Hymns
"Near the Cross"
words: Fanny Crosby
music: William H. Doane
Background music: Joyful Noise Music
"The cross was a superb triumph over Satan, death, and hell. Never was Christ more a king than when He shouted from the cross--'It is finished!' Out of the hideous suffering of Calvary He has carved His victory and His kingdom. The victory of the cross assures us that we no longer need to be kept separate from God--either in this life or for eternity. Even now we can 'come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.' (Hebrews 4:16). And the best is yet to come--'the golden strand just beyond the river.'
As God's people, we should live daily with a sensitive awareness of Christ's cross. We should review its scenes of suffering as well as revel in its triumph. 'Near the Cross', this simply stated hymn by Fanny Crosby, has been widely used by God to teach people this truth since its first publication in 1869.
As she did with many of her 8,000 hymn texts, Fanny Crosby wrote this poem to fit an existing tune that had been composed by William H. Doane. Although she worked with a number of other gospel musicians, William Doane was Fanny Crosby's principle collaberator. Doane was a very successful business man in Cincinnati, as well as a composer and publisher of numerous gospel songs. He was a very wealthy man when he died, and he left much of his fortune to philanthropic causes, including the construction of the Doane Memorial Music Building at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago."
Taken from Amazing Grace: 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily Devotions © 2002 by Kenneth W. Osbeck. Published by Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids, MI.
Used by permission of the publisher. All rights reserved.
