A while back I was listening to one of my favorite songs – As the Deer. While the melody is certainly beautiful the words are truly transformational. Please travel with me on a deep dive into this Christian classic that I pray will encourage you on your journey with the Lord. Below are the words followed by my analysis:
As the Deer
Verse 1
As the deer panteth for the water
So, my soul longeth after Thee
You alone are my heart’s desire
And I long to worship Thee
Verse 2
You’re my friend
And You are my brother
Even though You are a king
I love You more than any other
So much more than anything
Verse 3
I want You more than gold or silver
Only You can satisfy
You alone are the real joy giver
And the apple of my eye
You alone are my strength, my shield
To You alone may my spirit yield
You alone are my heart’s desire
And I long to worship Thee
My Analysis
Verse 1
As the deer panteth for the water
Picture a deer thirsty for water. It pants with a great desire to satisfy its thirst. Only water can satisfy its thirst – nothing else.
So, my soul longeth after Thee
Now what about us? Our souls can only be satisfied by one thing and that is the Lord. Blaise Pascal said over 350 years ago that every man is born with a spiritual vacuum that only Jesus Christ can fill. (Mark 8:36) says: “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?” Money, fame, sex, and food can never satisfy our deepest yearnings of the soul because we were not created that way. We were created in the image of God and only when we meet our image bearer at the soul level can our deepest longings be met.
You alone are my heart’s desire
The deepest desire of the human heart is to have fellowship with its Creator. Adam and Eve were created to have fellowship with God and so were we. The Bible says that all of us have a heart of stone and we need Holy Ghost surgery to take out our heart of stone and give us a new heart of flesh. And with this new heart we can now worship God in the way that we were originally designed to worship Him.
And I long to worship Thee
With our new hearts we are now free to do what we were created to do and that is to worship Jesus. And there can be nothing more joyful than to worship our Creator.
There are many ways people have answered the catechism question through the ages, “What is the chief end of man?” Answer, to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” This hymn could be considered one more attempt to capture a Biblical response. While the words are instructive, encouraging, comforting and intimately personal, like thousands of hymns they lack a comprehensive message for the sake of focusing on individual salvation only. It’s rare to hear a hymn that expands our understanding of faith for all of life. The catechism question should have asked “What is the chief end of creation? Our personal salvation is important to us and to God but it’s always in the context of the creation mandate to have dominion over the earth and subdue it. We don’t just disciple individuals but nations. This is not to diminish our salvation but once in a while it would be good to hear words that remind us that
“Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given and the government shall be upon His shoulders.” or “Joy to the world the Lord has come. Let earth receive her King.”
We rightfully praise God in song for our salvation but it doesn’t stop there, in fact, that’s just the beginning as we are now participant builders of His Kingdom and warriors who assist in making His enemies His footstool. We are saved to apply God’s law and gospel that every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord and “And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.”
I’m being cranky but when I think of the multitude of vacuous songs our churches sing today it often amounts to a me, myself, and I introspection rather than battle hymns of the republic. One day we will join the choir of angels we have heard on high that will not be singing about individual experiences but will sing to the glory of the Lord.
Yes, and AHMEN!