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This Is the Spirit's Entry Now: Meaning, History, and Theology

"This is the Spirit's entry now"

Written
1965
Category
Hymn
Status
Verified

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Story

This Is the Spirit's Entry Now is a baptismal hymn written by Lutheran pastor Thomas E. Herbranson in 1965 and later published and copyrighted in the 1970s. In the AZMON setting represented here, the copyrighted text is paired with the public-domain tune derived from Carl Gotthelf Gläser and adapted by Lowell Mason.

Overview

This Is the Spirit's Entry Now is a twentieth-century baptismal hymn by Thomas E. Herbranson. Its central concern is Christian baptism as God's action through water, the divine word, the cross of Christ, and the renewing work of the Holy Spirit. The text connects baptism with new life, participation in Christ's death and resurrection, daily discipleship, and continuing renewal.

The hymn is especially useful in services of Holy Baptism, baptismal remembrance, confirmation, and teaching on Christian initiation. Its theology is closely aligned with passages such as Romans 6:3-4 and Titus 3:5, which join baptism to Christ's death and resurrection and to renewal by the Holy Spirit.

The text has circulated with several Common Meter tunes. The setting represented in this record is AZMON, the melody derived from Carl Gotthelf Gläser and adapted by Lowell Mason. Lutheran hymnals have also paired the text with PERRY, LAND OF REST, and DAMASCUS ROAD.

Historical Background

This Is the Spirit's Entry Now was written by Lutheran pastor Thomas E. Herbranson. Later hymn sources attach two different dates to the text: the Voices United licensing index and the Voices United hymn record identify Herbranson's words with 1965, while Hymnary's text authority and The United Methodist Hymnal associate the text and its copyright with 1972. For HymnInfo's year_written field, 1965 is the stronger composition date; 1972 is retained as an important later copyright/publication date rather than treated as the year of composition.

Herbranson was serving Christ the King Lutheran Church in White Bear Lake, Minnesota, during the mid-1960s. The congregation's history records his installation as its second pastor in 1962 and his departure in 1966 for a call to Mexico City. His later obituary records further ministry in Mexico City, Winona, White Bear Lake, St. Louis Park, and Eden Prairie, as well as sustained participation in choral music through the St. Olaf College Choir and the Augsburg Centennial Singers.

The hymn entered wider circulation through late-twentieth-century denominational hymnals. Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) printed it with Leo Sowerby's PERRY. The United Methodist Hymnal (1989) paired it with AZMON, crediting Carl Gotthelf Gläser as composer and Lowell Mason as arranger. Voices United (1996) used ST BERNARD; Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006) uses the North American traditional tune LAND OF REST; and Lutheran Service Book (2006) uses DAMASCUS ROAD. These varied pairings show that the hymn's identity lies in Herbranson's text rather than in a single exclusive tune.

The represented words are not public domain in either selected screening jurisdiction as of 2026. In the United States, the 1972 copyright falls within the 1964–1977 class for which federal renewal became automatic and the total term extends to 95 years. In the Philippines, Republic Act No. 8293 protects ordinary authored works for the life of the author plus fifty years; Herbranson died in 2009. The older AZMON tune is separately public domain, but that does not change the copyright status of Herbranson's text.

Biblical Foundations

The hymn's strongest biblical foundation is Romans 6:3-4, where baptism is participation in Christ's death and burial and is ordered toward walking in newness of life. That passage explains the hymn's movement from baptismal washing to a life shaped by Christ's death and resurrection.

Titus 3:5 gives another major theological foundation by describing salvation through the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:38-39 connects baptism, forgiveness, the gift of the Holy Spirit, and God's promise to the church. Galatians 3:27 adds the image of being clothed with Christ, while Matthew 28:19-20 grounds Christian baptism in the risen Lord's command to make disciples and baptize in the triune name.

Hymnal indexes also associate the text with John 3:4-8, Ephesians 5:25-27, and Titus 3:5-7. These references reinforce the hymn's themes of new birth, cleansing, incorporation into Christ, and life in the Spirit.

Verse Explanation

The hymn begins with the signs and promises associated with baptism and presents them as the setting of the Spirit's work. It then moves from baptismal identity to the saving pattern of Christ's death and the believer's new life.

The middle of the hymn develops baptism as a continuing pattern of dying and rising, so that Christian discipleship is understood as daily renewal rather than a single isolated ceremony. The final movement turns directly to the Holy Spirit in praise and prayer, asking for the cleansing and renewing power associated with baptism to remain active in the life of the church.

Theological Reflection

The hymn presents baptism as a divine gift rather than a merely human declaration. Its imagery joins water and word with the work of the Holy Spirit, reflecting a sacramental Lutheran understanding in which God acts through the visible sign joined to divine promise.

A second major theme is union with Christ in death and resurrection. Baptism is connected with the pattern described in Romans 6: the old life is put to death with Christ so that the baptized may walk in newness of life. The hymn therefore treats baptism not only as an event in the past but as a pattern for continuing repentance, renewal, and discipleship.

The text also emphasizes Christian identity under the cross and the ongoing work of the Spirit. Baptism gives the church a language of assurance, but that assurance leads toward daily renewal rather than spiritual passivity. The hymn's final movement is prayerful, asking the Spirit who gives and sustains baptismal life to continue cleansing and renewing God's people.

