Hymns of the Church (Part II) – How Great is Our God

Sermon Title: Hymns of the Church – How Great is Our God

Good News Statement: God’s greatness changes us

Summary: Has God’s greatness shown you any “burning bushes” in your life?

Preached: Sunday, September 14^th, 2025, at Dogwood Prairie & Seed Chapel UMC

Pastor Daniel G. Skelton, M.Div.

 

Scripture (NRSV): Psalm 145, Today’s scripture reading comes from the Book of Psalm, which highlights the greatness of God through His power, mercy, praise, kindness, and eternal state. May the reading and hearing of scripture add understanding to your life.

Psalm 145

The Greatness and the Goodness of God

Praise. Of David.

¹ I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever.
² Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever.
³ Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised; his greatness is unsearchable.

⁴ One generation shall extol your works to another and shall declare your mighty acts.
⁵ They will recount the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works I will meditate.
⁶ They will proclaim the might of your awesome deeds, and I will declare your greatness.
⁷ They shall celebrate the fame of your abundant goodness and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.

⁸ The Lord is gracious and merciful slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
⁹ The Lord is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made.

¹⁰ All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord, and all your faithful shall bless you.
¹¹ They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom and tell of your power,
¹² to make known to all people your mighty deeds and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
¹³ Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations. The Lord is faithful in all his words and gracious in all his deeds.
¹⁴ The Lord upholds all who are falling  and raises up all who are bowed down.
¹⁵ The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food in due season.
¹⁶ You open your hand, satisfying the desire of every living thing.
¹⁷ The Lord is just in all his way and kind in all his doings.
¹⁸ The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.
¹⁹ He fulfills the desire of all who fear him; he also hears their cry and saves them.
²⁰ The Lord watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.

²¹ My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord, and all flesh will bless his holy name forever and ever.

 

The Word of God, for the People of God; And all God’s People said, “Thanks Be To God.”

 

History of Hymns: “How Great Thou Art”: https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-how-great-thou-art

 

Introduction[1]:

For almost two thousand years, Christians have used music as a way to worship. In the Bible the Apostle Paul writes: “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.” In the Book of Psalm we read these words, “make a joyful noise unto the Lord” (Psalm 98:4 and Psalm 100:1). For the past two thousand years, music has been used across denominational boundaries, beliefs, religious practices, and traditions as a means to embrace and celebrate the lessons of scripture. Needless to say, music has become an essential practice of one’s faith.

Hymns originated in ancient cultures and evolved through Jewish, Greek, and Roman practices, eventually becoming systematic in early Christianity with Latin chants. The roots of hymns can be traced to ancient civilizations like Egypt, Greece, and India. The word “hymn” comes from the Greek word “hymnos” which means “a song of praise”. Originally, hymns were written to honor various gods of varying traditions. The first recorded hymn, found in Exodus 15, is the Song of Moses in the Old Testament, celebrating the Israelites’ crossing of the Red Sea. Later on, in the same chapter, Miriam, Moses’ sister, encourages those around with tambourine in hand to “Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously…” (Exodus 15:21).

Hymnody—the singing or composition of hymns—has evolved and changed since that first hymn in the Old Testament as well as over the centuries and has been affected by new thinking and developing religious beliefs. For example, throughout the history of the church, whenever there has been renewal, a revival or restoration, new songs of worship have appeared. During the Middle Ages hymnody developed in the form of Gregorian chant or ‘plainsong’. It was sung in Latin and most often by monastic choirs. But in the 16th Century, church goers were given much greater access to hymns as a result of the invention of the printing press and the influential German theologian, Martin Luther, who began encouraging people to sing together in congregations. As one resource noted, “Martin Luther in the 16th Century revolutionized Christian hymnody by encouraging congregations to sing hymns in their own languages (vernacular) rather than just Latin, a movement that spread widely with the invention of the printing press.”[2]

In England the non-conformist minister Isaac Watts (1674-1748) began a transformation of congregational singing. Watts believed strongly that hymns should express the religious feelings of the people and he became a prolific writer, creating hundreds of new hymns—such as “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” and “Joy to the World.” Watts has been described as “the liberator of English hymnody” as his hymns moved people away from simply singing Old Testament psalms to inspiring people to sing from the heart with great faith and understanding.

