Singing alleluia with our lives

One of the songs we sang on Easter sunday was the hymn, "Now Let the Vault of Heaven Resound." It's a great hymn to the tune of "All Creatures of our God and King." The third verse in particular has stuck with me all week:

O fill us, Lord, with dauntless love;

Set heart and will on things above

That we conquer through Your triumph

Grant grace sufficient for life's day

That by our lives we ever say,

"Christ has triumphed! He is living!

Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!"

He lives to plead for me above

I've been translating the book of Hebrews from the Greek this semester, and this week I'm on chapter 7.  Verse 25 in particular is especially powerful during this Easter season, reminding me of why the resurrection is such good news:

Therefore He is also able to save completely the ones who come near to God through Him, because He always lives to plead for them.  ~Hebrews 7:25 (my translation)

The good news of Easter is three-fold: because of the resurrection, we who trust in Christ are "saved completely," can draw near to God, and can know that Jesus always stands before the Father pleading on our behalf.  We have an ever-living Advocate and Savior in the courtroom of heaven.

Hebrews 7-10 unpacks all of this, and ends with the application of what this Easter gospel should mean in our lives every day:  "Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that He opened for us through the curtain... let us draw near to God with a true heart in full assurance of faith."  Amen!

One of my favorite Easter hymns is "I Know that My Redeemer Lives."  The third verse in particular stood out to me today, in light of Hebrews 7:25--

He lives to bless me with His love

He lives to plead for me above

He lives my hungry soul to feed

He lives to help in time of need

He Is Risen!

A new hymn I had never heard before, from the new LCMS hymnbook:


All the earth with joy is sounding:
Christ has risen from the dead!
He, the greater Jonah, bounding
From the grave, His three-day bed.
Wins the prize:
Death's demise--
Songs of triumph fill the skies

Christ, the devil's might unwinding,
Leaves behind His borrowed tomb.
Stronger He, the strong man binding,
Takes, disarms his house of doom;
In the rout
Casting out
Pow'rs of darkness, sin, and doubt

Jesus, author of salvation,
Shared in our humanity;
Crowned with radiant exaltation,
Now He shares His victory!
From His face
Shines the grace
Meant for this, our fallen race

Praise the Lord, His reign commences,
Reign of life and liberty-
Paschal Lamb, for our offenses,
Slain and raised to set us free!
Evermore
Bow before
Christ, the Lord of Life adore!




He is risen indeed! Alleluia!