SDG Music

Salvation is of the LORD

2006-11-25T19:17:00.000-06:00

1.
In the garden, Eden, in days long gone by
Adam disobeyed God, in that day he died
Scripture states expressly, through this one man’s fall
Death and condemnation came and reigned in all
Dead in our trespasses, rebels bent to sin
There is not one righteous, none that seeks for Him.

2.
God, in Sovereign mercy, ere time had begun
Saw our helpless plight, and graciously chose some
Not for good within us, that did not exist
Not for faith to choose Him, that too is his gift
Simply His good pleasure, we cannot explain
We can only worship, Glorify His name.

3.
Later, in time’s fullness, God sent forth His Son.
For His sheep He died, and pledged to not lose one.
For His church He suffered, that she might be clean.
For His people, He shall save from all their sin.
On the cross, He cried out, “It is now complete.”
Definite atonement there He made for me.

4.
Now as gospel preaching outwardly calls men
By this means, God calls effectually within.
By His will and Spirit, quickens us from death,
Opens hearts, imparting faith to his elect.
What we were unable, dead in sin, to do
Through regeneration, God makes to come true.

5.
On this sure foundation, we can stand secure
His preserving grace empowers to endure
As his seed is in us, we depart from sin
His seal is upon us, we are marked for Him.
Therefore, it is written, in His holy word,
Let the one who boasts boast only in the Lord.

6.
Totally unable, in depravity,
Yet before creation chosen sov’reignly
Definite atonement made on Calvary
Now by gospel preaching called effectually
By preserving grace, the mark we press to-ward
True it is, that Salvation is of the Lord!

8/8 - 8/9/97
can be sung to the tunes WYE VALLEY (Like a River Glorious)
and ST. GERTRUDE (Onward Christian Soldiers)
© 1999 by Jon F. Caudle, Jr. • jcaudle@sdgmusic.us

Hope

2006-06-10T23:25:00.000-05:00

based on Lamentations 3

Scripture teaches that sometimes Christians go through what some have called "the dark night of the soul" where it seems that God himself is attacking them. Indeed, He may be. But Scripture also teaches that if God "attacks his people," he does so in a manner that is consistent with fatherly love, and with a purpose that is consistent with their highest good. In such times, it is of great value to recall that "though he causes grief, yet compassion he will show, according to the multitude of his great mercies."

This hymn, based on Lamentations 3, chronicles the dark night of the soul, and the hope that can be laid hold of even in the midst of the trial.

1 -3
I’ve seen affliction, the rod of His wrath.
Darkness, without light, He ordered my path.
Surely the Lord’s hand against me has been
Throughout my lifetime, again and again.

7-9
He hedged me in so I cannot get out;
Shut up my prayer though I cry and I shout.
My chain is heavy; my way blocked with stone.
Crooked He marked out the path that I roam.

13-15
His quiver’s arrows He made to pierce me.
My neighbors’ ridicule I am to be.
Their taunting song all the day long they speak.
I’m filled with bitterness He made me drink.

19-21
As I remember affliction from Him,
My soul remembers, and it sinks within;
Remember roaming and wormwood and gall --
Nonetheless, I have hope when I recall:

22-24
Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed.
His great compassion each morning is new.
“Great is Your faithfulness, Lord”, says my soul,
“You are my portion, thus, in You I hope.”

27-29
‘Tis good to bear the yoke in a man’s youth,
For God has laid it on him -- this is truth.
Let man keep silent; let him sit alone.
Call this to mind -- that there may yet be hope.

31-32,21
For the Lord will not forever cast off
Due to the multitudes of His great love.
Though He cause grief, yet compassion He’ll show.
I recall this to my mind, and have hope!

Copyright © 1999 by Jon F Caudle Jr • all rights reserved
This text may be sung to the tune Slane (Be Thou My Vision)

Grace Abounding (To the Chief of Sinners)

2006-04-03T23:54:00.000-05:00

this song is based on the life of John Newton, who wrote Amazing Grace, and includes concepts also from the lives and writings of John Bunyan and the Apostle Paul.

You can find links here to download a lead sheet (lyrics, melody & chords) and listen to the audio of the song.

Copyright © 2002, 2006 by Jon F. Caudle, Jr.

The man who wrote "Amazing Grace"
Had as a youth rebelled.
His mother died when he was young;
He chose the road to hell.
A slave ship captain for a time,
And yet himself a slave,
But God, in mercy, rescued him;
He mightily was saved. By ...

