To do so, we must put on the armor of God to protect us in the fight: 1 Thes.
We must sound the battle cry because we are to wage a good warfare: 1 Tim. Gird your armor on, Stand firm, everyone, Rest your cause upon His holy Word."Ī. "Sound the battle cry! See, the foe is nigh Raise the standard high For the Lord Stanza 1 emphasizes the armor that we need in the fight The song reminds us of the great spiritual warfare in which we as Christians must fight.
Wiegand in addition to Sacred Selections and the new 2007 Sacred Songs of the Church edited by William D. Howard (not in the original 1978 edition) and the 1992 Praise for the Lord edited by John P. Howard the 1983 Church Gospel Songs and Hymns edited by V. Ed., and the 1994 Songs of Faith and Praise all edited by Alton H. Today, it may be found in the 1971 Songs of the Church, the 1990 Songs of the Church 21st C. It was first published in Biglow and Main’s 1869 Bright Jewels.Īmong hymnbooks published by members of the Lord’s church during the twentieth century for use in churches of Christ, one of the earliest of our books in which I have found it is the 1917 Selected Revival Songs published by F. Sherwin is credited with a few songs in which he provided both words and music, but "Sound the Battle Cry" is the only one of these found in any of our books. Cushing’s "Beautiful Valley of Eden" with another of his tunes. His most famous tunes are found with Mary Ann Lathbury’s hymns "Break Thou the Bread of Life" and "Day Is Dying in the West." One of our books also used a tune of his with Hugh Stowell’s "Lord, of All Power and Might," and several have included William O. Sherwin produced some tunes for poems by Fanny Crosby, but these have not become very well known. The first music director at the Chautauqua Festival near Chautauqua, NY, he was also a musical editor at Biglow and Main Publishers of New York City. Later he worked at the New England Conservatory of Music and taught singing in Massachusetts and New York. Born in Buckland, MA, he moved to Boston as a teenager and studied music with Lowell Mason. The text was written and the tune (Battle Song) was composed both by William Fiske Sherwin (1826-1888). INTRO.: A song which encourages us to be strong, put on the whole armor of God, and stand in the fight of faith is "Sound the Battle Cry" (#225 in Sacred Selections for the Church). So on this Memorial Day weekend let us also be reminded of the spiritual battle which surrounds us and let us stand firm with God's armor as we face the foe."…Be strong….Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may…stand" (Eph. "Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong" And He reminds us that Christ is Captain of our mighty throng and because of that we can face the foe knowing that we must prevail. He reminds us to gird our armor on and stand firm as we are told to do in I Corinthians 16:13. However, Sound the Battle Cry is a stirring reminder of the battle which we are facing. He also took special interest in Sunday Schools and composed carols and hymn-tunes largely for their use. At the age of fifteen, Sherwin went to Boston and studied music. At that time the dust had barely settled from the cavalry charges of the American Civil War that ended in 1865 and in this song we can feel the spirit of that war applied to our battle for the Lord. William Fisk Sherwin (1826-1888) recognized this need well over a century ago when in 1869 he penned the words to this week's rousing gospel song. We need to sound the battle cry and gird on our armor as we are told to do in Ephesians 6:10-17. And yet most of us believers just sit back, not realizing that we are really at war. "Your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour" (I Pet. And there is certainly a spiritual battle attacking our families, ministries and the lives of all believers. And here at home we see political moves and decisions that are contrary to the teaching of the Bible and threaten our religious liberties. I just heard this morning that in Uzbekistan Moslems are going door to door killing Christians. In many countries today Christians are being killed, usually by radical Moslems, for their beliefs. This should also remind us of the many battles that are raging against Christians. Over the years many brave men and women have served and even today many are risking their lives in very dangerous areas to protect us. This week we in America pause to thank those who have served in our armed services and to remember those who have died to gain and preserve our freedom.