In the same time period, another significant movement affected the hymns of the church: the Methodist movement, led by John Wesley. Wesley and especially his brother Charles used simple rhythms and sing-able melodies to help congregational singing. It has been noted that Charles Wesley wrote over 6,000 hymns during his lifetime from 1707-1788, and most of the hymns that he wrote were written to accompany specific sermons by John Wesley to convey a particular theological message. Some of Charles Wesley’s 6,000 hymns are still sung today in churches around the world: “Christ the Lord Is Risen Today,” and “Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus,” and “ Love Divine, All Loves Excelling,” and probably his two most famous hymns are “O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing” and “Hark! The Harold Angels Sing.”

Then in the late 19th Century a new style of hymnody known as “gospel” emerged. These songs were usually characterized by a strong lead vocal and exciting harmonies, and were a great influence on later contemporary worship worldwide. Then in twentieth and twenty-first centuries we have seen an explosion of new hymn writers and approaches. Old texts have been refreshed by new tunes. African American spirituals, especially those during the slave era, are now found in hymnals and churches around the world, and lots more contemporary hymns have sprung up. In the non-traditional church movement there has been a move away from the previous style of congregational singing to worship led by one singer or a worship band. Instrumentation has become more popular and musical styles have become much freer. The church today is richer than ever in musical resources and continues to bring congregations together through song.

It is clear, that throughout history—from Old Testament times to Gregorian Chants to Luther’s reformation to the thousands of hymns composed by Charles Wesley to spirituals to gospels and finally to contemporary music—hymns have been an essential building block of and for the church. But the question that we will be exploring is not necessarily about the history of hymns but of what hymns has the church found to be foundational all these years: “What hymns have shaped the church of yesterday for today?”

 

Body:

The phrase “Where words fail, music speaks” is attributed to the 19th-century Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. The original version, “When words fail, sounds can often speak,” appeared in his 1840 collection “What the Moon Saw.” The statement “music speaks when words fail” means that music has the power to express complex emotions, connect people across cultures, and evoke feelings in ways that verbal language cannot, acting as a universal form of communication. This idea highlights music’s ability to convey joy, sadness, and other profound sentiments when spoken words are inadequate or impossible. Have any of you ever heard that statement before: “Where words fail, music speaks”? If you really think about it, there is something about music that draws people together, that creates a common ground, and that conveys a sense of understanding. Music is powerful, especially when words are lost.

Music is powerful in several ways. Music as an universal language transcends linguistic and cultural barriers, allowing people from different backgrounds to connect and share experiences through melody and rhythm, even without understanding lyrics. Music is also a means of establishing an emotional connection: it can stir deep emotions, such as sadness, joy, or contemplation, providing a way for individuals to process and understand feelings they cannot articulate. Musical pieces can trigger vivid memories and create strong associations with specific events or periods of life, adding depth to emotional experiences. Furthermore, music communicates on a more primal, instinctual level, directly addressing the soul and providing a sense of meaning and understanding where logical explanations fail. And for many, music offers a vital channel of communication when words fail. In essence, music serves as a powerful and adaptable medium for human experience, offering a voice to feelings that words alone cannot capture.

Music is powerful. It’s all around us. It’s part of your life. I bet there is not a day that goes by that you don’t listen to some kind of music. The same goes for the church. There is not a Sunday that goes by that we don’t sing or hear hymns. Music is not just part of our life, but it’s part of our faith. So to help us understand this, each week for several weeks, we are going to explore hymns that shaped the church. The second hymn we examine is “How Great Thou Art!” And the question we will attempt to answer is, How great is our God?

Movement One: History of “How Great Thou Art”…

Last week, we examined the hymn of John Newton who used his life story, his conversion, to give God thanks for the amazing grace in his life. The hymn “Amazing Grace,” written in 1772—just over two and a half centuries ago—speaks of a grace that is powerful enough to save us sinners, to help us see, to transform us, to inspire us to do something new, to rescue us from our past, and to lead us home—getting us closer to Christ. “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me…. Through many dangers, toils, and snares, I have already come; ‘Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.” By the amazing grace of God, you have been saved and you have what is needed to be set free.

