It Is Well With My Soul

"For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."  (Romans 8:18)

It Is Well With My Soul

Horatio G. Spafford

1820-1888

I

When peace like a river attendeth my way,

When sorrows like sea billows roll;

Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say,

It is well, it is well with my soul.

II

Though Satan should buffet, tho trials should come,

Let this blest assurance control,

That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,

And hath shed his own blood for my soul.

III

My sin-oh, the bliss of this glorious tho't:

My sin not in part, but the whole

Is nail'd to the cross and I bear it no more,

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

IV

And, Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight,

The clouds be roll'd back as a scroll,

The trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend,

"Even so," it is well with my soul.

Chorus:

It is well with my soul, It is well,

It is well with my soul

Horatio G. Spafford, a lawyer and a businessman from Chicago, wrote this beloved hymn. He was born in North Troy New York, on October 20, 1828. Along with his financial success, he always maintained active relationship in Christian activities. He was noted as a man of unusual intelligence and refinement, deeply spiritual, and a devoted student of the Scripture.

Some months prior to Chicago Fire of 1871, Spafford had invested heavily in real estate in the shores of Lake Michigan, and his holdings were wiped out by this disaster. Desiring a rest for his wife and four daughters, Spafford planned a European trip for his family in November of 1873. Due to unexpected last minute business developments, he had to remain in Chicago, but he sent his wife and four daughters on ahead as scheduled on the S.S. Ville du Havre. He expected to follow in a few days. On November 22 the ship was struck by the Lochearn, an English vessel and sank in twelve minutes. Several days later, the survivors were finally landed at Cardiff, Wales, and Mrs. Spafford cabled her husband, "Saved alone." Shortly afterward Spafford left by ship to join her bereaved wife. It is thought that on the sea near the area where his four daughters had drowned, Spafford penned this text whose words so significantly describe his own personal grief - "When sorrows like sea billows roll."

It is notewothy however, that Spafford's hymn does not dwell on the theme of life's sorrows and trials but focuses attention in the third stanza on the redemptive work of Christ and in the fourth stanza anticipates his glorious Second Coming. Humanly speaking, it is amazing that one could experience such personal tragedies and sorrows as Horatio did and still be able to say with such convincing clarity "It is well with my soul."

Phillip P. Bliss, in 1876, impressed with Spafford's experience and expression of text short wrote the music for it. In 1881, Spafford left Chicagowith their two daughters and settled in Holy Land of Jerusalem. Horatio died at the age of sixty. (Text taken from Kenneth W. Osbeck's 101 Hymn Stories p.126).

Today this hymn is already a church song widely sang by many churches all over the world for many years. Sometimes I cry every time this song is being played in our Church. It reminds me of my griefs, my sadness too..like Horatio's . But thanks to God...thanks to Horatio. The song soothes my soul...yes... it is well with my soul.

Unchanging Reasons for Thanksgiving

“I will never leave thee nor forsake thee”  (Hebrew 13:5)

I - Our  Savior  – We thank God for His ABIDING presence. This is one of the reasons not to change our way of always thanking God. Because He did not leave nor forsake us.  He said “and lo, I am with you alway even unto the end of the world.” (Matthew 28:20).  “Fear thou not for I am with thee.. I will strengthen thee...I will help thee...I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”(Isaiah 41:10). We thank God for His ASSISTING presence.  He is a loving, faithful, wise and active helper. “The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” (Hebrews 13:6). And we thank God for His ANCHORING presence. “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever.”  (Hebrews 13:8).

II – Our Salvation – Jesus is the PRICE to redeem our salvation.  “Wherefore that Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered without the gate.’ (Hebrews 13:12).  “For by grace are you saved through faith and not of yourselves, not of works lest any man should boast.”  (Ephesians 2:8-9). GRACE means God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. Jesus suffered PAIN  when He said :“this is my body which is given for you.” (Luke 22:19-20). “They put crown of thorns upon His head.” (Matthew 27:29).  All these He did PURPOSELY to sanctify us. “That He might sanctify the people.” (Hebrews 13:12).  We gain POSITION in our salvation. “ Therefore there is now  no condemnation to them which are Christ Jesus.”  (Romans 8:1). “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.” (John 10:28). We are always PROGRESSIVE in our faith. “But grow in grace, in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.”  (2 Peter 3:18). And we were finally PERFECTED. “In whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with Holy Spirit of promise” (Ephesians 1:13).

