Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1917-11-30
SONG OFTHESAVED
HeatheniSm Has No Hymn Book
Only the Christian Has
the Gospel Songs.

h~edtneulSm mas no hymn DOCK.
Buddhism, ~BrahmanISm. ConfucianiSm,
Mohammedanism. and paganiSm do
not break forth into songs Of Joy. How
could this be expected Of religions
whose god inspire only fear and
dread? Charles E. Scott of China, de-
scribeS the Buddhist chants as
weird" with "a vein of sadness in
them as of JOY unattained, of hope I'M
~realizable," and goes on to say "they
give many people a sense of unutter-
able Inconsistencies" OF this joyless
land he says further:
But what happens when a sheaf of
first fruits is garnered out from n
heather people? Invariably they burst
forth into singing. Whether they
possess an ancient and honorable
language, or whether they have no
language at all and the language
has to be made, redemption and the
knowledge of it find outlet in audible
praise. When our missionaries come
home on furlough we always want
them to sing for us a Gospel hymn as
1t sounds in the native dialect. An
article in a recent issue of the Sun
day School Times referred to John
Hays thrilling description of how n
pagan tribe of Indians in the wilds Of
South America sang their first hymn.
The language had to be constructed
and the Christian converts taught to
speak it. As it emerged out of great
trihulation one of its earliest literary
productions was a hymn. All the
perils of sickness, perils of danger, aad
pcrilS of death sank into inSigniticance.
the missionary said, when he and his
ACCOMPLISHMENTS for the first time
heard their little band Of converts
singing:
Come to the Savior, make no delay:
Here in his Word he has shown us the way.
The statement has been made that
singing In the Bible is always asso-
clated with redemption. The first song
mentioned in the Bible is certainly q
song of redemption:
Then sang Moses and the children Of Israel
this song unto Jehovah. and spako.
saying,
I will sing unto Jehovah. for he hath tri-
umphed gloriously:
The horse and his rider hath he thrown
into the sea.
Jehovah is my strength and song.
And he 10 become my salvation.
If 1t be true, as Is said on the author
ity Of a great Bible teacher, that the
first mention of a subject in the
Bible Is the key to it throughout the
rest of the book, then that statement
is correct. A search of the Scriptures,
although not an exhaustive one, cor
roborates the correctness Of this as
sertion.
Exodus is the book of redemption.
and 1t is naturally to be expected that
the first song of the redeemed would
be found there. That song is the pean
of praise over ISrael's accomplished re-
demption from Egypt's thraldom. Like
all redemption, it had been wholly Of
Jehovah himself.
1t IS deliverance from the slavery
of sin and the cleansing of these body
temples Of ours intended for the in
dwelling of the Holy Ghost, that puts
the song of the Lord upon our lips.
Modern evangelism, too, has had its
distinctive song language. When the
Master has thrust forth great evan
gelistic workers, it seems to have been
in pairs, as he did his disciples In his
own day, two and two. When he
n Moody as a great flaming
evangel, he raised up a Sankey also
to 90 with him. Whittle had his Bliss,
and Chapman their Alexander,
Sunday his Rodeheaver. These great
song leaders are often composers of
music, and while their compositions
may have lacked something of the dig
nifty Of Wesley and the hymn writer's
Of his day and following, their tune
Pul swing has swayed great audiences
md softened their hearts, for their
.heme has been the same-redemption
~ blood and power.
The theme of song will be the same
n eternity as in time. The last Bible
song, as well as the frst, is about re-
lemption. 1t is when the Lion Of the
ribe Of Judah, who Is also the Lamb,
prevails to open the seals Of the mys-
erious little book described in the
revelation, that the living creatures
nd the elders sing "the new song"
art thou to take the book, and
pen the seals thereof; for thou vast
lain, and didst purchase unto God
With thy blood men of every tribe, and
ongue, and people, and nation"
Dare We think Of the Joy Of the day
7hen we join with all heaven in the
horus Of that new song, as we look
nto the very face Of him who re-
eemed us?-Supday School Times.