Today, we look at another famous hymn of the church… “How Great Thou Art.”[3] One of the many reasons that I love the hymn “How Great Thou Art” is because of the chorus that says: “Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee; How great Thou art, how great Thou art! Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee; How great Thou art, how great Thou art!”

When was the last time you let your soul sing? When was the last time that you put everything aside and just praised and worshipped and focused on God? When was the last time that you did not focus on what you are going through or what responsibilities you have in the church or things you need to get done and just focused on praising God because of how great He is?[4] When is the last time you sang from your soul to God? When was the last time that you poured your heart out to God? “O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder, consider all the worlds thy hands have made…” We serve a God who is awesome and worthy of our praise and worship because He is great. But how great is God? How great is His greatness in the songs we sing from our soul?

The origins of “How Great Thou Art” may be found with Swedish pastor Carl Boberg around 1886. Boberg (1859-1940) was a leading evangelist of his day and the editor of an influential Evangelical Lutheran Church of Sweden periodical known as “Witness of the Truth”. Boberg served in the Swedish parliament and published several volumes of poetry, including hymns. He also helped compile the first two hymnals for the Swedish Covenant Church.[5]

Boberg’s inspiration is said to have come one day when he was caught in a thunderstorm on the southeastern coast of Sweden. The violence of the storm followed by the return of the sun and the singing of birds left him falling to his knees in awe. Soon he penned the nine stanzas of the original version in Swedish. Several years later, Boberg unexpectedly heard his poem sung by a congregation to an old Swedish folk melody.[6]

The first two stanzas establish the grandeur of God’s creation while the refrain establishes our response, “How great thou art!” In stanza three, the God of the natural created order continues the creative act by sending God’s Son to redeem a lost humanity. With this stanza, the primary theological perspective shifts from creation to atonement.[7] The final stanza, however, may be seen as the completion of the story of creation and human redemption. Thus, this hymn embodies the breadth of the redemption story from Genesis to Revelation.[8] As a side note, it has been researched that “How Great Thou Art” is one of the most expensive hymns to include in a hymnal. It cost $2,000 for a permission fee to include this hymn in The United Methodist Hymnal.[9]

“How Great Thou Art,” is not just a testament of one’s story, it’s a testament of how great God really is and how God’s greatness, no matter what we are going through in life, can save us from any storm we are battling. But, how great is God’s greatness?

 

Movement Two: How Great is God…

To answer this question, let’s use the words of David found in Psalm 145. From his words, he offers us five reasons to why God is great.  First, God is worthy. Psalm 145:1-3 states, “I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever. Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever. Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised; his greatness is unsearchable.” God is worthy of our praise because God is great. Hence the name of the hymn “How Great Thou Art.” We serve a God that is great. Everything else we talk about today falls under the fact that God deserves our worship and praise because of how great He truly is. His greatness is unsearchable meaning that His greatness is past what the human mind can fully comprehend or describe. God is greater than anything we could ever truly describe or understand.

If you recall while we were looking at questions and topics related to heaven and hell, I repeatedly told you that “I don’t know everything there is about heaven. I don’t know everything there is about God. But one day your curiosity will be answered.” We aren’t meant to know everything there is about God. We aren’t meant to fully understand His thinking or His plan for us. We aren’t meant to assume we know how God will behave in a certain situation. As the children’s hymn reminds us, “God is so big, so strong, and so mighty, there’s nothing my God cannot do.” Or how about, “He’s got the whole world in His hands.”

