt, as well as the emotions of others who witnessed Jesus’ torture. I’m Peter, thrice denying Jesus when I sing this. I’m Paul, whose guilty conscience won’t let me forget the smirk I wore while watching Stephen get stoned. I’m in the crowd shrieking ‘Crucify him!’, and I feel the sting of Peter’s message in Acts 2:37. I am also Jesus, feeling abandoned, desolate, at my flogging (see picture above) and at Golgotha. And yet, magically, I can ‘boast’, Paul says when I take on Christ. These run through my mind as I sing Townend’s song.

How deep is God’s love? Answer: How deep my sin is. God’s love is surreal, even bizarre, by human standards, but only because it’s a function of my need for Him. It’s too easy for me to trivialize my sin, to marginalize its gravity. Next to Him, I’m vile and I’m rotting with a disease. My descendants in Jerusalem were so ridden with and blinded by this disease, they killed the Healer. Sin doesn’t get any lower than it was on ‘Good’ Friday. Unless, I know all this and still ignore Him. How deep is God’s love? He’s already answered…how do you and I respond?

The story behind the song is at this site: http://www.stuarttownend.co.uk/songs/storybehindthesongs/howdeepthefatherslove