Lord Most High -- Don Harris and Gary Sadler

 They were reading their bibles and listening to the Spirit so they could grasp something they wanted to express musically. That much we can reasonably deduce from what Don Harris and Gary Sadler said when they addressed the “Lord Most High” in the mid-1990s (the song was in print by 1996). Had one or both of them ever seen the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, and one of the amazing frescoes depicting God on high (in Michelangelo’s mind’s eye, God is imagined here dividing the light from darkness [1509]), doing and being only what is possible for Him? Don and Gary would probably admit that their inspired words emanated from ancient writers who had as much beauty to describe as Michelangelo did with his paintbrush. And yet, God in His magnificence cannot be adequately illustrated with just a few well-placed brushstrokes or vivid adjectives. That realization did not arrest these two songwriters’ quest, however.

There’s little or no information about Don and Gary and what specific circumstances fired their musical engines to produce this song, though we can make educated guesses at where they looked biblically for inspiration. Don may have been in the Mobile, Alabama area, and Gary could have been in the Nashville, Tennessee area (he and his family were likewise in Mobile at least in 1991, so he and Don may have actually interacted there for this song), but it is very likely that the words they collaborated to pen for this song lived first in some holy scriptures, as in Genesis, Psalms, Isaiah, Zephaniah, and maybe even Jonah. The title phrase of the Harris-Sadler song was (or was very close to) what the ancient, mysterious priest Melchizedek and Abram said about God (Elyon) in the aftermath of Abram’s confrontation with some kings (Genesis 14:18-20); it was also how one psalmist named Asaph remembered God (Ps. 78:35) as he recited a bit of Israel’s history. Could it also have been how David concluded a song-address (Psalm 7:17) to Him? Were Don and Gary echoing others psalmists when they sang that He is ‘exalted in every nation’ (Ps. 46:10; Psalm 99:2; and Psalm 113:4)? Was the phrase ‘from the ends of the earth’ originally from the prophet Isaiah (42:10), in which a song of praise to the Lord is mentioned? How about the ‘depths of the sea’; could that have been Jonah in his desperate state, when he was hurled into the sea and from where he cried out and eventually praised God while inside the great fish (2:9)? Was it a paraphrase of Zephaniah’s words (3:9) that sparked the two songwriters’ words about ‘the lips of all peoples’? Don and Gary probably had discovered previously, as songwriters who were active many years before ‘Lord Most High’ was written, that God’s word is rich with music just waiting to be reiterated and appreciated, some two to three millennia after it was first promulgated.

It’s not difficult to accept that a single song, or one fresco, is one among the countless and ongoing works of art that He coaxes from us, His created image-bearers, so that the picture of Him is never a finished work. Perhaps we’d sing each song or look at each painting only once if we all had perfect memories, but that would in fact limit Him as our infinite Lord. Remembering how He’s interacted with those who’ve gone before us is at the core of what Don and Gary have provided us. It’s their way of saying that He’s not done, and is the same for us as He was for those ancient characters who we know only by name. He’s ‘the same yesterday and today and forever’ (Heb. 13:5). Sing Lord Most High again, picturing with just a bit more insight this time, the coming age in which you and I will say this to Him face-to-face. It’s not too soon to give this a trial run-through. 

See very scant information about one of the two songwriters here: https://www.praise.org.uk/hymnauthor/sadler-gary/

 

See some pretty brief information on one of the songwriters here: Don Harris (Christian) Lyrics, Songs, and Albums | Genius

 

See information on the image of God, the one Dividing Light from Darkness here: File:Dividing Light from Darkness.jpg - Wikimedia Commons.  This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or fewer. (US work that is in the public domain in the US for an unspecified reason, but presumably because it was published in the US before 1929.)

