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IMMORTAL,
INVISIBLE, GOD ONLY WISE
Immortal,
invisible, God only wise,
in light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
most blessed,
most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
almighty, victorious, thy
great name we praise!
Unresting,
unhasting, and silent as light,
nor wanting, nor wasting, thou rulest in might;
thy justice
like mountains high soaring above
thy clouds which are fountains
of goodness and love.
To all, life
thou givest, to both great and small;
in all life thou livest, the
true life of all;
we blossom and
flourish like leaves on the tree,
and wither and perish, but
naught changeth thee.
Thou reignest
in glory; thou dwellest in light;
thine angels adore thee, all
veiling their sight;
all laud we
would render; oh, help us to see
'tis only the splendor of light hideth thee!
Text: Walter
Chalmers Smith, 1824-1908, alt.
This hymn brought
comfort at my mother’s funeral. Each of my two daughters chose it
for her wedding. It was relevant on all occasions. What I love
most about it is that it relays the omnipotence and omnipresence
of God. God is always with us. He never changes.
The verse, “We
blossom and flourish like leaves on the tree, and wither and
perish, but naught changeth thee,” is reminiscent of
Ecclesiastes 3:1-2: “For everything there is a season, and a time
for every purpose under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to
die. …” God gave us life. He gave us our very essence. Our time
on earth is so short compared with eternity.
God will
eternally be our God, and we will be with him for eternity. This
is the promise he gave us when he sent his Son to die for our
sins. We do not have to earn this gift. All we have to do is to
believe and be baptized.
Thank you, God,
for sending your son to die for our sins. Thank you for the
comfort you have given us when those we love die —
the comfort of knowing they have gone home to be with you. Thank
you for your promise of eternal life.
Judy McDiffett
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