A Page of My Own Hymns

This Man Eats with Sinners

text by Richard W. Bardo, © 2004 by Richard W. Bardo
music Emmaus Meal by Richard W. Bardo, © 2004 by Richard W. Bardo
Library of Congress, PAu2-846-648

The arrangment/harmonization featured in the Midi file above is the work of a dear friend, Kevin S. Kerstetter, and is copyrighted by him. (arrangement by Kevin S. Kerstetter, © 2004 by Kevin S. Kerstetter)

This hymn is dedicated to all of God's people, redeemed by his Grace, who daily face condemnation by the self-righteous. (Luke 15)

This man eats with sinners!

O wondrous truth proclaim!

To know he shares our meal with us

And calls us by our name!

"O, this man eats with sinners!"

The Pharisees did cry,

And could not smell the stench within

Their empty whitewashed lives.

 

This man eats with sinners!

The world's throng does ignore

The One who loves them and who knocks

To enter their heart's door.

They open wide their portals

And let the demons in,

But stop the Lord of Life himself,

Rejecting Love for sin.

 

This man eats with sinners!

His foll'wers dwelt in fear.

They gathered on that Easter eve

Not knowing he was near.

It was in breaking bread with them

He let himself be known,

Once trembling hearts now burned within:

They'd never be alone!

 

This man eats with sinners!

O come, Lord, eat with me!

Although unworthy and unclean,

Your child in me you see.

Yes, not our empty merit

You look at as we sup,

But by your body and your blood

You cleanse and lift us up.

 

This man eats with sinners!

Recall that this is true:

When we despise another one,

We show our sin anew.

If we would be forgiven,

We must respond in kind,

Forgiving all of wrongs to us

And to their sin be blind.

 

This man eats with sinners!

O wondrous truth proclaim!

To know he shares his meal with us

And calls us by his name!

"O, this man eats with sinners!"

The Lord's redeemed do cry;

With joyful hearts around his throne,

They share his feast on high.

If you wish permission to use this hymn, you can send your request to me at this mailbox:

Email: vexillog@vexillog.com

If you use the hymn, the words are not to be modified in any way. A .pdf file containing words and arranged music is available.

Justice, Hand in Hand with Mercy

text by Richard W. Bardo, © 2004 by Richard W. Bardo
Library of Congress, PAu2-944-859
to be sung to the hymn tune "Beach Spring"

A call to all of God's people, redeemed by his Grace, to remember what are the fruits of true faith, especially in the midst of a materialistic and profit-obsessed world.

Justice, hand in hand with mercy,

Tempered with humility,

Are the virtues God requires

Of his foll'wers: you and me.

Not with thousand streams of oil

Nor with rams without a stain,

Not by offering up our first-born

God's rich blessings do we gain.¹

 

God will never note our worship,

Hear our hymns, nor want our gifts,

If we dam the floods of justice,

If the righteous stream's not swift.

Never can we know his favor,

While we trample on the poor,

While the rich build bigger mansions,

Cheating others to have more.²

 

God demands we trust him only,

Not the strength of horse and sword,

Not the might of arm and army,

Just his love and just his Word;³

Beat our swords now into plowshares,

And to pruning hooks our spears,

Turn the weapons of destruction

Into tools that conquer fears.⁴

 

Hear! The prophets do declare it

And our Savior does proclaim:

All the law and all the prophets

Two commandments do contain.

We must love our God supremely,

But our love cannot stop there,

As we love ourselves, thus dearly

We must show our neighbors care.⁵

 

Love we show to every neighbor;

We were lovéd first we know;

Love completed in another

Casts out every fear below.⁶

God has saved us by Grace only;

Yet not practiced, faith is dead,

Faith that's active toward the outcast,

Gloried, crowns our living Head.⁷

 

¹Micah 6

²Amos 6

³Psalms 33; Isaiah 31; Deuteronomy 8

⁴Micah 4

⁵Matthew 22

⁶I John 4

⁷James 2

If you wish permission to use this hymn, you can send your request to me at this mailbox:

Email: vexillog@vexillog.com

If you use the hymn, the words are not to be modified in any way.

Oft Forgotten in Our Day

text by Richard W. Bardo, © 1984 by Richard W. Bardo
music Celebration 77.77.D by Trudi Wintersteen Spataro, © 1984 by Trudi Wintersteen Spataro
celebration logo by Carol Trotman, © 1984 by Carol Trotman

For all God's faithful people at First United Methodist Church, Catawissa, Pennsylvania

In 1984 the congregation at First United Methodist Church, Catawissa, celebrated a three-fold anniversary: the 200th anniversary of the founding of the denomination (1784) ['the Champions'], the 150th anniversary of the founding of the congregation (1834) ['the Founders'], and the 100th anniversary of the construction of the church building (1884) ['the Builders']. To commemorate this celebration, I wrote the poem which became the text of the hymn, and a young talented woman of the parish, Trudi Wintersteen Spataro, composed the hymn tune.

Oft forgotten in our day are the Champions of the Faith,

Those who cast aside their fear journ'ying through the rude frontier,

Rode the circuits, preached the Word, to ears that else had never heard.

Do we go where Christ does call, following him who died for all?

 

Oft forgotten in our day are the Founders of the Faith,

Those who gathered here, who knew what their Lord would have them do;

Living out the new command, washing feet and head and hand.

Do we serve where Christ does call, copying him who died for all?

 

Oft forgotten in our day are the Builders of the Faith,

Those who spoke through wood and stone calling all mankind to come,

In this silent age of doubt these their very stones cry out:

'Do you build where Christ does call, lifting him who died for all?'

 

Thus remembered in this age is our three-fold* Heritage.

If remembrance is the end, then this work seems all in vain.

We are called to tasks undone; we, to work in fields unwon.

'Lead, O Christ,' your children call, 'lead us, you, who died for all!'

*(The word 'Christian' may be substituted for the word 'three-fold' or the alternate lines may be used.)

If you wish permission to use this hymn, you can send your request to me at this mailbox:

Email: vexillog@vexillog.com