God is so much bigger and greater than what we can explain or understand; and to be honest with you, I do not want to know everything about God right now. I don’t. How can you be in awe of something that you completely understand? Where is the wonder; where is the curiosity; where is the faith; where is the belief if you know everything. Take for example this pen. I understand how this pen works: you push down on the top of the pen, this action pushes down on a spring inside the pen causing the tip of the pen to come out, and then with force pushing the pen onto an object causes the ink to be released. It’s just a pen. There is nothing to be in awe about. I never want to completely understand God, because I never want to lose the awe that I have for Him. There will be a time when I will know more about God, but for right now I want His full greatness to be unsearchable so that the awe, my will to praise him, doesn’t go away. God is far greater that we can understand. God is worthy of our praise because God is great: “I will declare your greatness,” says the Psalmist.

Second, God is merciful because He is great. Psalm 145:8-9 reads, “The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The Lord is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made.” God is worthy of our praise because God is merciful. Mercy can be defined as giving forgiveness or withholding punishment. God is merciful because God gives us forgiveness and He withholds our punishment. However, keep in mind that He does not automatically withhold that punishment. The Bible tells us that only true born-again believers will enter the gates of Heaven. Not everyone will enter. Romans 10:11-13 says this: “Everyone who believes in Him will not be put to shame. For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing His riches on all who call on Him. For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

In order to receive God`s mercy, you must first receive God`s Son. In order to have your punishment withheld, you must believe in Jesus Christ. That is God`s requirement. Look at the third verse of “How Great Thou Art”: “And when I think that God, His Son not sparing, Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in – That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing, He bled and died to take away my sin!” The third verse of “How Great Thou Art” lays out how we got that forgiveness. God sent His only Son to die on the cross so through him, we may have forgiveness. Jesus died for us so that we could have God`s mercy. He willingly laid down His life and suffered and died for us so that we may enter the Kingdom of Heaven. That is a God that is great and merciful. That is the amazing grace of God. That is the amazing love of God.

The hymn “Victory in Jesus” proclaims in its chorus,  “Oh, victory in Jesus, my Savior forever. He sought me and bought me with His redeeming blood. He loved me ‘ere I knew Him, and all my love is due Him. He plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood.” Through Jesus and Jesus alone we have victory. He plunged us to that victory through His death on the cross. He did it out of love. God is merciful even when it seems like everything in your life is going wrong. I love the song that says: “And even when I don’t see it, You’re working. Even when I don’t feel it, You’re working. You never stop, You never stop working.” God is great and God is merciful even when everything seems to be going wrong or the opposite of what you hoped for. God has a plan far greater than anything we can understand. God is merciful because God is great.

Third, God is powerful because God is great. Psalm 145:10-12 reads, “All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord, and all your faithful shall bless you. They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom and tell of your power, to make known to all people your mighty deeds and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.” I am glad that we serve a God that is powerful. Have you ever stopped to think about how truly powerful God is? He makes a way when there does not seem to be a way. He parted the Red Sea for Moses. He crumbled the Walls of Jericho for Joshua. He developed faithful prophets. Through Jesus Christ, He calmed the raging seas; He walked on water; He healed the sick; He gave sight to the blind; He made the paralyzed walk; He turned the water into wine; and most of all, He gave Himself up to die for us on a cross.[10]

That is power.[11] First Chronicles 29:11-13 says this: “Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is Yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and You are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from You, and You rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in Your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. And now we thank you, our God, and praise Your glorious name.” God is powerful and everything is His. It says that everything in the heavens and on earth is His, and that includes you. He also made you. He knows your name. He knows the amount of hair on your head. Think about how amazing that is. The current world population is 8.2 billion people.[12] That is a lot of people and yet God still knows our name and He hears each and every one of us. Do you all realize how amazing that is?

The fourth verse of “How Great Thou Art” says this: “When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart! Then I shall bow in humble adoration And there proclaim, my God, how great Thou art!” Not only is Jesus so powerful that He defeated death, hell, and the grave, but He also plans to come back and take us Home. That is power. God is powerful. We serve a God that is powerful and can do far more than we could ever imagine. God is powerful because God is great.

Fourth, God is eternal because God is great. Psalm 145:13 reads, “Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations.” God is eternally great. Are you glad that we serve a God that is eternal. Revelation 22:13 says this: “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” Jesus says he is the beginning and also the end. He says that three different times in three different ways all with the same message… he was there at the beginning of time, and he will be there at the end of time. If Jesus was there at the beginning and will be there at the end that also means that he is here, right now.

