For almost 150 years we have been singing this hymn by William P. MacKay…
“We praise Thee, O God, for the Son of Thy love, for Jesus who died and is now gone above, Hallelujah! Thine the glory, Hallelujah! Amen. Hallelujah! Thine the glory; Revive us again.”
I can honestly tell you that this is the first song I can remember hearing sung in church during my earliest years. The chorus is one that rings in my mind and floats through the ages. Let’s look at the remaining 4 verses and see the emphasis of the words in this hymn:
“We praise Thee, O God, for Thy Spirit of light, Who has shown us our Savior, and scattered our night…” The Word of God tells us that Jesus is the light, and in Him is no darkness. We sing this scripture through this verse…I John 1:5
“All glory and praise to the Lamb that was slain, Who has borne all our sins and has cleansed every stain…” Nothing is more important for us to sing about, admonish each other with and remind the listener with. Christ has washed away our sins when we were baptized for the forgiveness of our sins.
“All glory and praise to the God of all grace, Who has bought us and sought us and guided our ways…” Have you thought about that before? Christ came to this earth (sought us) and died on the cross for our sins (bought us) and rose from the dead to guide us back to God. Question is, are we following?
“Revive us again, fill each heart with Thy love. May each soul be rekindled with fire from above…” Each of these verses have a specific message and a clear admonish to us. But they need the glue from the refrain to transition our thoughts and solidify our resolve:
“Hallelujah! Thine the glory. Hallelujah! AMEN! Hallelujah! Thine the glory. Revive us again.” We must never forget the price that was paid (vs. 1 & 3), the security we have in ‘the Light’ (vs. 2), the praise for salvation (vs. 4), and the reminder to come back and hold fast to His love (vs. 5). “Hallelujah! Thine (to God be…) the Glory!”