Midweek Musing- November 19, 2025
- Feb 22
- 4 min read
One of the things we talked about recently at one of our Sunday evening fellowship gatherings was how praise music with full bands has become incredibly popular in recent years. While I am not as big a fan as many folks are to music it does have its place and, in the right setting, I have found it to be meaningful.
Speaking broadly, praise music is accessible, emotional, and often helps people (especially young people) express their faith in ways that feel authentic and heartfelt.
And I love that this musical style works for folks. This music has also grown in popularity among all ages and genders and ethnicities. And yes, all ages include those of us who no longer are considered young people according to church statisticians.
That said those of us gathered on that Zoom fellowship call also concluded something that was at least true for us and we imagined many others which is traditional hymns of faith still have great power and meaning and continue to speak to even now.
As we talked, I discovered that for many of us these hymns carry a depth, a strength, and a theological richness that continue to feed the heart, mind and soul if we but slow down long enough to really listen.
Indeed, all of the great hymns of the church are rooted directly in Scripture. They were written by pastors, theologians, poets, and people for whom faith was not just a feeling but a lifelong pursuit to so as to understand the nature and character of God.
And because of that, their words have endured across generations, continents, and even denominational boundaries.
So, periodically over the next few weeks (or months—depending on where this goes!), I’m going to use this space to highlight some of the great hymns of our faith including their stories, their biblical foundations, their theology, and how they can still encourage and challenge us today…if we have, as Jesus says, “ears to hear.”
Some of these “Musings” may be a bit longer than my usual ones, simply because the hymns deserve and honestly require the space. Indeed, these great songs are like deep wells that you draw from again and again and never touch the bottom.
So today for the first one I want to start with one of the hymns we recently sung that has always been a favorite of mine to use in worship.
“Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise”
Now, if you’ve ever sung this hymn in worship, especially with a full congregation and a good organ, you know it has a way of lifting the heart. But what makes it unique is not just the tune (though the Welsh melody ST. DENIO is wonderfully energetic) but more importantly the depth of the theology woven into every line.
The author was Rev. Walter Chalmers Smith. He was a nineteenth-century Scottish Presbyterian pastor and eventually the Moderator of the Free Church of Scotland.
He was also a poet—one who understood the beauty of language and the mystery of God. This hymn is, in many ways, the crown jewel of his poetic work and writings.
The text is rooted almost entirely in Scripture, especially 1 Timothy 1:17 which says, “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever.”
Smith takes that single doxology and expands it into a tapestry of biblical themes. He echoes words of the 36th, 90th, and 104th Psalms and draws in the complexities of theology found in Romans 11.
Additionally, though he was thoroughly Scottish his language carries shades of Celtic spirituality, where God is clothed in light, woven into creation, and moving gently and constantly through the world.
This hymn is a reminder of what early Reformers called the mysterium tremendum which is the awe-filled mystery of God.Yet Smith gently balances transcendence with warmth declaring that:
God gives life to all.
God’s goodness is like a river running through creation.
God’s joy and justice fill the world.
And even in mystery, God is love.
What I also love is the way Smith describes God with both awe and intimacy in the lines of every verse.
“In light inaccessible hid from our eyes” God’s transcendence, the mystery of divine glory.
“Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light” Reminding us that God is always present, never hurried, never absent.
“To all life thou givest—to both great and small” A reminder that God’s care extends from the majestic to the mundane.
“Thy justice like mountains high soaring above” This is a line straight from the Psalms, grounding justice in the character of God.
All of these lines and many more are powerful statements of faith. Friends, this is not shallow theology. These are words and ideas and concepts found in the deep end of the pool.
Additionally, the hymn reminds us of something essential that our world surely needs to hear today.
God is not our equal. God is not contained by our preferences, our politics, or our limitations. God is mystery and majesty and yet that same God came to us in love.
In a world that often trades depth for speed, or substance for simplicity, this hymn calls us back to wonder.
For all our modern worship songs and again, I’m grateful for them as they speak to many there is a reason the church continues to sing this hymn after 150 years. Because it proclaims truths we still desperately need to hear:
God is God, and we are not.
God is light the darkness cannot overcome.
God is justice the world cannot erase.
God is life when we feel depleted.
God is wisdom when our own understanding falls short.
And perhaps most importantly—
God is worthy of worship simply because of who God is.
So, this week, I invite you to revisit this hymn.
Read it slowly.
Pray its lines.
Let its images sink into you.
Let its language push your imagination outward toward the God who is beyond comprehension and yet nearer than breath.
Traditional hymns still speak sometimes we just have to slow down and let their words and music wash over us.
Indeed, may we have “ears to hear,” and hearts open to the God who is immortal, invisible, and only wise.
In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Alleluia Amen.
Here is a wonderful video of this song in worship.
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