[Biblemat] hymn study, "I Will Remember Thee"

[Wayne S Walker]

Wayne Walker here with another weekly hymn study.

"I WILL REMEMBER THEE"
"...This do in remembrance of Me" (1 Cor. 11.24)

     INTRO.:  A hymn which emphasizes the nature of the Lord's supper as
being a remembrance of Christ's death is "I Will Remember Thee" (#617 in
Hymns for Worship Revised).  The text was written by James Montgomery,
who was born at Irvine in Ayrshire, Scotland, on Nov. 4, 1771, the son of
John Montgomery.  For many years his father was the only Moravian
missionary in Scotland.  In 1783, when he was but six years old, his
parents sent him to a school at Bracehill near Ballymena in County
Antrim, Ireland, while they went to Barbados in the West Indies as
missionaries.  At the age of ten he began to write poetry.  While later
attending the Moravians' Fulneck Seminarynear Leeds in Yorkshire,
England, young James received word of the sudden death of both parents. 
Intending to become a minister, he was instead apprenticed to a baker
because the school authorities were dissatisfied with his scholastic
record.

     However, at age sixteen, Montgomery ran away in 1787 and clerked for
a while in a London bookshop.   Eventually he settled at Sheffield in
1792 and gained employment at the local newspaper, the Sheffield
Register.  In 1794, at the age of 23, he took over the newspaper, changed
the name to the Sheffield Iris, and served as editor for 31 years. 
During this time he was imprisoned twice for expressing his opinions in
the newspaper.  Many of the poems in his 1797 book Prison Amusements was
produced in his jail cell.  Another book, The West Indies, dates from
1807.  In 1814 he became a member of the Wesleyan Society of Sheffield. 
Later in life he became a member of the Church of England at St. George's
in Sheffield, but eventually returned to the Moravians.  Following his
release from prison, he began writing hymns.  His total output was around
400, including such favorites as "In the Hour of Trial" and "Prayer Is
the Soul's Sincere Desire."

     Montgomery's first hymn collection was Songs of Zion, consisting of
paraphrases of the Psalms published in 1822.  In 1825, he gave up his
paper to devote himself entirely to literary and philanthropic pursuits. 
Also that year, he published The Christian Psalmist, a collection of
original hymns from which "I Will Remember Thee" was taken.  The first
edition of his Poetical Works was published in 1828.  In 1833 he was
awarded an annual pension by the government as a reward for his many
contributions to English society.  His final collection of hymns,
Original Hymns for Public, Private, and Social Devotion, appeared in
1853, a year prior to his death at Sheffield on Apr. 30, 1854.  The most
often used tune (Dalehurst) was composed in 1874 by Arthur Cottman
(1841-1879).  It most likely first appeared in his Ten Original Tunes
published that year.  Cottman was both a solicitor and an amateur
musician.

     Among hymnbooks published by members of the Lord's church during the
twentieth century for use in churches of Christ, the song did not appear
in the vast majority of popular books used by brethren.  Today, it may be
found in the 1992 Praise for the Lord edited by John P. Wiegand; in
addition to Hymns for Worship Revised.

     This hymn reminds us of the importance of the Lord's supper in
helping us to remember Jesus's death.

I. Stanza 1 tells us that we need to remember the fact that Jesus died
for us
"According to Thy gracious word, In meek humility,
This will I do, my dying Lord, I will remember Thee."
 A. The words of Jesus Himself command us to observe the Lord's supper in
remembrance of Him: Lk. 22.19
 B. Of course, it should always be done in deep humility, examining
ourselves: 1 Cor. 11.27-28
 C. The very purpose of the supper is to remember our dying Lord: Rom.
5.8

II. Stanza 2 tells us that the bread and cup remind us specifically of
Christ's death
"Thy body, broken for my sake, My bread from heaven shall be;
Thy testamental cup I take, And thus remember Thee."
 A. Jesus gave us the unleavened bread to represent His body: Matt. 26.26
 B. This reminds us that He is the bread come down from heaven: Jn.
6.48-51
 C. He also gave us the cup to represent His blood: Matt. 26.27-28

III. Stanza 3 tells us that the Lord's supper helps us to remember
Christ's suffering in Gethesemane
"Gethsemane can I forget?  Or there Thy conflict see,
Thine agony and bloody sweat, And not remember Thee?"
 A. It was in Gethsemane that Jesus prayed to the Father, "Your will be
done": Matt. 26.36-42
 B. We see His conflict as He offered up prayers and supplications with
vehement cries and tears: Heb. 5.7
 C. The intensity of His agony was demonstrated by the fact that the
sweat became like great drops of blood falling to the ground: Lk. 22.44

IV. Stanza 4 tells us that the Lord's supper helps to remember Christ's
suffering on Calvary
"When to the cross I turn mine eyes, And rest on Calvary,
O Lamb of God, my Sacrifice, I must remember Thee."
 A. The cross was the instrument of Jesus's death: Lk. 23.26
 B. Calvary was the place of Jesus's death: Lk. 23.33
 C. It was on the cross of Calvary that Jesus gave His life for our sins,
thus becoming the Lamb of God who was our Sacrifice: 1 Pet. 1.19-20

V. Stanza 5 tells us that the Lord's supper was given to help us remember
Christ
"Remember Thee and all Thy pains, And all Thy love to me:
Yea, while a breath, a pulse remains, Will I remember Thee."
 A. Certainly, we need to remember all the pains of Christ in His
suffering: 1 Pet. 3.18
 B. We also need to remember the love that He showed by laying down His
life for us: 1 Jn. 3.16
 C. Indeed, God wants us always to remember Jesus Christ and everything
that He did for us: 2 Tim. 2.8

VI. Stanza 6 tells us that if we remember Christ, He will remember us
"And when these failing lips grow dumb, And mind and memory flee,
When Thou shalt in Thy kingdom come, Jesus, remember me."
 A. Someday, it is likely that our failing lips will grow dumb, and our
mind and memory will flee as we approach death: Heb. 9.27
 B. Some might wonder why a hymn about the Lord's supper would mention
such a time, but the purpose of the supper is to proclaim the Lord's
death till He come and take us home to be with Him, thus uniting His
death with His return: 1 Cor. 11.26
 C. Some might object to the use of the one thief words to Christ on the
cross in this way, since they would reason that Christ's kingdom has
already been established on earth: Lk. 23.42; however, when "He comes
again," we surely shall want Him to remember us by giving us an entrance
into "the everlasting kingdom": 2 Pet. 1.11

     CONCL.:  In His wisdom, Christ knew that His followers would need a
continual reminder through the centuries of His great sacrifice for them.
 Therefore, He instituted the Lord's supper with its symbols of His body
and blood for Christians to observe on the first day of the week (Acts
20:7).  And when I do that, I am in essence saying to the Lord, "I Will
Remember Thee."

      Brotherly,
Wayne S. Walker
9024 Amona Dr.
Affton, MO  63123
home phone: (314) 638-4710
office phone: (314) 544-1612
e-mail: wswalker310 at juno.com
website: www.defenderoftruth.com

     Notes: Other hymn studies are available at the Defender of Truth
website.  Also, some of my previous hymn studies are now included in book
that I have written entitled Songs of Zion.  It can be ordered from the
publisher by calling 1-800-423-2484 or going to www.faith-facts.com.  And
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