He Will Rejoice Over You – Zephaniah, Scott Wesley Brown and David Hampton

What’s it like to preach utter destruction to a wayward people, and then follow that up with a promise that divine redemption is also coming? This 7th Century B.C. prophet named Zephaniah warned those who would listen, including probably the highest authorities of his land, while also reassuring them that “He Will Rejoice Over You” – with singing. (See the 18th Century image of the prophet here [a Russian Orthodox icon, in the Kizhi Monastery in Karelia, Russia]). Could it be those last two words of the verse (Zephaniah 3:17) especially captured the attention of two songwriters – Scott Wesely Brown and David Hampton, two guys who obviously loved music themselves -- some 27 centuries later? Listen for God to sing, that’s quite a thing to say! Zephaniah must have felt this was a great way to conclude what he had to say, after beginning his message to his hearers with the opposite. Is the roller-coaster of human experience different today? We might surmise that Scott and David didn’t think so when they reprised in 1996 what Zephaniah said so long ago.

Zephaniah travelled in pretty elevated circles and had a pedigree that seemed to match his environment; so, did that give him some special license to deliver a message from God? Zephaniah was the great-great grandson of King Hezekiah (715-686 B.C), one of the very best kings of Judah following the split of the kingdom some two or three centuries earlier (around 930 B.C.), and this prophet does seem to hint at this by mentioning his bloodlines in the first few words of his message. It also had to be a source of encouragement to Zephaniah that another good king, Josiah (640-609 B.C.), had ascended to Judah’s throne, and at such a young age (eight years old, 2 Kings 22:1) seemed impressionable and eventually willing to redirect the kingdom toward the true God once again. Perhaps Josiah’s father and grandfather (Amon and Manasseh) had strayed too far even for a grandson to respect what evil they had done – worshipping idols of the surrounding nations, an utter abomination to the real God. Could one say that Josiah’s mother, Jedidah, might also have coaxed him in this direction? But, at first Zephaniah had to issue a severe forecast – that God’s judgement would crush not only Judah and Jerusalem, but the surrounding peoples in Philistia, Moab, Ammon, Ethiopia, Assyria, and Nineveh. Repent. That was a directive that Josiah evidently heeded by 621 B.C., finding in his 18th year of rule the Book of the Law, and subsequently renewing the covenant and doing what he could to eliminate the influence of foreign gods in the land (2 Kings 22 and 23). Zephaniah’s words must have resounded in Josiah’s ears --- destruction if you don’t set things on a renewed trajectory toward God (the first 2.5 chapters of his three-chapter message), and God’s vision of a people who have sought Him once again and are being blessed (Zephaniah 3:9-20). Perhaps 3:17 is perhaps the most personal and tender of what God says to them through the prophet – all contained in the few words of ‘He Will Rejoice Over You’.   

Zephaniah, and Scott Brown and David Hampton must have all felt the same thing, even if they were more than two-dozen centuries apart. God wants to embrace his people, inside ‘His (great) love’ and because of His ‘great delight’ in us when we cling to Him only. If you can imagine feeling safe and calm, cared for, possessing an utter sense of protection and belonging, then you have experienced what Zephaniah could foresee. Then you might also hear the Great One singing, something that sounds like a lullaby and a celebration all at once – rejoicing at a Divine level. What’s ‘His voice’ sound like? Almost unimaginable, don’t you think? What if we could engage all of the senses He’s given us to discover Him today? Can you ponder for a moment touching, smelling, and tasting (Psalm 34:8) Him, in addition to hearing and seeing Him? Someday, you and I will get to use all of ourselves to experience Him.  

See NIV Study Bible introduction to the book of Zephaniah for background on the primary author-poet. Also see here for information on the prophet-poet: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zephaniah

See here some information about one of the 20^th Century author-songwriters: Scott Wesley Brown - Wikipedia

See the official website of one of the 20^th Century songwriters here: Professional Addiction Recovery Coach | Brentwood |David Hampton (davidhamptoncprc.com)

Listen to a rendition of the song here:  Bing Videos

 

See here for information on the image of Zephaniah: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Zephaniah.jpg This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 70 years or fewer. {{PD-US}} – US work that is in the public domain in the US for an unspecified reason, but presumably because it was published in the US before 1929.