Deuteronomy 30:11-14
Romans 10:10-18
John 1:24-42
HYMNS Jesus Calls Us O’er the Tumult,
See link below for info on the hymn
By All your Saints in Warfare
Text: Horatio Bolton Nelson (1823-1913). Tune: King's Lynne arr. Ralph Vaughan Williams
1. By all your saints in warfare, For all your saint at rest, Your holy name, O Jesus, Forevermore be blest! For you have won the battle That they. might wear the crown; And now they shine in glory Reflected from your throne.
5. All praise, O Lord, for Andrew,
The first to welcome you,
Whose witness to his brother
Named you Messiah true.
May we, with hearts kept open
To you throughout the year,
Confess to friend and neighbor
Your advent ever near.
3. Then let us praise the Father And worship God the Son And sing to God the Spirit, Eternal Three in One. Till all the ransomed number Fall down before the throne, Ascribing pow'r and glory And praise to God alone!
WHEN ANDREW HEARD
Text: Gracia Grindal Tune: James Clemens
1. When Andrew heard Jesus our Lord Then came to tell his brother
“I’ve found the one, Who is to come, He is God's Son Come, let us tell the others.”
2. He watched Christ live And die to give Us freedom from death’s prison.
Since he was raised, We will be saved. Come sing his praise, Sing, Jesus Christ is risen.
3. Now we are blessed Since he confessed That he had found the Savior.
St. Andrew heard And preached the word That Christ is Lord So we might live forever.
Copyright 2015 Wayne Leupold Editions
REFLECTIONS
Andrew is the first. He is the one who heard Jesus speaking and knew this was the Messiah. So he went to his more formidable brother and said, “We have found the Messiah (which means Christ.)” He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas (which means Peter.)” John 1:40-42.
So Andrew is key to much of the story of Jesus. He first follows him and then he is the first missionary, bringing his brother Peter to Christ. Thus he is the first saint of the church year, his festival coming on November 30 just before or after the first Sunday in Advent.
Andrew has a Greek name—andreia—meaning man or brave. He is from Bethsaida in Galilee and his name seems to show that he was born in a place where Greek culture was part of life. He lived maybe in the same house as Jesus for a while. He was a fisherman and so Jesus, when calling them to follow him, is simply changing what they will fish for—instead of fish, human beings.
He also played an important part in Jesus’ life on earth. He brings the boy with the “loaves and fishes” to Jesus who will make them into a feast for five thousand. He was with the disciples at the Last Supper and came with Jesus to the Mount of Olives asking what the signs of his return would be.
From there his story becomes one of his missionary journeys. He was the first to preach to the Scythians, says the great church historian, Eusebius and from there went north and east, along the Dnieper River to Ukraine, Romania, and Russia. He is said to have founded the see of Byzantium which later became Constantinople.
Andrew was martyred in Patras, in western Greece, in 60 A.D. where he was crucified. Legend has it that he asked to be crucified on a saltire cross, an X form. so as not to be too much like Christ in his death.
All of the stories about Andrew point to him as a humble, gracious man who was a helper. He brought people to Christ and worked to advance the cause of Christ in the known world. His virtues are attractive and deeply Christian. His brother Peter, whom Christ chose as his vicar, is a much more complicated character.
Andrew became the patron saint of many European countries—Georgia, and the church of Georgia regard him as their founder. Cyprus and Malta histories have accounts of Andrew’s appearance on their islands. On Cyprus, Andrew, shipwrecked in a boat that went aground there, is said to have struck a rock from which gushed healing waters.
Both Ukraine and Russia count him as their patron saint and many are the cathedrals and monasteries devoted to him. He was also the patron saint of the Russian navy.
Scotland also regards him as their patron saint. Stories persist of some of Andrew’s remains being brought to Saint Andrews, Scotland, from Constantinople during the eighth century A. D. The Scottish flag, with its white saltire cross against a blue sky, comes directly from a battle of Picts and Scots against the Angles. Their leader, Óengus, knowing they were outnumbered, prayed for victory. If they won, he would make Andrew the patron saint of Scotland. Suddenly, a saltire cross of clouds appeared in the blue sky, and Óengus kept his word. Now that cross is part of the Union Jack of Great Britain and appears also in several other flags.
Andrew is given pride of place for his being first. His example, however, of service and kindness as a helper of Jesus and missionary shows us the character of all good Christians. Not only was he humble, but he was also brave and had the courage to preach the Gospel, in and out of season, wherever he found himself. For that he was crucified. To tell his story is to tell those who hear it the fullness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, how it works in those who are called and in those to whom we are sent with the Good News.
HYMN INFO
By far the most famous hymn with reference to Saint Andrew is "Jesus Calls us o'er the Tumult." (See above link.) Probably the next is the stanza concerning Andrew in "By All your Saints in Warfare." Nelson, a nephew of Horatio Nelson, the great English naval hero, was educated at Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge. His hymns were well known in his time, but his most lasting work was his editing of the Salisbury Hymn-Book in 1857 with John Keble, a strong proponent of the Oxford movement in England. After a revision and reworking it became the Sarum Hymnal in 1868. This hymn was published in 1864 in Nelson's Hymn for Saint’s Day, and other Hymns. King's Lynne, an English folk tune, arranged by Ralph Vaughan Williams, became the preferred tune. There are a few more recent hymns on Saint Andrew, one by Carl Daw, that is under copyright so I cannot show it here. I attach one of my Saint Andrew hymns for your perusal.
LINKS
By all your Saints in Warfare