Church Impact

The hymn has circulated across several denominational hymnals rather than remaining confined to one Lutheran book. Hymnary records it in Lutheran Book of Worship, Worship (3rd ed.), Hymnal Supplement 98, Lutheran Service Book, Evangelical Lutheran Worship, The United Methodist Hymnal, Voices United, and A New Hymnal for Colleges and Schools.

Its hymnbook contexts consistently place it near baptism, Christian initiation, new creation, or related sacramental themes. The variety of tune pairings—PERRY, AZMON, ST BERNARD, LAND OF REST, and DAMASCUS ROAD—also shows that editors have considered the text adaptable to different worship traditions while retaining its Common Meter structure.

Musical Notes

The setting represented in this record is AZMON, a Common Meter tune (8.6.8.6). Hymnary identifies Carl Gotthelf Gläser as the composer of the 1828 source melody and Lowell Mason as its adapter. Mason published his adaptation in The Modern Psalmist in 1839 and later altered the meter, helping establish the form widely known in American hymnody. AZMON itself is public domain.

The pairing with Herbranson's text is not original or exclusive. Lutheran Book of Worship uses Leo Sowerby's PERRY; Evangelical Lutheran Worship uses LAND OF REST; Voices United uses ST BERNARD; and Lutheran Service Book uses DAMASCUS ROAD. The United Methodist Hymnal is an important witness for the AZMON pairing, where Gläser is credited as composer and Mason as arranger.

The distinction between text and tune rights is important here. AZMON may be freely usable as a public-domain tune, but Herbranson's words remain copyrighted, and individual hymnal harmonizations or arrangements may carry their own separate rights.

Application

  • Use the hymn during baptisms, confirmations, or services of baptismal remembrance.
  • Pair it with Romans 6:3-4 or Titus 3:5 to teach how baptism joins water, promise, Christ's death and resurrection, and the Holy Spirit.
  • Encourage Christians to remember baptism as a call to daily repentance and newness of life.
  • Use the hymn to explain that sacramental assurance rests on God's promise rather than on the strength of human feeling.
  • When using a modern hymnal setting, respect the copyright of the text and any separately copyrighted arrangement.

Discussion Questions

  1. How do Romans 6:3-4 and Titus 3:5 help explain the hymn's understanding of baptism?
  2. What is the relationship between water, the word of God, and the Holy Spirit in Christian baptism?
  3. How does baptism connect Christian identity with Christ's death and resurrection?
  4. Why is baptismal remembrance more than simply remembering a past ceremony?
  5. How does the hymn invite the church to connect assurance with daily renewal and discipleship?

Teaching Tips

  • Read Romans 6:3-4 before singing and identify the hymn's death-and-new-life pattern.
  • Use Titus 3:5 to discuss the relationship between washing, regeneration, and the Holy Spirit.
  • Explain that different hymnals pair this text with different Common Meter tunes, so the tune is not part of the copyrighted text itself.
  • When teaching the hymn, distinguish Lutheran sacramental claims from broader Christian interpretations of baptism without presenting one tradition's language as universal.
  • Because the words remain copyrighted, use an authorized hymnal or appropriate reproduction license when printing or projecting the text.

Sources

  1. Hymnary.org — Text authority for This Is the Spirit's Entry Now; authorship, meter, copyright, Scripture links, and hymnal instances

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  2. Hymnary.org — Voices United no. 451; Thomas E. Herbranson dated 1965, ST BERNARD pairing, and text copyright

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  3. Voices United Licensing Agency Index — Hymn 451; Thomas E. Herbranson 1965; words copyrighted by the Estate of Thomas E. Herbranson

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  4. Hymnary.org — The United Methodist Hymnal no. 608; AZMON pairing, Carl G. Gläser composer, Lowell Mason arranger, words copyright

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  5. Hymnary.org — AZMON tune authority; Gläser source melody, Mason adaptation, 1839 publication history, public-domain status

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  6. Hymnary.org — PERRY tune authority; Leo Sowerby 1962 and copyright information

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  7. Hymnary.org — Evangelical Lutheran Worship no. 448; LAND OF REST pairing and text copyright

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  8. Hymnary.org — Lutheran Book of Worship page 514; PERRY pairing with Herbranson's text

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  9. Christ the King Lutheran Church, White Bear Lake — Congregational history; Thomas Herbranson served as second pastor, 1962-1966

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  10. Minnesota Star Tribune — Obituary of Rev. Thomas E. Herbranson; Lutheran ministry and choral service

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  11. Deutsche Biographie — Karl/Carl Gotthelf Gläser authority record; 1784-1829, Weißenfels and Barmen, musical occupations

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  12. Musica International — Karl Gotthelf Gläser authority entry; birth date and career identification

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  13. U.S. Copyright Office — works copyrighted from 1964 through 1977 receive automatic renewal and a 95-year term

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  14. Supreme Court of the Philippines E-Library — Republic Act No. 8293, section 213.1, life of the author plus fifty years

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  15. World English Bible Classic — official eBible.org edition used for Scripture quotations

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Lyrics

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This hymn is not currently marked as public domain in the HymnInfo database. To respect copyright, the full lyrics are not displayed here. HymnInfo still provides historical, biblical, and theological study notes where available.

Sheet Music

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This hymn is not currently marked as public domain in the HymnInfo database. To respect copyright, the full music sheet is not displayed here. Please use a licensed hymnal, authorized publisher, or approved sheet-music provider.

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