Earthly Rehearsal for Heavenly Worship

Be Thou Our Vision

　　Next year will be the 75th anniversary of the Hong Kong Baptist Theological Seminary. I am grateful to have the opportunity to participate in organizing the celebration and conducting the 75th Anniversary Thanksgiving Service and Concert of Praise to be held in April of next year.

　　The 75th Anniversary Thanksgiving Service and Concert of Praise will be held with the theme of “Stand Firm in Christ, Advance Toward the Future.” We pray that the Lord will continue to keep us and lead us to serve churches through our theological education and to nurture servants of God, so that they can tend the flock on a firm foundation of faith and bravely face the challenges of the future. Here, I would like to talk about the ideas, arrangements, music, and lyrics of this Thanksgiving Service. I sincerely hope that we shall all receive the Lord’s revelation, are renewed together, and are united through this Thanksgiving Service. This is my prayer to the Lord.

Lord Jesus, the Cornerstone ^*

　　Firstly, let us recall how we, including ministers from different congregations, have been built up by Jesus Christ on the same foundation, and together we can imagine how we will continue to preach the everlasting Gospel by the power of the risen Lord in this ever-changing time and age. Truly, Jesus Christ is the foundation of our faith, our cornerstone. Therefore, we will be singing “Lord Jesus, the Capstone” at the Thanksgiving Service. A year ago, the HKBTS Choir began practicing this four-part a cappella music piece written by Christian composer Dr. Victor Wai-kwong Chan. The hymn leads us to confess that Jesus Christ is our cornerstone and that apart from Him, there is no salvation (English translation of the quoted Chinese lyrics as follows):

Lord Jesus, the cornerstone! Lord Jesus, the cornerstone!
The stone that the builders rejected (the cornerstone)
Has become the cornerstone.
There is salvation in no one else,
For there is no other name under heaven given among people by which we must be saved.

The phrase “Lord Jesus” is first sung by female voices in an energetic syncopation, while the male voices sing “the cornerstone” in an even meter with a distinct and firm marcato. This is in harmony with the Bible passage in Ephesians 2:20, which expresses the importance of Jesus Christ as the solid foundation. The music then expands into a four-part chorus emphasizing “the stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone” (cf. Ps 118:22; Acts 4:11). The harmonies, with their suspensions and delayed resolution of dissonance, demonstrate the tension within dialogues surrounding contemporary cultural contexts and Christ.

　　Worship is a public proclamation of the Christian faith. We pray that the Lord will gather us together in our 75th Anniversary Thanksgiving Service to hear the Word of God and to express our thanksgiving, prayers, and praises while we make public professions of our faith. Through the pursuit of excellence, the predecessors of church music have used music as well as worship and visual and literary arts to express the truth, goodness, and beauty of the economic and immanent Trinity in worship. Aesthetics itself reflects the beauty of God the Father’s creation, but it still needs to be redeemed. The truth of Christ makes us a holy, royal priesthood, so that the Holy Spirit may guide us in our efforts to live out the good, to build up a community of love that belongs to the Lord, and to witness to His presence and favor.

Enlightenment and Renewal

　　Secondly, let us examine the foundation of the truth we believe in. The seminary was founded in 1951, and it will celebrate its 75th anniversary next year. Is there anything we need to be reminded of? Is there anything that we have forgotten? What do we need to be enlightened and renewed? When Jesus broke the bread and took the cup at the Last Supper, He commanded His disciples to do this “in remembrance of me” (cf. Lk 22:19; I Cor 11:24-25). The Greek word for “remembrance” is anamnesis, which means “reminder.”

　　Sometimes changes can bring us new insights, discoveries, and reminders. An example of this is the other hymn we will be singing, “Facing a Task Unfinished.” It is a new arrangement of the congregational hymn, “The Church’s One Foundation,” with new lyrics. It is not only a change in style but also gives us a new perspective on how we keep on being the church of Christ.

　　On that day, the hymns “Halle, Halle, Halle” and “Lord Jesus, the Capstone” will be sung by the HKBTS Choir and the joint choir will echo each other; together we will declare in praise and in faith that this “stone that the builders have rejected” is our only dependence. Even if the building on this stone is torn down or endures the darkness of night, it will surely see the light again through the risen Christ, the morning light, and become a living stone to be built into a place where God the Father dwells through the Holy Spirit, enjoying the ultimate salvation and hope.

Earthly Rehearsal for Heavenly Worship

　　It does take a lot of energy to prepare for our 75th anniversary celebration. May we all be summoned to share a common vision for HKBTS and the churches we serve. This is not just an event; in fact, every practice or performance of the joint choir can be imagined as “earthly rehearsal for heavenly worship.” Let us use our God-given gifts to offer our praise and thanksgiving to Him together through Bible-centred worship, and to participate in His ongoing work of renewal and creation. We believe in the Triune God, who is both transcendent and indwelling. We have to bring together each other’s spiritual gifts and imaginations in order to see the way “above the sun,” to become living sacrifices, to go into the world together in peace from above, and to love and serve the Lord! Let Him be glorified to the fullest! Soli Deo gloria!

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^* Or capstone; also in the following paragraph.