Many of you will be familiar with the story of Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Roger Youdarian, Pete Fleming, and Ed McCully, the missionaries who lost their lives on January 8, 1956 when they sought to bring the gospel to an unreached people group in Ecuador. They knew it was a great risk, and they entrusted themselves and their mission to God. One of the last things they did was lift their voices together with their families in the magnificent hymn, “We Rest on Thee.” Through the four stanzas it progresses from strength in faith to assurance of salvation to triumph in weakness to peace and joy in death. In short it beautifully expresses Paul’s words, “to live is Christ and to die is gain.” (Phil. 1:21)
We rest on thee, our Shield and our Defender!
We go not forth alone against the foe;
strong in thy strength, safe in thy keeping tender,
we rest on thee, and in thy name we go;
strong in thy strength, safe in thy keeping tender,
we rest on thee, and in thy name we go.Yea, in thy name, O Captain of salvation!
In thy dear name, all other names above:
Jesus our righteousness, our sure foundation,
our Prince of glory and our King of love,
Jesus our righteousness, our sure foundation,
our Prince of glory and our King of love.
We go in faith, our own great weakness feeling,
and needing more each day thy grace to know:
yet from our hearts a song of triumph pealing,
“We rest on thee, and in thy name we go”;
yet from our hearts a song of triumph pealing,
“We rest on thee, and in thy name we go.”
We rest on thee, our Shield and our Defender!
Thine is the battle, thine shall be the praise;
when passing through the gates of pearly splendor,
victors, we rest with thee, through endless days;
when passing through the gates of pearly splendor,
victors, we rest with thee, through endless days.
I originally wrote this post for my church, Immanuel Nashville, in our Daily Pulse email. If you want encouragement from God’s word delivered Monday thru Friday to your inbox, I encourage you to subscribe.
