“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” 1 Peter 2:9 NKJV
TTT Christian Youth Ministries is interdenominational. It has been my personal privilege to proclaim God’s truth in over 300 congregations of nearly every denomination.
But interestingly, almost every Sunday morning no matter what the “sign on the outside of the sanctuary” said, the congregation nearly each time sang the
“Doxology”: “Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him all creatures here below. Praise Him above ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen.”
According to Phil Kerr in his book “Music and Evangelism,” Thomas Ken wrote the Doxology, probably when in his early twenties.
God’s divine destiny put me in a family of believers on the Lord Jesus Christ affiliated with several denominations. My father’s parents were Presbyterian. My grandparents on my mother’s side were Nazarene, Methodist, and Baptist.
The week after I was “born again” during an evangelistic campaign at age 8, our congregation determined to be independent fundamental. During my junior high school days, a new pastor came to Grace Memorial Church from Wisconsin, introducing Youth for Christ. He contacted pastors of several denominations and asked them to appoint two teenagers from each of their churches to form a student steering committee for Mt. Carmel Youth for Christ.
Another young man and I were chosen for Grace Memorial. The pastor of First Baptist recruited his daughter and a deacon’s daughter. The pastors of First Methodist, Free Methodist, Evangelical United Brethren, Church of God, Pentecostal Assembly of God, and others appointed 2 high school students from each of their congregations. With guidance from our pastors, we prayed together, planned, and produced a monthly Youth for Christ rally.
Commenting on 1 Peter 2:9, Earl Radmacher, general editor of the Nelson Study Bible, wrote: “But you: This verse provides a direct contrast … between those who believe in Jesus Christ and those who do not. A chosen generation: God has not left to chance those who will be part of a unique body of people, a group who will serve Him. He has reserved that decision for Himself. A royal priesthood: Believers are transformed not only internally but also externally. We are a priesthood that functions in a ruling capacity, as kings. A holy nation: Believers are a unified group of people who are set apart for God’s use. His own special people: God protects those whom He has adopted into His family.”
“And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” Matthew 16:18 NKJV
Warren Wiersbe, in his Study Bible, wrote: “This is the first occurrence of the important word ‘church’ in the New Testament. It is the Greek word ‘ekklesia,’
from which we get our English word ‘ecclesiastical’ … The word is used 114 times in the New Testament, and in ninety of these references, a local assembly is in view. In this first use of ‘ekklesia,’ however, Jesus likely had the whole church in mind. He was not building just a local assembly but a universal church composed of all who make the same confession of faith that Peter made … ‘The gates of Hades’ would symbolize the organized power of death and Satan. By His death and resurrection, Jesus Christ would conquer death, so that death would not be able to hold any of His people. Christ would storm the gates and deliver the captives!”
“But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” 1 Corinthians 15:57-58 NKJV
Music can proclaim praises to God. “All hail the power of Jesus’ name! Let angels prostrate fall. Bring forth the royal diadem and crown Him Lord of all.” And the praise continues: “Let every kindred, every tribe on this terrestrial ball to Him all majesty ascribe … crown Him Lord of all.”
John Wesley’s younger brother Charles wrote over 6,500 songs, and God used them in England and across America. Just three days after he made the decision to personally “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ,” he wrote: “O for a thousand tongues to sing my great Redeemer’s praise, the glories of my God and King, the triumphs of His grace.”
Will you use your tongue to personally proclaim His praise and share the saving power of Jesus Christ with every possible person?