Friday, 31st January, 2025
Bible Reading: Ephesians 6: 13-14
Memory Verse: Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. Ephesians 6:14 (NLT)
Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus was a hymn inspired by the dying message of Dudley Tyng, a young preacher in Philadelphia who was forced to resign from his Episcopal church pastorate for speaking against slavery in the mid-1800s.
In addition to starting a new church, Tyng and other ministers preached revival meetings at the local YMCA during lunch and soon began to attract thousands (this revival period is known as ‘The Work of God in Philadelphia.’) In March of 1858, Tyng preached a rousing sermon to 5,000 young men at the YMCA and over 1,000 made a profession of faith. During his sermon he supposedly said “I would rather that this right arm were amputated at the trunk than that I should come short of my duty to you in delivering God’s message.”
Only a few days later Tyng left the study of his country home to visit his barn where a mule was harnessed to a machine that was shelling corn. When he patted the mule, his sleeve was caught in the cogs of the wheel and his arm was badly maimed. He passed away the following week from the injury.
Before he died, he was asked if he had a message for the ministers at the revival and he replied, “Tell them, ‘Let us all stand up for Jesus.’” His friend and fellow preacher, Dr. George Duffield, was touched by the words and wrote the hymn, ‘Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus’. Duffield concluded his sermon the following Sunday by reading the lyrics as a tribute to his friend. Did you read that? Even on his death bed, Dudley Tyng was alive to his divine assignment, most willing to stand up for Jesus.
He died at his post! Friends, can that be said of you in the examination hall as a Christian? Can that be said of you should your boss mount pressure on you to bow to his sexual advances, or risk further promotion? Can that be said of you in your neighbourhood that you stood for Jesus in words and character? Can that be said of you amidst your friends when they are toying with sin, or desecrating their bodies?
Key Lessons and Themes
1. Courage in the Face of Adversity: The hymn encourages believers to be brave and steadfast in their faith, even in the face of opposition or persecution.
2. Witnessing: The hymn calls upon Christians to be witnesses for Christ, sharing their faith with others and proclaiming the Gospel. It suggests that this is a vital aspect of Christian life.
3. Unity and Community: The call to “stand together” emphasizes the importance of Christian unity and community in the face of challenges.
4. Social Responsibility: The hymn suggests that Christians have a responsibility to be active in the world and to work for justice and righteousness.
5. Hope and Assurance: The hymn offers hope and assurance that God will be with believers and guide them through difficult times.
Quote: Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labour in the Lord is not in vain – 1 Corinthians 15:58 (NIV)
Prophetic Decree: The World, Sin, Self, and the Devil shall not separate me from the love of Jesus.
Prayer Focus
1. Lord, I repent of any way I have made light of my faith.
2. I receive grace to offer my body as a living sacrifice daily unto God, in Jesus name.
3. I receive grace to stand up for Jesus in my community, in Jesus name.
4. I receive grace to stand up for Jesus in my family, in Jesus name.
5. I receive grace to be addicted to Jesus, in Jesus name.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Exodus 4-6
Hymn: STAND UP FOR JESUS
1. Stand up, stand up for Je sus,
Ye sol diers of the cross;
Lift high His roy al ban ner,
It must not suf fer loss.
From vic to ry un to vic to ry
His ar my shall He lead,
Till ev ery foe is van quished,
And Christ is Lord in deed.
2. Stand up, stand up for Je sus,
The so lemn watch word hear;
If while ye sleep He suf fers,
Away with shame and fear;
Where’er ye meet with ev il,
Within you or with out,
Charge for the God of bat tles,
And put the foe to rout.
3. Stand up, stand up for Je sus,
The trum pet call ob ey;
Forth to the migh ty con flict,
In this His glo ri ous day.
Ye that are brave now serve Him
Against un num bered foes;
Let cour age rise with dan ger,
And strength to strength op pose.
4. Stand up, stand up for Je sus,
Stand in His strength alone;
The arm of flesh will fail you,
Ye dare not trust your own.
Put on the Gos pel ar mor,
Each piece put on with pray er;
Where du ty calls or dan ger,
Be ne ver want ing there.
5. Stand up, stand up for Je sus,
Each sol dier to his post,
Close up the brok en col umn,
And shout through all the host:
Make good the loss so hea vy,
In those that still re main,
And prove to all around you
That death it self is gain.
6. Stand up, stand up for Je sus,
The strife will not be long;
This day the noise of bat tle,
The next the vic tor’s song.
To him who ov er com eth
A crown of life shall be;
They with the King of Glo ry
Shall reign eter nal ly.