Grace abounding
To the chief of sinners.
Grace to deliver,
And grace to keep.
Grace to cover
Infinite transgression.
Grace abounding
Reached even me.

For decades he served faithfully,
And near the end, stood tall.
He said, "My mem'ry's almost gone,
But two things I recall.
When I remember what I was,
Then what He did for me;
A sinner very great I am,
A Savior greater He! With ...

Grace abounding
To the chief of sinners.
Grace to deliver,
And grace to keep.
Grace to cover
Infinite transgression.
Grace abounding
Reached even me.

This truth was summarized by Paul
When he wrote Timothy:
"This saying deserves full acceptance;
It's fully trustworthy.
Christ Jesus came into the world
That sinners He might save,
And mercy reached the very worst,
So that He might display His ...

Grace abounding
To the chief of sinners.
Grace to deliver,
And grace to keep.
Grace to cover
Infinite transgression.
Grace abounding
Reached even me.

Psalm 121

2006-02-25T18:57:00.000-06:00

text adapted from Psalm 121 by Jon F. Caudle, Jr.
Copyright © 2006 by Jon F. Caudle, Jr.
Link to sheet music available here.

Psalm 121 is one of the Psalms of "Ascents" sung by the Israelites as they made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem and ascended the steep terrain to the place where they came together to worship YHWH God. It is a celebration of YHWH God, who is the protection of His people. YHWH is the Creator, thus He rules over all and is able to be their deliverer. He never slumbers, and he preserves his people, coming and going, from now until "forevermore." An MP3 of the music is here.

1. I lift up my eyes unto the hills.
From where does my help come?
2. My help, indeed, comes from YHWH,
He who made heaven and earth.

3. He will not let your foot be moved;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
4. Behold, He who keeps Israel
Will neither slumber nor sleep.

5. YHWH is your keeper,
YHWH is your shade.
YHWH is there on your right.
6. The sun shall not strike you by day
Nor the moon by night!

7. YHWH will keep you from ev'ry evil.
He shall preserve your life.
8. Both your going out and your coming in,
From this time forth and forever more.

Kyrie

2006-02-18T15:01:00.000-06:00

text adapted from from the ancient prayer of the Church by Jon F. Caudle, Jr.
Copyright © 2006 by Jon F. Caudle, Jr.
Link to print music available here.

for the better part of 2000 years, the Church has prayed that God, in Christ, would have mercy upon them and forgive their transgressions. This is a new setting of the ancient prayer.

Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Forgive us
All our transgressions,
And grant us Thy peace.

you can listen to the tune here

Psalm 1

2006-02-11T11:16:00.000-06:00

text adapted from Psalm 1 by Jon F. Caudle, Jr.
Copyright © 2006 by Jon F. Caudle, Jr.
Link to sheet music available here.

this Psalm could be considered a summary of what the entire Psalmbook is about: a contrast between those who love the Law of YHWH and walk in it, and those who are autonomous (self-ruled, apart from God's Law). Those who walk in God's law are said to prosper, whatever their pursuit. While this does not necessarily entail what the world would define as success, it is a more real and more full and ultimately more demonstrable prosperity.

Stanza 1
1.Bless'd is the man who does not walk
In counsel of ungodly men,
Nor in the path of sinners stands,
Nor in the scorner's seat will sit.
2.But in the LORD's Law he delights,
And meditates, both day and night.

Stanza 2
3.He shall be like a tree that grows
Embedded by the river stream.
In season, it brings forth its fruit;
Its leaves are never withering.
In season it brings forth its fruit;
He prospers, whate'er his pursuit.

Stanza 3
4.The godless, though, are not to be,
But are like chaff which blows away.
5.Avoiding righteous company
They'll surely fall on judgment day.
6.The righteous of the LORD endure,
But godless ones shall perish sure.

the meter of this psalm is 8.8.8.8.8.8. I did not write a new tune for it, but instead, selected a favorite which uses that meter: John B. Dyke's MELITA (Eternal Father, Strong to Save) and (How Lovely, LORD of Hosts, to Me)

Psalm 65

2006-02-04T14:11:00.000-06:00

text adapted from Psalm 65 by Jon F. Caudle, Jr.
Copyright © 2006 by Jon F. Caudle, Jr.
Link to sheet music available here.

this Psalm begins with an expression of the praise and vow-keeping due to the God who hears the prayers of his people, and who has called them out to draw near to him and abide in the place of worship, and forgives their sin when transgressions are accosting them. It closes with a recounting of the blessings of God who comes to the earth and causes the rain and fills the meadows and pastures abundantly with the bounty of heaven, resulting in praise coming forth from the earth, and the heavens, and (of course) the people of God who sing the psalm.

