In mansions of glory and endless delight,
I’ll ever adore Thee in heaven so bright;
I’ll sing with the glittering crown on my brow,
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.
My Jesus, I Love Thee
By: William Ralph Featherston (1848–1875)
Listen to this simple piano arrangement as you read. Members, be sure to experience the worship-cultivating podcast below.
As we close out our look into how we love Jesus in different moments we consider the ones that will go on forever. It is the last great “ever”, and like every now before it, this one will also be filled with our response of love to Jesus. Tuesday we considered the place this will happen, (read that here) and today we consider the promise. Let’s think about that.
I’ll Sing
In the previous stanza we committed to speak our love to Jesus as we came to and beyond the end of our life. We find ourselves in this stanza breathing in the celestial air of our forever home and exhaling not in a speech but a song. We will sing. Oh, how we will sing!
When we finally find ourselves walking the hallways of those eternal mansions, realizing the fullness of our inheritance come to pass, we will sing as never before. I have often remarked at how different our lung capacity will be in our glorified bodies, not to mention the fact that our musculature will be able to control that breath with much more efficiency. All that joined with overwhelming desire to glorify our Lord which will consume our entire being will bring us to an utterance of praise beyond imaging.
If you have been on this journey with us for long, you know that our desire here at Resonant 7 is to remove the hindrances in our lives to our reverberating with God’s praise. When we get to heaven every single thing that inhibited our praise in any way in this life will be gone. We will unhindered be!
I am sure you are looking forward to that day, but I want to encourage you to consider what those first moments of praise will be like. Imagine that scene as you are confronted with the awe-evoking presence of Jesus, when you can finally take a breath and then begin offering your adoration. Ask the Spirit to help you render that in your mind.
Glittering Crown
As if the place and the presence of Jesus were not enough to stimulate your worship, imagine this. Jesus walks over to you with a crown in His nail-pierced hands, a crown which has been prepared for you, not because you earned it but because you are a child of God through faith in Jesus. As He draws near He lifts it up to gently place it on your head.
Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing. 2 Timothy 4:8 ESV
If you were not singing before, you must be by then. But not only you. Your voice echoes with all who have longed for His appearing.
Before we move on I want you to wrap your mind around one more reality. Two stanzas before another brow is mentioned. In that second stanza as we considered the sacrifice of our Lord, we declared our love for Him which was prompted by wearing a different crown on His brow, a crown of thorns. Juxtapose that against the image created in this last stanza at you are left with a startling truth: you will wear a glittering crown because Jesus wore a thorny one.
Are you longing for His appearing? That is the criteria mentioned in Timothy to be able to be awarded that crown. Ask the Holy Spirit to search your heart and reveal how strong your longing is, then ask Him to make it even stronger.
If ever…it’s now!
From the first moments of our walk with Jesus, and then over time as we understood better what that even meant, we love Him. We have already committed to speak in the previous stanza and then sing in this final one. For me this alludes to a natural crescendo that is occurring as this hymn progresses. I think it beautifully portrays what happens in the life of the believer.
Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 1 Peter 1:8 ESV
In those earliest moments, we are overwhelmed with love for Jesus, our Savior. As we grow in that love, it matures through a deeper sense of His sacrifice. This prompts us to commit to love Him while living, and even while dying which requires an even greater level of maturity. Finally we come to a place of rest in the fact that our best love will likely be offered beyond this life.
Even as you long to offer your highest praise in that Day, commit to loving Jesus in every “now” until that one comes. Across more than four stanzas, but whatever days remain ask the Spirit to help you declare with your lips and your life more and more each day, “If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus ’tis now!”
Jesus, I love You. Even as I long to see You face-to-face, help me to believe in You and rejoice with a joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory. Even though I may fail to truly express it, since it is inexpressible, help me to try. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Joyful Thinking!
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Members and Subscribers enjoy this podcast! It features meditative music and moments to contemplate the Scriptures shared. Everyone else the transcript below.
Podcast 9.4 Transcript
Welcome to Thursday Thoughts at Resonant 7, where we reflect on the reality of God and resolve to let it resound in our lives, repeatedly. Let’s think about this.
In mansions of glory and endless delight,
John 14:2 ESV
In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?
Jesus is indeed preparing a place for us, a place of endless delight. We often get caught up on the many roomed mansions, but simply being in His presence eternally will create a rest unlike we can even fathom now. Take a moment and imagine what endless delight feels like.
I’ll ever adore Thee in heaven so bright;
Revelation 21:23 ESV
And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.
He will be our light, and we will adore Him forever. Does that mean that all that we will do is sing praises? I don’t think so. We will have the light of His presence to praise Him, but it will also give us the illumination and inspiration to engage in every pursuit with an undivided purpose, to adore Him. Think about that.
I’ll sing with the glittering crown on my brow,
2 Timothy 4:8 ESV
Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.
As I ever adore Jesus, no doubt some of that will be singing His praise. No doubt some of our songs will be thanksgiving for placing a crown of righteousness on our brows, and that is only part of the award He has in store for us on that Day. Give Him praise.
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.
1 Peter 1:8 ESV
Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory,
We have not seen Him, yet we love Him. Imagine how our love will expand when we finally lay our eyes on Jesus. We will have loved Him in many different moments for many different reasons but surely we will love Him in those moments with an inexpressible and glorious joy. Commit to do so now.
Take a few moments to talk to Jesus about what has come to your mind, or just listen to what He is saying to you, then I will read our text once more.
In mansions of glory and endless delight,
I’ll ever adore Thee in heaven so bright;
I’ll sing with the glittering crown on my brow,
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.
Take the mindfulness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes into the next ones and beyond. Until next time, be Resonant.
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