With the cross of Jesus going on before.
Christ, the royal Master, leads against the foe;
Forward into battle, see, His banners go!
Marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus,
Going on before.
On then, Christian soldiers, On to victory!
Hell’s foundations quiver at the shout of praise:
Brothers, lift your voices, loud your anthems raise!
Brothers, we are treading where the saints have trod;
We are not divided, all one Body we—
One in faith and Spirit, One eternally.
But the Church of Jesus constant will remain.
Gates of hell can never ’gainst the Church prevail;
We have Christ’s own promise, which can never fail.
Blend with ours your voices in the triumph song.
Glory, laud and honour unto Christ, the King;
This through countless ages men and angels sing.
Seventy six trombones led the big parade
With a hundred & ten cornets close at hand.
We are all familiar with marching bands and the music and flags and colourful spangly costumes. We’ve seen them in parades down the main streets of our cities. We’ve seen them playing at college football games. They just make everything so lively. And the beat goes on!
There are also different kinds of drums. The steel drums played in the Caribbean. The bongos played in the day of the beatniks. Even a tambourine is a form of drum. There’s the timpani and cymbals played in the big orchestras. They all have different sounds when played with different music.
You know the song at Christmas..The Little Drummer Boy..who came to worship the new born Baby Jesus. The only gift the “poor boy” can offer to baby Jesus is playing his drum the best he can. The words are sweet and heartfelt : Come they told me, A new born King to see, Our finest gifts we bring, To lay before the King, So to honour Him, When we come. Little Baby, I am a poor boy too, I have no gift to bring, That’s fit to give the King. Then He smiled at me, Me and my drum.
As Christians we DO “march to the tune of a different Drummer”. We are considered a counter culture movement. We seem against what is considered the norm, out of step. Our beat is the heartbeat of God. We have had a renewing of the mind, Ephesians 4:23, “And be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.” When we start marching along with God, we “put off our old self” by being “made new in the spirit of our minds”. Paul is telling us to put off our old way of thinking and put on a new, biblical way of thinking.
As Christians we are not of this world, just as Jesus is not of this world. 1 John 2:15 tells us, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” 1 John 2:16 tells us, “For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.” Our drum beat has the sound of contentment unlike the world that offers chaos and confusion. 1 John 2:17 tells us, “And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”
Our daily routines have a sense of purpose, as we realise that God is at work doing significant, purposeful, and intentional things through us — so we listen and watch for Him. Our drum beat is deeply different and we are marching to the beat of a different drum, that calls us to a whole new radical, faith-filled, Spirit-led lifestyle. The passion of our heart is the beat that pulses through us.
The hymn above is Onward Christian Soldiers. A song often sung with the Salvation Army, as they are soldiers for God. 2 Timothy 2:3, “Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.” Soldiers are called to counter evil with the overwhelming, overcoming good that flows from a heart in love with God.
Jesus, came into our world and led a unique life; always doing what his heavenly Father commanded, sinless, guiltless and full of grace and compassion, and giving His life on a cross that we could receive forgiveness of sin and be reconciled to God. What better beat to live our lives to.
I’m glad I march to the tune of a different drummer and you can to. If you don’t know my drummer, Jesus, but would like to start a relationship with Him, with an open heart pray this little prayer to Him and ask Him into your heart. Read your Bible daily and get in step with what God has in-store for you. Soon you will be marching to a different drummer and loving every beat. God Bless You.