Doxology
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
Praise him, all creatures here below;
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Praise him above, ye heavenly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
(words by Thomas Ken, 1674)
Songs have Backstories
“I am dying,” Bishop Thomas Ken wrote, “In the Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Faith professed by the whole Church before the disunion of East and West; and, more particularly, in the Communion of the Church of England, as it stands distinguished from both Papal and Protestant innovation, and adheres to the Doctrine of the Cross.” There is no finer statement of “mere Christianity” to be found anywhere.
Bishop Ken died on 19 March 1711 and at dawn the following day, whilst his faithful friends sang the tune of this hymn, Bishop Ken’s remains were laid to rest beneath the East Window of the Church of St. John in Frome – the nearest parish in his old Diocese of Bath and Wells.
Songs have Meaning
This well-known hymn falls in a category known as “doxology’ [lit. words that give glory from the Greek ‘doxa’ – glory and ‘logos’ word]. It follows in the vain of many Jewish and Christian Doxologies (see Rom 11:36; Rev 5:13b; 1 Tim 1:17) with its many variations and expansions: “To whom/him/you (be/is) the glory for ever. Amen.”
Jews and Christians typically used such doxologies as a conclusion to a prayer, a sermon, a letter, or a part of any of these. These were an expression of monotheistic worship. It is the One God of Israel to whom glory belongs eternally.
Songs bring Challenge
Bishop Ken’s doxology brings a challenge. Avoid old silliness and avoid new silliness, “adhere to the Doctrine of the Cross”. The oldest innovation in the book is the idea of independence. Notice the opening line “Praise God from whom ALL blessings flow.” This hymn bids us to acknowledge our dependence. Every single benefit in our life is a product of God’s goodness and not our own. It is not a begrudging dependence but a spirit of thankfulness and praise.
The newest innovation Ken warns us against is the idea of materialism. By this it is not the idea of consumerism and material goods but the idea that life is only what we can observe and perceive with our natural senses. The Common Doxology tells us the best way to recapture the wonder of worship is to get a glimpse of Glory. When we see the universe not as simply a material machine, but a canvas awash with the wonder of its Author. This eternal perspective will allow us to praise as both “creatures below” and join in with “heavenly host[s]”
Reflect on your past experience of worship. Do you experience genuine, fulfilling worship each Sunday? How much time is specifically allotted to worship (narrowly defined)—that is, to times of praise and thanksgiving to God? Would you like the time to be longer? What aspects of the worship time do you find most meaningful? Which aspects are least meaningful? How could you take steps to strengthen and deepen your experience of worship?
May our lives be a living Doxology:
Deep honor and bright glory
to the King of All Time—
One God, Immortal, Invisible,
ever and always.
Oh, yes!
1Tim. 1:17
listen to Dave Crowder Band perform “Doxology“