FRIDAY, 23RD SEPTEMBER, 2022.
HYMNOLOGY - BLEST BE THE TIE THAT BINDS
Author: John Fawcett
MEMORIZE: “He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him.” 1 John 2:10
SCRIPTURE READING: 1 John 2:7-11
“Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning. Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining. He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.”
EXPOSITION:
Anyone who loves their brother and sister lives in the light, and there is nothing in them to make them stumble. The first thing that struck me about the life of John Fawcett was his devotion to the people he was called to minister to. He is cited as a spiritual leader who sacrificed ambition and personal gain for Christian devotion.
His parents were poor and from Yorkshire in England. He was born in 1740 and converted to Christ at the age of sixteen, ten years later he was ordained as a Baptist minister. His first parish was a small one with mostly poor congregants. After spending several years there with a meager salary he got the call to go to a big affluent parish in London.
Come the day of him and his wife's departure, as his saddened parishioners gathered around his wagon to bid them farewell, his wife, Mrs. Fawcett broke down and said. "John, I cannot bear to leave, I know not how to go" to which he replied "Neither can I"
He continued his faithful ministry to the humble people of Wainsgate for more than fifty years. During this time he remained on a small salary of not more than 200 dollars A YEAR. During this time he wrote the words to this hymn under the title "Brotherly love"
He gained a reputation as an excellent teacher and was conferred with a Doctorate in Divinity by Browns University in the United States in 1811, wrote several books and started a seminary. During his ministry he received several other offers to minister in bigger towns but stayed faithful to his congregation until his death in 1817 as a result of a paralytic stroke.
John Fawcett remains an inspiration and example of selfless ministry, a quality that we dearly need in the church today.
PRAYER POINT: Lord, give me a true love for my brother and sister in Christ. Amen.
DAILY BIBLE READING IN A YEAR – Daniel 7-9.
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