Wednesday, October 24, 2007

"How Great the Bliss to Be a Sheep of Jesus"



How great the bliss to be a sheep of Jesus, And to be guided by His shepherd staff! Earth's greatest honors, how so e'er they please us, Compared to this are vain and empty chaff. Yea, what this world can never give, May through the Shepherd's grace, each needy sheep receive.




Here is a pasture, rich and never failing, Here living waters in abundance flow; None can conceive the grace with them prevailing, Who Jesus' shepherd voice obey and know: He banishes all fear and strife, And leads them gently on to everlasting life.




Who e'er would spend his days in lasting pleasure Must come to Christ and join His flock with speed; Here is a feast prepared, rich beyond measure, The world meanwhile on empty husks must feed. Those souls may share in every good Whose shepherd doth possess the treasuries of God.

Words by Johann Jakob Rambach (1727)
Music by Johann Gottlieb Wagner (1742)

This is a beautiful old Moravian hymn, and Cyber Hymnal does not have it. After much searching, I finally found the tune. Just click on the first black and white notes to the left of Harmony here. Be sure to listen to hear the wonderful sound of the Moravian music.

Johh 10:14 - I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.

John 10:27 -
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:

John 10:11 -
I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.

images courtesy of All Posters

12 comments:

Beka said...

That is a beautiful hymn! I had never heard of that one before. It is wonderful!
I wasn't able to get the link to work for the music, though.

Cathy said...

Oh, Beka, you MUST get the music to work! Thank you. I just love that Moravian hymn, and I tried to give a better description on how to get the music. :o)

Karen said...

Hi Cathy,
I just wanted to come visit and thank you for your comments on my site. I have seen your name around a few of the blogs I read, and I'm glad to "meet" you, a fellow North Carolinian!
I'll be back to read more.
Blessings,
Karen

Cathy said...

You are welcome, Karen. That is really exciting to "meet" someone else from North Carolina! Thanks for visiting. :o)

Maxine said...

"Who e'er would spend his days in lasting pleasure Must come to Christ and join His flock with speed." Beautiful words. This whole hymn is rich with lovely words. I haven't tried to get the melody yet, but the words are worth feasting on, indeed. Love it.

Cathy said...

Thank you, Maxine. The words are wonderful, and the music is very unique. :o)

Jodi said...

Cathy ~ What a beautiful hymn! I fell in love with the title alone, How great the bliss to be a sheep of Jesus! Do you think that accompaniment was a pipe organ? And if so, do they use that for most of their church music?

You sparked my interest, so I glanced over the Wikipedia entry on Moravian Music. I did not have time to read it in detail, but I saw enough to know there is a very rich history there and much I could learn about. I saw a bit about trombones and other brass instruments (on Easter Sunday, is it?), which is what prompted my question about the organ music. [I know you've experienced it first hand, and I would dearly love any posts you might decide to put together about it. :o)]

Cathy, I know I'm failing miserably at getting around to everybody to comment right now. But I do read you in my bloglines even though I don't always click over to your site. You are such a blessing to me, and I just want to make sure you know that! We (the children and I) are trying to re-arrange our daily schedule; it's not really working for us right now. Hopefully I'll be able to work in a more consistent time for writing and blog reading (and commenting!). :o)

Blessings and hugs to you!

Cathy said...

Dear Jodi,
It sounds like the Moravian Band playing. If you also click the accompaniment for Tenor and Brass, they are pretty too. Most churches have a Moravian Band I believe. At Easter, they go around town on a bus, playing during the night and at the Easter Sunrise Service in Old Salem.They have breakfast at Home Church. They also play on special occasions in Old Salem. The organ is played during church services. There is a Moravian Music Foundation in Winston-Salem. Oh, Moravians also sing during communion.

Don't you worry about commenting. I know you are busy with your lovely family. I just did not want you to miss this hymn. :o) I pray you can get your schedule well arranged.

Blessings and hugs to you too, dear, Jodi ~

Mimi said...

Cathy,
this is a beautiful hymn... it sounds almost like one we have sung "oh God our help in ages past"...
I tried all the tones and it was beautiful...
thanks for this insite into the moravian worship...
having lived in Winston I should remember more of the things from Old Salem... but I need gentle reminders...
Thanks again

Cathy said...

You are welcome, Mimi. I believe you are right about the similar sounds. :o) I found another good Moravian music site I sent to Jodi. We do love pretty music! I'm glad you enjoyed it.

Unknown said...

Was just trying my luck to see of these words were on line as I was too lazy to type them out for service on Sunday. Thanks for posting them
Rev.Adelyn Trinidad

Cathy said...

You are welcome. I just love this hymn, and will listen to it again.