Stanza 1
1.Praise is due You, God in Zion;
To You shall vows be performed.
2.Unto You, who hears our pray-ers,
Unto You shall all flesh come.
3.When transgression overcomes us,
You atone for all our sin.
4.Bless'd is he You choose and bring near,
For Your courts he shall dwell in.

Stanza 2
We, the ones who dwell in Your courts,
Shall be satisfied and blessed
With the goodness found in Your house,
By Your temple's holiness.
5.Saving God, You answer us with
Righteousness and awesome deeds,
Hope of all the ends of earth, and
Hope of even farthest seas.

Stanza 3
6.Being clothed with might, You have
Established mountains by Your strength,
7.Stilled the tumult of the peoples,
Calmed the roaring waves and seas.
8.So that those who dwell at earth's ends
Stand in awe at all Your signs.
Morning's dawn and ev'ning's sunset
Shout for joy by Your design.

Stanza 4
9.You come to the earth with water,
Its great riches thus You share.
Your great river overflows,
Provides the grain that you prepare.
10.You have watered all its furrows,
All its ridges settled low.
You have softened it with showers,
You, indeed, have blessed its growth.

Stanza 5
11.You have crowned the year with bounty.
Your path, with abundance, flows.
12.Wi-ld pastures flow with plenty;
Hills, themselves, with joy are clothed.
13.Meadows gird themselves with flocks, and
Valleys deck themselves with grain.
They lift up their voices shouting;
They, for joy, sing unrestrained.

the meter of this psalm is 8.7.8.7.D. This means that in addition to the new tune provided at the link listed above, it can also be sung to any tune with that meter, including Beethoven's ODE TO JOY (Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee), Haydn's AUSTRIAN HYMN (Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken), and Pritchard's HYFRYDOL (Jesus, What a Friend for Sinners)

He is the Image

2006-01-28T02:36:00.000-06:00

text adapted from Colossians 1:15-20 by Jon F. Caudle, Jr.
Copyright © 2006 by Jon F. Caudle, Jr.
Link to sheet music available here.

1.
He is the image of the unseen God;
Firstborn of all creation, also, is He.
For it was by Him all things were created:
Both things in earth and heaven,
Both visible and spirit,
Thrones, rulers and dominions
And authorities.

2.
All was created; made by Him, and for Him.
He is before, and in Him, all things consist.
He, of the body, the the church, is Head and Sov'reign.
Yes, He is the beginning,
And over death first winning,
In order that in all things
He might be supreme.

3.
For, in Him, all the fullness of the Godhead
Was pleased to dwell, and by Him to reconcile
All to Himself, both things in earth and heaven,
By His blood at the cross;
He made peace and paid the cost,
To redeem those who were lost.
Praise Him, Christ, the Lord.

this piece was first used as part of the Christmas music An Incarnation Celebration at Christ the King Church, Springfield, Missouri, December 2005

you can listen to the tune here

Welcome to SDG Music!

2006-01-28T02:00:00.000-06:00

SDG is an acronym for the Latin Soli Deo Gloria which means 'to God alone be the glory.' This was the ultimate phrase of the 5 Sola statements which summarised the Christian faith as understood in the Protestant Reformation.

SDG Music is founded on that faith, and exists for the purpose of making disciples among every people, language, tongue, and nation. Obviously our part in that mission is small, but that is the mission that we are a part of!

Our part in the mission is to take Scripture, and the exposition of Scripture, and to turn it into music that can be used by the Church.

• Some of our music is simply for the purpose of assisting in Scripture memory.

• Some is for individuals in the Church to use in teaching or exhorting the disciples, or for evangelising unbelievers.

• And some (hopefully, someday, the majority) is for use by the Church in corporate worship, when they gather for the Divine Service.

The catalogue of music has been developing since the mid-1970's, but is now (we believe) beginning to ripen for a wider use. Most of it is not yet on this site. But as Good Farmer John over at Antithesis in Agriculture said, In my younger years, I'd have waited to "go live" until we have enough put together to make a big splash. Not so with this one, we are taking this one step at a time, and so the initial offering will be very meager...

Well, I've decided he's right. If I wait till there is enough material for a big splash, that time will never come. So here begins the little ripple.