Lyrics: Fanny Crosby, 1880.
Music: John R. Sweney.
Theme: Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. John 20:30-31

Fanny Crosby at age 90: “My love for the Holy Bible and its sacred truth is stronger and more precious to me at ninety than at nineteen.”

PJ MIller: “There are days in which I need to be reminded of the Story of Jesus, and nothing more. Not studying theology, or the finer points of doctrine can take the place of just recalling the simple story of Jesus.”

Tell me the story of Jesus,
Write on my heart every word.
Tell me the story most precious,
Sweetest that ever was heard.
Tell how the angels in chorus,
Sang as they welcomed His birth.
“Glory to God in the highest!
Peace and good tidings to earth.”

Refrain:
Tell me the story of Jesus,
Write on my heart every word.
Tell me the story most precious,
Sweetest that ever was heard.

Fasting alone in the desert,
Tell of the days that are past.
How for our sins He was tempted,
Yet was triumphant at last.
Tell of the years of His labor,
Tell of the sorrow He bore.
He was despised and afflicted,
Homeless, rejected and poor.

Tell of the cross where they nailed Him,
Writhing in anguish and pain.
Tell of the grave where they laid Him,
Tell how He liveth again.
Love in that story so tender,
Clearer than ever I see.
Stay, let me weep while you whisper,
Love paid the ransom for me.

This first appearance of Fanny Crosby as lyricist on this list will not be the last either. After all, the blind hymn writer wrote over 8000 hymns, and publishers used as many as 100 pseudonyms in attributing her hymns so that their hymnals would not seem to be dominated by Ms. Crosby’s hymns. It is said that as a child, since she learned the BIble from her grandmother who read to her, Fanny could repeat from memory the Pentateuch, the book of Ruth, many of the Psalms, the books of Proverbs, Song of Solomon, and much of the New Testament! Fanny Crosby knew the story of Jesus. And she used the medium of her day, the medium in which she was gifted, poetry, specifically hymn-writing, to tell the story of Jesus.

“This hymn and others were collected in a small hymnal titled Gospel Hymns and Sacred Solos that was incredibly popular. Dwight L. Moody and Ira Sankey made use of it in their New York crusades. In the spring of 1876 alone, it sold one million copies. Crowds would bring their personal copies to the rallies, and while they were waiting for the main event to begin, they would be prompted to sing and thus to tell the story of Jesus.” ~Rev. Scott Stapleton

While I was looking up information about this hymn on the web, I came across this website. If you’ve never really read or heard the simple story of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, now would be an excellent time to remedy that deficiency. Everybody ought to know the story of Jesus.

Sources:
Hymn Stories: Tell Me the Story of Jesus.
WIkipedia: Fanny Crosby.
Believer’s Web: Frances Jane Crosby.
Sermon, June 26, 2008 by Rev. Scott Stapleton, Grace Trinity Church.