III- Our Sanctuary – We thank God because He promised us our permanent place in heaven not any city of the world.  “For here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come.” (Hebrews 13:14). Heaven is a GENUINE place.  Heaven is a REAL place. “In my father’s house are many mansions if it were not so I would have told.” (John 14:2).  Heaven is a RESIDING place.  “ I go to prepare a place for you.” (John 14:3).  Heaven is a RESTING place.  “Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord, that they may rest from their labours.” (Revelation 14:13). Heaven is GLORIOUS place  In its BEAUTY and BLESSINGS and in the PRESENCE with God. “God is with men, and he will dwell with them.”  (Revelation 21:3).  Heaven is guarded from SORROW.  Note the words “No More.” No more sea, no more sadness, no more sleep (death), no more suffering, no more sundown (night). “And God shall wipe away all tears  from their eyes;  and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither there shall be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.”  (Revelation 21:4).

(From Rev. Teofilito Arevalo Rufon’s Sunday Worship Messages)

Am I My Brother's Keeper?

“Where is Abel thy brother?”  And Cain said, “I know not: am I my brother’s keeper?”  (Genesis 4:9)

The background of this great Bible question was the murder of  Abel  by his brother Cain.  God knows that  Cain murdered Abel.   God gave Cain a chance to confess his crime.  But Cain did not tell the truth.

Cain said “Am I my brother’s keeper?”  There are many things we can learn from Cain and Abel.

1.     We also tell lies to God and we do not keep our brothers.

2.    Cain was jealous with Abel because God favoured Abel.  We are sometimes full of envy and jealousy when favors are not given to us by our friends.

3.   God favoured Abel because Abel’s offering to God is with humility and true faith. Cain’s offering to God was given in pride. “God opposes the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.”  (James 4:6).    We give God not the best but the left-overs! We do not work hard and honestly.

4.     God gave the best for us His only son Jesus but we gave God the second class. Abel’s offering was the spotless Lamb.  We offer God worn-out or torn clothes like rags.

Are we our brothers’ keepers? Are you and I responsible to the needs of  other people? Is it our job to feed the hungry? Do we owe anything to the orphans? And the widows?  Is it our job to minister the sick? If Christians engage in sin, is it our job to speak to them?  Are we responsible for helping them to guide them away from the sin and back to righteous living?

The answer is Yes!   As Christians we are indeed our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers!  “Visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction .” (James 1:27)  Our faith is dead if we give nothing to our brothers. (James 2:15-17).  “Let us love in deed and truth.” (1 John 3:18).   Whenever we come across a person in need, we must realise this is a Divine Appointment.  God  is calling us to join Him. “We must love and defend the fatherless and widow, loveth the stranger, in giving him food and raiment.”  (Deuteronomy 10:18).

“Loose the bands of wickedness, undo the heavy burdens, let the oppressed go free,  give bread to the poor and hungry, the strange shelter, the naked thou cover him.”  (Isaiah 58:6-7).

Ask yourself:  What do I need to give God?  Is God calling me to join a church group where I can offer Him my time and talents to be used in ministry to the hurting and lost people of this world?  Does my attitude towards all the needy people around me,  my neighbours and co-workers, even beggars who I avoid in the street, need to change?   The way we should live is by “keeping our brothers” selflessly loving and caring for others.

(From Dr. Derek Stringer’s Great Bible Questions)

How Many Times Shall I Forgive?

“Lord how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” (Matthew 18:21)

Forgiveness is one of God’s attributes. It falls under God’s Love, a benevolent, merciful , gracious and forgiving Father.  “That you love one another, as I have loved you.” (John 5:12).

