Henry
Francis Lyte was born in Kelso, Scotland on June 1, 1793. He was left an
orphan at the age of nine and was taken in by a kind Irish minister named Dr.
Robert Borrows. Even though Dr. Borrows had five children of his own, he took
Henry in and paid for his schooling. Henry followed in Dr. Borrow’s footsteps
and attended Trinity College in Dublin. Henry graduated in 1814 and planned to
study medicine. Instead he became an Anglican priest and vicar of All Saints
Church in Brixham, England. In his
service to God, Henry believed, “It was better to wear out than to rust
out.”
Henry and his wife, Anna, spent their days taking care of the sick and needy every single day. Henry developed tuberculosis in 1844, and for the next three years his health deteriorated. At the age of 54, he came near to the end of his life. On September 4, 1847, he stood in his pulpit for the final time and delivered his farewell message to his parishioners. That same afternoon, after a walk on the beach, Henry retired to his room. He emerged an hour later with a handwritten copy of “Abide with Me.” He passed away 10 weeks later while on a holiday in Nice, France, on November 20th, 1847, while resting in a hotel on the French Riviera.
The
song was debuted at Henry’s memorial service. The opening line alludes to
Luke 24:29 (KJV), “But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward
evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them.” The
verse was muttered by a close friend as He lay dying. Many have remarked
the change to the singular pronoun is what gives the hymn its comforting
emotional intimacy. (Did
you know in the aftermath of the Titanic sinking, survivors reported
that the ship’s band played the hymn while the ship was sinking.)
1. Abide with me. Fast falls the eventide;
The darkness deepens; Lord with me abide.
When other helpers fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, oh, abide with me!
2. Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day;
Earth's joys grow dim, its glories pass away;
Change and decay in all around I see.
O Thou, who changest not, abide with me.
3. Not a brief glance I beg, a passing word,
But as Thou dwell'st with Thy disciples, Lord,
Familiar, condescending, patient, free.
Come not to sojourn, but abide with me.
4. Come not in terror, as the King of kings,
But kind and good, with healing in Thy wings;
Tears for all woes, a heart for every plea.
Come, Friend of sinners, thus abide with me.
5. Thou on my head in every youth didst smile,
And though rebellious and perverse meanwhile,
Thou hast not left me, oft as I left Thee.
On to the close, O Lord, abide with me.
6. I need Thy presence every passing hour;
What but Thy grace can foil the Tempter's power?
Who like Thyself my guide and stay can be?
Through cloud and sunshine, oh, abide with me.
7. I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless;
Ills have no weight and tears no bitterness.
Where is death's sting? Where, grave, thy victory?
I triumph still if Thou abide with me.
8. Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes,
Shine through the gloom, and point me to the skies.
Heaven's morning breaks, and earth's vain shadows flee;
In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.
The above hymn is a prayer for God to remain with the speaker throughout his life, trials, and death. In the today’s world, abiding means to constantly live and remain in Jesus. The best example of abiding in Jesus is in John 15:5 (ESV) says: “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit for apart from me you can do nothing. “Metaphorically, Jesus is vine, and we (His children) are the branches. Three things below are implied in this verse. Don’t think of them as three consecutive steps, but as three interwoven aspects of abiding.
Connection
A
branch is connected to the vine, and a vine to the branch. This is what
theologians frequently describe as “union with Christ.” Notice that this
connection, this union, is mutual. We abide in Him and he abides in us. If there is no connection, there is no life,
no fruit.
Dependence This aspect of abiding, unlike connection, is
not mutual. The branch is dependent on the vine, but the vine is not dependent
on the branch. The branch derives its life and power from the vine. Without the
vine, the branch is useless, lifeless, and powerless. Sap flows from the vine
to the branch, supplying it with water, minerals, and nutrients that make it
grow. And believers receive the “sap” of Christ’s grace through our life-giving
connection to him. We are completely dependent upon Jesus for everything that
counts as spiritual fruit. Apart from Him, we can do nothing.
Continuance
“Abide”
(Greek, meno)
means to remain, or stay or continue. This shows us that another aspect of
abiding in Jesus is remaining in Jesus. This simply means that we go on
trusting, that we keep on depending, and that we never stop believing. To abide
in Jesus is to persevere in Jesus and his teaching. This is what Jesus is
talking about in John
8:31-32(ESV):
“So Jesus said
to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide
in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the
truth, and the truth will set you free.”
“It is
not worrying, but rather trusting and abiding in the peace of God that will
crush anything that Satan tries to do to us. If the Lord created the world out
of chaos. He can easily deal with any problem that we have.” (Rick Joyner)[i]
[i] Sources used:
·
“Abide With Me: The Story Behind
the Beloved Hymn” by cloisterwalk
·
“Behind the Hymn: Abide with Me”
by Diana Leagh Matthews
·
“Hymn Stories: Abide With Me” by Tim
Challies
·
“The
Story Behind Abide With Me” by GodTube
·
“The story behind the hymn” by
Rupert Christiansen
·
“What does it mean to abide in
Christ?” by Got Questions
·
“What Does It Mean to Abide in Christ?”By Brian Hedges
In the large amount of material I went
through to get the story of ABIDE WITH ME, there were contradictions in the
final story you just read. One article said Henry was 45 at the time of his tuberculosis.
Another article said he wrote this hymn in 10 minutes. Another article said it
was included as part of his farewell sermon. I hope you enjoyed reading the
story behind ABIDE WITH ME as I did writing it.
HAPPY VETERAN'S DAY 2019
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