Someone in the church mentioned to me recently the words of verse 4 - of the lyrics of AMAZING GRACE (MY CHAINS) - are not accurate, if you look at 2 Peter 3: 9, where St Peter says that one day the "elements will melt with fervent heat," whereas the song says they will dissolve like snow - rather a contrast, don't you think? Also it says: "The earth shall SOON dissolve like snow The sun forbear to shine . . . " It's not going to happen for at least another thousand years (Rev. 20: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7), which is not "soon," if you interpret the Text literally. One way to deal with the inaccuracy is to change the wording, as follows: "The earth will one day end its life, The sun forbear to shine . . ." etc. Well, at least it's more accurate !

  2. I suspect this debate could easily occupy a thousand years! However, I don't think God would be glorified by his creation spending their limited time on this old earth arguing about the accuracy of such vague and inherently relative words as "soon". Surely snow dissolves more rapidly than other substances even with minimal heat and as a I think the lyric just reminds us that our life in this world is but a moment in eternity. The sun shining being something which everyone naturally takes for granted is the perfect metaphor to wake us from our complacency that otherwise leads to taking our creator for granted.

  3. Whilst I don't disagree with Matt's well considered position on our resurrected bodies, I don't think the song lyrics attempt to deal with our resurrected form. In fact, it was the traditional version of the hymn which took the approach Matt objects to by including a verse that says "when this flesh and heart shall fail and mortal life shall cease". So, if anything, Matt should be advocating the modern version over the traditional!

  4. Yes, I also agree with Matt’s description of the resurrection life. You say there is a vex win the original hymn, which fits the other-worldlness, which Matt sees in the new verse 4. The stanza runs: Yes, when this flesh and heart shall fail, And mortal life shall cease, I shall possess within the veil, A life of joy and peace. Where’s the problem? St Paul says about the resurrection life, "For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. (1 Cor. 15: 53). When John Newton wrote, “This mortal life shall cease,” he was referring to our natural bodies crumbling in the dust, perhaps before Jesus returns. Our bodies are indeed “our mortal life,” but we have, says Paul (2 Cor. 5: 4) an immortal body prepared for us. "For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.” This will be like the body that Jesus had, when he arose. I don’t see either John Newton or Chris Tomlin disagreeing with that. Whether you think of it as an “otherworldly” perspective or not, it’s just plain fact. God said it; I believe it. Is the intermediate state disembodied, that is, between our death and our resurrection at the coming of Christ? Could there be an intermediate body state, for example Elijah and Moses appearing on the mount of Transfiguration? Perhaps John Newton would reply, “That’s too impractical to think about. I shall possess within the veil a life of joy and peace. What more do we need to know?"