I love the song that says: “For the God on the mountain, Is still God in the valley. When things go wrong, He’ll make them right. And the God of the good times, Is still God in the bad times. The God of the day, Is still God in the night.” Psalm 145:13 tells us that God`s kingdom and God`s reign is one that is everlasting and will endure throughout all generations. We serve a God that is eternal. He is eternally great. He is eternally merciful. He is eternally powerful. This leads us to the last point.

Fifth, God is kind because God is great. Psalm 145:14-21 reads, “The Lord upholds all who are falling and raises up all who are bowed down. The eyes of all look to you and you give them their food in due season. You open your hand, satisfying the desire of every living thing. The Lord is just in all his ways and kind in all his doings. The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desire of all who fear him; he also hears their cry and saves them. The Lord watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy. My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord, and all flesh will bless his holy name forever and ever.”

God is eternally kind. When you look at verses 1, 3, and 4, it demonstrates this. Verse 1 talks about God`s creation. God is kind for creating the universe. Verse 3 talks about God sending Jesus to die for us. God is kind for giving up His only son to save all of humanity. Verse 4 talks about Christ returning to take us home. God is kind for coming back for us even when we killed His son. So, in those verses, we have the message that God created everything, God saved everything, and God is coming back for everything and because of that message, my soul will sing how great my God is. “Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee; How great Thou art, how great Thou art!”

We can sing from our soul about the greatness of God because God is kind and God is love. He demonstrated both of those on the cross. He did it for me and He did it for you. He did it for all of us. No matter what you have done or said, God still loves you and Jesus still died to save you because they care about you.

 

Movement Three: So, How Great is God…

So, how great is God? God is far greater that we can understand. I mean look at some of the things that God has done. For starters, He created everything in the universe. Humans, animals, reptiles, planets, stars, galaxies, and the list goes on and on and on. Not only that, but He did it effortlessly. Think about the human body and how amazing it is and how perfectly crafted it was by God. Verse 1 of How Great Thou Art says this: “Consider all the works Thy hands have made, I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, Thy pow’r thru-out the universe displayed!” God`s greatness is displayed all throughout the universe. It is displayed in how we are the perfect distance away from the sun. Any closer we burn and any further we freeze. That is no accident.

God is so great that He makes a way in the wilderness, He continually parts the Red Sea so that we can escape from our enemies, He crumbles the Walls of Jericho so that we can be set free, and He mends the cracks in our cisterns so that our faith doesn’t go to waste, so that we don’t remain broken. Through Jesus Christ, He calms the raging seas of life; He walks on water and calls us to do the same; He heals our illnesses; He restores our sight; He give us strength to walk; He turns our messes into messages, our trials into triumphs, and our failures into moments for renewed faith; and He searches our heart and leads us home. God is so great that there is never not a time when He is not working on us or in our life. God is so great that there is nothing He cannot do.

I guess what I am trying to convey to you is that God is so great that He is constantly reminding us of His greatness, not to boast but to change our life. Take for example the moment when Moses encounters the burning bush. Exodus 3:1-4 states, “Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness and came to Mount Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed. Then Moses said, ‘I must turn aside and look at this great sight and see why the bush is not burned up. ’ When the Lord saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, ‘Moses, Moses!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’” Yes, God is great enough to cause a bush to be on fire but yet not being consumed by the flames; and God is great enough to know our name; and God is great enough to talk to us through His creation; however, something else is happening here.

What is happening is the fact that God is so great that no matter what He does, He captures our attention. Deep down, embedded in the fine print of this encounter with Moses, is the realization that God is so great that He continually provides us with “burning bushes” in our life—moments that draw us to Him, moments that get our attention, moments that persuade our souls to respond with “Here I am.” What sort of “burning bushes” has God placed in your life? Where is God needing you to focus your attention? On what does God need you to focus on? Church, where are our “burning bushes”? What needs our attention? How has God used His greatness—those “burning bushes”—to change your life?