In  a real sense, forgiveness can be very difficult.  Real forgiveness or genuine forgiveness is as rare as hen’s teeth, and it is more common to be unforgiving than forgiving. It is sadly our natural human state because we put our resentment in cold storage so that we can thaw it out when we need it. They say they bury that hatchet but maintains a map that carefully marks the spot where they buried it so they can dig it up when they need it.  We nurse our grudges as if they were our precious children!  It’s a dog-eat-dog  world not dog-forgive-dog world.

Jesus wants us to understand that forgiving is something we should do over and over and over again. God tells us to forgive 70 times 7 or 490 times indicates the persistent, relentless nature of the love that is to be characteristic of a follower of the Lord. If Jesus did not forget Peter for denying Him because of cowardice, Peter would have been lost. But because God forgave Peter, he was changed.

Really, God asks us to do something that is so hard ...and one of those is to forgive.  But God tells us to forgive endlessly because God is so forgiving. God knows that forgiving others is good for us. God knows that refusing to forgive damages our relationship with Him and God knows that forgiveness will benefit the forgiven.

 Luke 6:27-28 tells us to “love our enemies.”  Matthew 6:9-13 directs us to pray “and forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.”   Matthew 6:14 reminds us that “if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” The parable of the unforgiving servant depicts what God will not forgive us if we will not forgive others ( Matthew 18:23-25).

When we forgive it is beneficial to both the forgiving and forgiven.  We recreate that person and be like Peter and Onesimus whom was forgiven by Philemon thru Paul’s request. When we forgive, we reduce tension and restore our relationship. Forgiveness made enemies into friends!  We must not harbour resentment because it is not good to our psychological and physical health.  Job 5:2 warns us that “to worry yourself to death with resentment would be a foolish and senseless thing to do.” Chronic anger is damaging to body. It leads to emotional stress, hypertension and cardiovascular diseases. “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine, but a broken spirit drieth the bone.” (Proverbs 17:22).

But how can we forgive?  Here are some God’s tips:

P-Pray

E- Empathy

A-Act

C-Confess

E-Example

Use this acronym and always remember to live at peace with others (1  Thessallonians 5:13).

We must “pray for those who ill-treat you.” (Luke 6:27-28).  We need to try to understand why they did and what they did and this is empathy.  We must act in forgiving ways. Do not revenge. Leave the vengeance to God. Jesus said “vengeance is mine.” (Romans 12:19). “Do good to those who hate you.” (Luke 6:27). “Bless those who curse you.”  (Luke 6:28). Jesus told us to do this when we are hurt:

1.       Go to the wrongdoer. “If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over.” (Matthew 18:15)

2.       Innocent party must initiate reconciliation.

3.       Do it privately.

4.       Forgiveness is not optional. It is a command.

5.       Be prepared to act in a forgiving way even if you do not feel like it.

6.       If a friend or family member holds a grudge, keep on acting toward them in loving ways.

7.       If your adversaries need help moving house, fixing a flat tire, need to borrow something, go to their aid.

Sometimes part of forgiveness is owning up our fault. We may be part of the blame. Consider if our jealousy, stubbornness, ambition, or even our bad attitudes has contributed to the rift.  Accelerate peace process by admitting our wrongdoing. We must say “I am very sorry. The hurt I caused you causes me pain as well.”

To end, set ourselves like Jesus as an example.  Jesus suffered and died to forgive our sins. Ask ourselves: Is there someone we need to forgive?  Is there someone who needs or wait  our forgiveness?

(From the Great Bible Questions by Dr. Derek Stringer)

Sola Fide, Sola Scriptura, Solus Christus, and Sola Gratias (Four Essential Truths of Christian Faith)

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” (2  Timothy 3:16).

Here are  four truths that are essential to Christian Faith:

I – Bible Alone  (Sola Scriptura) -  “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” (2  Timothy 3:16).

 The Bible is plain.  “From a child thou hast known the holy scriptures.”  (2 Timothy 3:15).

The Bible is powerful. “For the word of God is quick and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of thoughts and intents of the heart.’ (Hebrews 4:12). 

The Bible should be preached. “Preach the Word; be instant in season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine.” (2 Timothy 4:2).

II – Christ Alone (Sola Christus) – “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the  Father, but by me.” (John 14:6).   Salvation is simple:  The source, scope, simplicity and security is only Jesus.  Jesus alone.“Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth:  for I am God, and there is none else.”  (Isaiah 45:22).

