Julia Ward Howe (1819 – 1910) came from a prominent New York family. She married an educator, Samuel Howe, and they settled in Boston. In 1861, she visited a Union Army camp near Washington, DC. and wrote a poem as a result of that visit. The poem was published in The Atlantic Monthly in February, 1862 as “Battle Hymn of the Republic.” The poem was then set to music using the old folk tune “John Brown’s Body.”
Howe went on to be active in the movement for women’s right to vote. She was active regionally and nationally in this movement.
Although the song has undergone some modifications, it has become a rallying point for several different political movements. Just after the terrorist attack on 9/11, the song became a rallying cry for unity and victory over terrorism. The hymn remains enormously popular and evokes stirring emotions for many.
There is a significant Christian component and message in the lyrics. Let’s separate the political and look for some Christian principles in this great hymn.
What are God’s truths?
The first verse ends with “His truth is marching on.” And we find those same words repeated at the end of the chorus. This phrase raises the critical question of what is God’s truth that is marching on. In the remainder of this meditation, we will focus on seven of God’s major truths. Seven is often used in the Bible for completeness. Certainly, we could list many more than seven, but for this meditation we will focus on seven fundamental truths.
1. God Is
In Genesis chapter 1, we read “in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” He was there in the beginning. He existed in the beginning. His Spirit was there “hovering over the waters” (Genesis 1:2). In John 1 we read that Jesus was with God in the beginning. Without Jesus, nothing was made that has been made. So, Jesus, the Son of God, was there in the beginning.
So, the first truth is that God in three persons was and is and will be . . . forever. God is!
2. God Speaks
In Hebrews chapter 1, we read that God first spoke through the prophets of old. Then, He spoke through His Son. Jesus indicated that He would also speak through the apostles. He promised them the Holy Spirit to teach them and remind them of all that He had said to them (John 14). God speaks through the Bible and the Holy Spirit. The Bible is the absolute Truth!
3. God Governs
God governs the universe including the affairs of all men and women. God is sovereign through His divine providence. His sovereignty is easily reasoned from Genesis 1. If He created the world and everything in it, then He must be in control of it! But, let’s look at some scripture to confirm this.
Isaiah 46:4
Even to your old age and gray hairs, I am he; I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.
Isaiah 46: 8-10
Remember this, keep it in mind, take it to heart, you rebels. Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’
Psalm 103:19
The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.
Isaiah 64:3-4
For when you did awesome things that we did not expect, you came down, and the mountains trembled before you. Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.
And, there are many more passages that testify to the fact that God governs the universe and beyond!
4. God Hates
God hates sin! Why? Because He is holy. The prophet Habakkuk states in chapter 1, verse 13 that “Your eyes are too pure to look upon evil.” Because God is holy, without blemish, He will not tolerate sin . . . it must be punished one way or another…in Hell or on the Cross. The Old Testament is full of examples of God’s wrath being poured out on the evil. We can identify a few examples here:
- The Flood
- Sodom and Gomorrah
- Nebuchadnezzar
- Saul
Jesus reminds us of God’s wrath in Matthew 10:28 with these words:
Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
And He impresses us with the seriousness of sin (because God hates it) in Matthew 5:29-30 as follows:
If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.
5. God Loves
God loves the world . . . all of us . . . all that he made! This is so beautifully affirmed in John 3:16. In Jesus’ teaching about loving our enemies, He emphasizes how much God loves us . . . he gives sun and rain to the just and the unjust. He allows both to prosper . . . because He loves us so much. While we were still sinners (enemies), Jesus died for us!
6. God Judges
(verse 1 of the hymn)
Today’s world does not like to talk about God’s judgment. It is too absolute and too negative. But this truth is undeniable. The writer of Hebrews indicates that “man is destined to die and after that to face judgment.” The Apostles’ Creed indicates that Jesus sits at the right hand of God and from there “he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.”
Luke writes the following in Acts 17:30-31: “In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now He commands all people everywhere to repent. For He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the man He has appointed.” It is “perfectly clear” . . . God’s judgment will come!
7. God Saves
(verse 4 of the hymn)
As terrible as it is to “fall into the hands of the living God” (in judgment), there is hope. We find that hope in the God who also saves. The good news is that Jesus came into the world to save sinners. He said the following to Zacchaeus: “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”
So God saves the lost through the work of Jesus and the Holy Spirit. He sent (gave) Jesus to the world to save sinners from perishing (John 3:16). There are many other passages we could refer to regarding the “good news.” However, let’s conclude by looking at this great passage from Ephesians:
But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Ephesians 2: 5-10
In our upside down world…a world full of relativism, cancel culture and defiance, God’s Truth Is Marching On.
Glory be to the one true God…Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Amen!
Hymns for Him 