Has God helped you get through an illness, an injury, a broken heart? Has God guided you through a season of uncertainty, doubt, or anger? Has God walked with you through moments of grief and sorrow and deep pain and hurt? Has God navigated you through a tough decision, an unexpected life circumstance? Has God held your hand when that “burning bush” was fading away? Would you believe me that God’s greatness has lead you through all that you have been through and so much more? I would go so far to say that it’s God’s greatness that has encouraged you to enter this church and to allow Christ to be in your heart: there is a “burning bush” inside this church and in your heart that has caught your attention. What is it? What is it? What about the greatness of God does God need you to respond to?

God is so great that He does deserve our praises. God is so great that He is merciful. God is so great that He is powerful. God is so great that He is eternal. God is so great that He is kind. And God is so great that He can change your life, but will you let Him. Don’t ignore the “burning bush” in your life: pursue it and respond with “Here I am” because that is God’s greatness working in your life.

 

Conclusion:

“How Great Thou Art,” a hymn written in 1886 by a Swedish pastor, is certainly a hymn that has shaped the church. From its words of God’s creation, to its reminder that God sent His son to redeem a lost humanity, to its closing words of acclamation for Christ’s return, this hymn is filled with God’s greatness which exists within and beyond this world. But yet lives within us. God’s greatness is seen through His power, through His mercy, through His eternal presence, through His kindness and love, and through our willingness to praise Him every day. And above all else, God’s greatness is seen in the things—the “burning bushes”—that call us and change our life.

 “How Great Thou Art” is certainly a hymn that is timeless as its message is one that will live on for eternity. What we are called to do now, is find a way to live out God’s greatness in our life and to share it with others. When we do that, our soul will sing “How great thou art!” How great is God? Great enough change us. Let it be so…

 

Closing Prayer:

Dear God, you are great. You are powerful, you are eternal, you are merciful, and you are kind. Help us each and every day to live into your greatness as we seek out the burning bushes in our life in which change us. In your great name we pray, Amen.

 

Benediction:

This week, allow the greatness of God to guide you. Allow God’s greatness to open your eyes to the “burning bushes” before you, and don’t be afraid to respond by saying “Here I Am.” May the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; and May the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace (Numbers 6:24-26). In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, go forth experiencing and sharing God’s greatness. And all God’s people said, Amen. Amen. Amen.

 

[1] https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4vMxs6kctQgkwkvgQbJTXDk/a-brief-history-of-hymns

[2] https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4vMxs6kctQgkwkvgQbJTXDk/a-brief-history-of-hymns

[3] Often, we get caught up in our church roles and jobs that we tend to accidentally look over and forget why we have church. We tend to get so caught up in our church responsibilities and events that we do not do one of the most important things of all… praise God. Now do not get me wrong, those things are important. It is important that people serve. It’s important that the church shows signs of life. The Bible makes that clear, but serving should never come before your relationship with God or your praise for God.

[4] Now, when I say worship and praise Him, I do not mean just merely sitting or standing there reading lyrics and moping through the song. That is not praise or worship. That song says: “Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee…”

[5] https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-how-great-thou-art  Published in May 17, 2017 by C. Michael Hawn. Accessed online on September 9, 2025.

[6] Ibid.

[7] Ibid. “While the first two stanzas express humanity’s awe at the natural created order, this is not the ultimate goal of this hymn. Human sin has marred the gift of the Creator. The vivid description of nature in the first two stanzas finds its fulfillment in heaven or when we escape the earth.”

[8] Ibid. “Given the sweeping and shifting theological territory covered in this hymn, the refrain ties all the themes together with the reiteration of the hymn’s central premise four times, “How great thou art!”

[9] Ibid.

[10] 2 Timothy 1:10 says this: “And which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.”

[11] Jesus completely defeated death, hell, and the grave. He did it by dying on that cross on Mt. Calvary and then rising from the dead three days later. Friends, only someone with power could do that. Nobody here today could have done that. Only God could. That is true power.

[12] That is a lot of people and that is just right now. There have been billions and billions of people that have come before us and there is no telling how many will come after us and yet God still knows our name and He hears each and every one of us. Do you all realize how amazing that is?