III – Grace Alone (Sola Gratias) -  “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.  Not of works  lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9).  “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”  (Romans 5:8).  GRACE means G- God , R-reaching, A-accepting,  C-caring and E-encouraging.  God is gracious and merciful because he commendeth his love toward us. 

IV -  Faith Alone (Sola Fide) – “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1).  “As it is written the just shall live by faith.”  (Romans 5:17). Genuine faith is from start to finish. “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith.” (Hebrews 12:1). A faith that should be lived forever. “I am crucified with Christ:nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20).

(From the Sunday Worship Messages of Rev. Teofilito A. Rufon)

How Much Does Jesus Really Care About You?

“Casting all your care upon him, for he careth for you.” (1 Peter 5:7)

Does really God care for us? The answer is a resounding yes! God really care for us.  God said “all”   all our problems.  Past, present and future problems. God is asking to cast all our problems to him. Let God handle all our fears, failures, disappointments, school problems, marriage, business, sickness and money.  

There is a song:

It Matters Him About You

Your heartaches, your sorrows, He shares

Regardless of what you may do.

He loves you; he wants you, He care

Although He has millions of soul to see about

Although the sun, the moon and the stars are in His care

How wonderful to know, wherever you may go.

He can be reached just a whispered prayer.

For it matters to Him about You!

The Bible says that Jesus’ CARES means:

C- Comfort – “Jesus is the God of Comfort.” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).

A-Aid- “God is our refuge and a very present help in trouble (Psalm 46:1).

R-Restore and Rest- “God restoreth our soul.” (Psalm 23:1).

E-Eternally-“Jesus loves you with an everlasting love.” (Jeremiah 31:3).

S-Supply – “My God shall supply all our needs.” (Philippians 4:19).

(From Rev. Teofilito A. Rufon’s Sunday Worship Messages)

Overcome Sin

“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, if there be any praise...think about these things.”  (Philippians 4:8)

There  is a great chance to commit sin if we are ignorant in the word of God. Ignorance of the law is not an excuse.  There is a saying “an ounce of prevention is better than  a pound of cure.” What are the effective ways to fight sin:

I – Know and Depend Completely On God’s Word – By knowing and depending completely on God’s Word, we avoid the sin of ignorance and self-reliance.   “Study diligently the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life.” ( John 5:39).  By  reading the Bible, we learn the truths and gain eternal life. To break God’s Word and to pronounce independence from God completely or partly is a sin.

II – Believe In God’s Goodness and His Generosity – “Taste and See that the Lord is Good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him.” (Psalm 34:8).  God is not slack concerning His promise.  God’s goodness has been proven. Do not disobey God and you will see the pouring of His abundant blessings. We must bring the full tithe in God’s house. If we do that God will pay us in direct proportion...even bigger proportion!

III – Trust God’s Commands As Expressions Of Utmost Love – “Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.” (Psalm 119:18). By trusting God’s commands, we avoid the sin of considering ourself wiser than God.   “ “Your statues are wonderful, therefore, I obey them.” (Psalm 119:129).  God is always right to forbid us to do unlawful deeds.

IV -  Do not Experiment With Sin – Don’t ever dare to experiment sin. Before

we know, the damage has been done.  We must not jump from the building down to the ground to prove the Law of Gravity. Avoid the sin of commission.

V – Follow God’s Warnings – The Bible is a book of warnings. “We should not test the Lord, as some of them were killed by snakes..these things happened to them as examples and were written as warnings...”  (1 Corinthians 10:9-11).  It’s just like following the warning in the medicine bottle like “warning:toxic or poisonous when taken in over dosage”. God warned Lot.  God warned Adam and Eve.

VI – Reject Every Temptation to be Independent From God – “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls like a roaring lion ready to devour someone.” ( 1 Peter 5:8).  Sin’s mission is to take us out of God’s favor.  Do not use the formula of the devil in earning a living.  Sin is better prevented and easier to prevent than to cure.

(From Rev. Teofilito A. Rufon’s Sunday Worship Messages and  from Ed Lapiz’s Book Pitu-Pito)