Stand Up Stand Up For Jesus

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, ye soldiers of the cross;
lift high His royal banner, it must not suffer loss.
From victory unto victory His army shall He lead,
till every foe is vanquished, and Christ is Lord indeed.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, the trumpet call obey;
forth to the mighty conflict, in this His glorious day.
Ye that are brave now serve Him against unnumbered foes;
let courage rise with danger, and strength to strength oppose.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, stand in His strength alone;
the arm of flesh will fail you, ye dare not trust your own.
Put on the gospel armor, each piece put on with prayer;
where duty calls or danger, be never wanting there.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus, the strife will not be long;
this day the noise of battle, the next the victor’s song.
To those who vanquish evil a crown of life shall be;
they with the King of Glory shall reign eternally.

There is an unusual story behind this particular hymn.  The writer of it, George Duffield, was not a direct participant in the story, but was so moved by another man’s testimony that he chose to write this hymn.  Here’s the story:

A young man named Dudley Tyng was a pastor’s son who served as his father’s assistant in the church.  At the age of 29, when his father was unable to pastor the church any longer, he became the pastor.  However, he did not pastor long because he began preaching against slavery, and was forced by the congregation to leave.  He started another church, and had a strong ministry to men in the city of Philadelphia.  While preaching to a crowd of 5,000 men in 1858 (of which over 1,000 chose to follow Christ), Mr. Tyng made the following statement:  “I would rather this arm be amputated at the trunk than that I come short of my duty to you in delivering God’s message.”

Two weeks later, while visiting the countryside, Mr. Tyng’s shirt sleeve was caught in a corn-threshing machine.  His arm had to be amputated, but even after the surgery, he had lost too much blood, and there was nothing the doctors could do.  On his death bed, he made the following statement “Stand up for Jesus, father, and tell my brethren of the ministry to stand up for Jesus.”  George Duffield, another pastor in the Philadelphia area, was so moved by this statement and challenge, that he composed the words to this powerful song that have since provided a great challenge to Christians around the world.

Couple of comments on the lyrics:

• “Unnumbered foes” – Does it seem sometimes that there is an enemy around every corner?  Do you feel outnumbered by unnumbered foes?  I was reminded of many Old Testament battles where that was the case as well.  Many times God’s people would be led into a battle that seemed impossible to win.  Sometimes God gave them strength to destroy their enemies in the battle.  Other times, God fought the battle for them.  If today, you are facing a battle against an enemy that seems too powerful, or you feel like you are facing “unnumbered foes,” I encourage you to stand firm, be brave, and trust in the Lord.  The Bible reminds us that “we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us” Romans 8:37.
• “Each piece put on with prayer” – I like the reference here to the armor of God that Paul details in Ephesians 6.  What I like about this phrase is the importance of prayer as we armor ourselves for the battle.   We can’t appropriately armor ourselves with the belt of truth, or the breastplate of righteousness, or the helmet of salvation, or the shield of faith without prayer.  Paul finishes the armor of God passage with the following words.  I don’t think it was an accident how many times the word pray(er) is referenced.  “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, or which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.”

There’s an old saying that says “If you don’t stand for something, you will fall for anything.”  In some ways, I agree with that statement.  However, just standing up for “something” is really not sufficient from a Christian perspective.  We can as Americans stand up for gun rights, states’ rights, lower taxation, or the stewardship of the environment.  We may view these things as “important” and we may chose to take a stand on these particular political issues.  However, I wonder sometimes if we are as passionate about the cause of Christ as we may be about other “good causes.”  

Unfortunately, it is easy in our culture to take a stand for or against certain things.  We can get on the bandwagon and sign petition lists, put a bumper sticker on our car, and even email and call our congressmen and women.  But it seems much more difficult to stand up for Christ.  Although Christ is the Great Reconciler, He is, and His stances on certain issues, can be divisive.  Hebrews 4:12 reminds us that “…the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” The Bible’s stances on divorce, homosexuality, sin, money, lust, and hell can make people uncomfortable, especially in our American culture.  Jesus’ words “to sell everything you have” (Luke 18:22) or “to deny yourself and take up your cross” (Luke 9:23) are tough words.  The question for us as believers is will we stand up for Him?  Stand up for Jesus?  Will we stand with the Word of God when the world is attacking Biblical truth from every corner? 

The author of this hymn was challenged by the final words of a man on his deathbed to stand up for Jesus.  Paul challenges all of us from inside prison walls to “stand firm in the faith.”  I hope that the words of Scripture, the challenge of this particular hymn, and the testimony of this minister will remind us all to “Stand up, Stand up for Jesus.”