Hymns and Songs | Ken Puls Music

O Sovereign God, How Great Your Grace

"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves;
it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Sunlight on Mountains

 

1.   O Sov'reign God, how great Your grace!
         Brought me from darkness into light,
      Removed the stains of sin's disgrace,
         Clothed me in righteous garments of white.

2.   O Sov'reign God, how wondrous Your love!
         Bought my redemption on Calv'ry's cross.
      Christ left the glory of heav'n above,
         That none, His chos'n, should e'er be lost.

3.   O Sov'reign God, how perfect Your peace!
         Keeps us, Your children, safe in Your hand,
      From worldly fear we have full release,
         Fills us with joy, helps us to stand.

4.   O Sov'reign God, receive our praise!
         For our salvation by Your grace.
      Give us faith in these trying days,
         'Til we see Jesus face to face.

"O Sovereign God How Great Your Grace"
WORDS: Ken Puls, June 23, 1985
MUSIC: Lowell Mason (1824)
TUNE: HAMBURG (L.M.)
THEME: God's Sovereignty in Salvation

My first endeavor writing a hymn was prompted by two significant events that God brought into my life in 1985. During that year I began serving God in the music ministry, and as a result, was introduced to the Doctrines of Grace.

On February 10, 1985 I was called as Music Minister at Raven Oaks Baptist Church in Omaha, Nebraska (the name of the church was later changed to Sovereign Grace Baptist Church). During the morning worship service on that day, Pastor Bill Lollar preached from Ephesians 2:8–9 as part of a series of messages on "The Greatest Verses in the Bible." Bill's preaching, along with a Wednesday night study through the 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith that spring, challenged and deepened my understanding of God's Word. Bill also encouraged me to read Loraine Boettner's book The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination. After reading Boettner's book in May and June, I wrote the hymn and shared it with the church on June 23, 1985. It was a celebration of the truths I was learning and a milestone that would set the course of my ministry.

The hymn is set to the tune HAMBURG and was included in two early collections of my hymns: Sovereign Grace Hymns (1987) and Hymns of Grace (1998).

Words ©1987 Kenneth A Puls
Music: Public Domain

 

Song Sheet
from Hymns of Grace (1998)

Guitar Music
Classical Guitar Accompaniment

Permission is granted to churches to make additional copies
of the lyrics and sheet music for this hymn for use in worship.

Above image from Unsplash

 

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