Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:
A Surprising Work of God, Part One – Kevin DeYoung
A Surprising Work of God, Part Two – Kevin DeYoung
Charles Wesley – Tim Challies
Charles Wesley’s “And Can It Be”: Background and Scriptural Allusions – Justin Taylor
Hope you have a great Lord’s Day celebrating God’s amazing love!
Tomorrow for Resurrection Sunday many will sing Charles Wesley’s great hymn, Christ the Lord Is Risen Today (my sympathies if you don’t!). Wesley wrote the hymn in 1739 for the first service of the Foundry Meeting House in London – the first chapel for Methodists who followed the Wesleys. The hymn was originally written without the alleluias, which were added later by an unknown editor. Most hymnals only have four stanzas, but below you will find ten, though only the first seven were written by Wesley. The last three come from the 14th Century and were translated from Latin. These last three stanzas are found in many hymnals under the name, Jesus Christ is Risen Today. Both hymns share the same tune – Lyra Davidica.
Christ, the Lord, is risen today, Alleluia!
Sons of men and angels say, Alleluia!
Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia!
Sing, ye heavens, and earth, reply, Alleluia!
Love’s redeeming work is done, Alleluia!
Fought the fight, the battle won, Alleluia!
Lo! the Sun’s eclipse is over, Alleluia!
Lo! He sets in blood no more, Alleluia!
Vain the stone, the watch, the seal, Alleluia!
Christ hath burst the gates of hell, Alleluia!
Death in vain forbids His rise, Alleluia!
Christ hath opened paradise, Alleluia!
Lives again our glorious King, Alleluia!
Where, O death, is now thy sting? Alleluia!
Once He died our souls to save, Alleluia!
Where thy victory, O grave? Alleluia!
Soar we now where Christ hath led, Alleluia!
Following our exalted Head, Alleluia!
Made like Him, like Him we rise, Alleluia!
Ours the cross, the grave, the skies, Alleluia!
Hail, the Lord of earth and Heaven, Alleluia!
Praise to Thee by both be given, Alleluia!
Thee we greet triumphant now, Alleluia!
Hail, the resurrection, thou, Alleluia!
King of glory, Soul of bliss, Alleluia!
Everlasting life is this, Alleluia!
Thee to know, Thy power to prove, Alleluia!
Thus to sing and thus to love, Alleluia!
Hymns of praise then let us sing, Alleluia!
Unto Christ, our heavenly King, Alleluia!
Who endured the cross and grave, Alleluia!
Sinners to redeem and save. Alleluia!
But the pains that He endured, Alleluia!
Our salvation have procured, Alleluia!
Now above the sky He’s King, Alleluia!
Where the angels ever sing. Alleluia!
Jesus Christ is risen today, Alleluia!
Our triumphant holy day, Alleluia!
Who did once upon the cross, Alleluia!
Suffer to redeem our loss. Alleluia!
Charles Wesley wrote this hymn soon after he was saved in 1738, publishing it for the first time in 1739. Interestingly it has gone through some adaptations to come to its present form today. For instance, it was originally published as ten four-line stanzas instead of five eight line stanzas. In 1753, George Whitefield, a contemporary and friend, changed the last line of the refrain from “Glory to the King of kings” to “Glory to the newborn king.” For a full history see this article from Christianity Today. Like most of Wesley’s hymns, there are more verses than we usually sing – note the final two verses below. This hymn is quickly becoming a favorite of mine due to its rich theology. It gives us a wonderful crash course on the incarnation and numerous aspects of our salvation. To hear the music, see the music video which I stumbled across from my alma mater at the start of this blog.
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King;
Peace on earth, and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!”
Joyful, all ye nations rise,
Join the triumph of the skies;
With th’angelic host proclaim,
“Christ is born in Bethlehem!”
Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”
Christ, by highest Heav’n adored;
Christ the everlasting Lord;
Late in time, behold Him come,
Offspring of a virgin’s womb.
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;
Hail th’incarnate Deity,
Pleased with us in flesh to dwell,
Jesus our Emmanuel.
Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”
Hail the heav’nly Prince of Peace!
Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings,
Ris’n with healing in His wings.
Mild He lays His glory by,
Born that man no more may die.
Born to raise the sons of earth,
Born to give them second birth.
Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”
Come, Desire of nations, come,
Fix in us Thy humble home;
Rise, the woman’s conqu’ring Seed,
Bruise in us the serpent’s head.
Now display Thy saving power,
Ruined nature now restore;
Now in mystic union join
Thine to ours, and ours to Thine.
Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”
Adam’s likeness, Lord, efface,
Stamp Thine image in its place:
Second Adam from above,
Reinstate us in Thy love.
Let us Thee, though lost, regain,
Thee, the Life, the inner man:
O, to all Thyself impart,
Formed in each believing heart.
Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”
Charles Wesley was saved in 1738 and wrote his first hymn that very day. In the seven years that followed, he wrote 18 Christmas hymns which were published in 1745 as Hymns for the Nativity of our Lord. You can find the lyrics to these hymns here. The most familiar of them is Come Thou Long Expected Jesus. Unlike many of Charles Wesley’s long hymns, this one is only two stanzas. Interestingly though, the hymn that follows in this collection has the same metre, and I have to wonder if there is some relation. Speculation aside, Come Thou Long Expected Jesus is a hymn expressing Israel’s hope of the coming Messiah, and our hope in his return. Christ is further proclaimed as our King who should rule our hearts, and our Savior in whose merit we find salvation. For further thoughts on the theology of this hymn, see an article by Probe Ministries here. For the music, listen to the music video at the beginning of this post.
Come, thou long-expected Jesus,
Born to set thy people free,
From our fears and sins relieve us,
Let us find our rest in thee:
Israel’s strength and consolation,
Hope of all the earth thou art,
Dear desire of every nation,
Joy of every longing heart.
Born thy people to deliver,
Born a child and yet a King,
Born to reign in us for ever,
Now thy gracious kingdom bring;
By thine own eternal Spirit,
Rule in all our hearts alone,
By thine all-sufficient merit
Raise us to thy glorious throne.
A year after Charles Wesley was saved, he penned the hymn, O For A Thousand Tongues To Sing. In this hymn he wants to express his praise to God for his salvation. Notice his joy that salvation has been applied to him in this stanza:
I felt my Lord’s atoning blood
Close to my soul applied;
Me, me He loved, the Son of God,
For me, for me He died!
Notice also that you have probably never seen this stanza as most hymnals only have four or five verses. But Wesley wrote many more as you can see below. Notice how he moves from praise in the beginning stanzas to a plea to other sinners to find the salvation that he has found in the later verses. For an organ version of one verse click here or listen to the music video at the beginning of this post for a simple rendition of the most familiar verses.
O for a thousand tongues to sing
My great Redeemer’s praise,
The glories of my God and King,
The triumphs of His grace!
My gracious Master and my God,
Assist me to proclaim,
To spread through all the earth abroad
The honors of Thy name.
Jesus! the name that charms our fears,
That bids our sorrows cease;
’Tis music in the sinner’s ears,
’Tis life, and health, and peace.
He breaks the power of canceled sin,
He sets the prisoner free;
His blood can make the foulest clean,
His blood availed for me.
He speaks, and, listening to His voice,
New life the dead receive,
The mournful, broken hearts rejoice,
The humble poor believe.
Hear Him, ye deaf; His praise, ye dumb,
Your loosened tongues employ;
Ye blind, behold your Savior come,
And leap, ye lame, for joy.
In Christ your Head, you then shall know,
Shall feel your sins forgiven;
Anticipate your heaven below,
And own that love is heaven.
Glory to God, and praise and love
Be ever, ever given,
By saints below and saints above,
The church in earth and heaven.
On this glad day the glorious Sun
Of Righteousness arose;
On my benighted soul He shone
And filled it with repose.
Sudden expired the legal strife,
’Twas then I ceased to grieve;
My second, real, living life
I then began to live.
Then with my heart I first believed,
Believed with faith divine,
Power with the Holy Ghost received
To call the Savior mine.
I felt my Lord’s atoning blood
Close to my soul applied;
Me, me He loved, the Son of God,
For me, for me He died!
I found and owned His promise true,
Ascertained of my part,
My pardon passed in heaven I knew
When written on my heart.
Look unto Him, ye nations, own
Your God, ye fallen race;
Look, and be saved through faith alone,
Be justified by grace.
See all your sins on Jesus laid:
The Lamb of God was slain,
His soul was once an offering made
For every soul of man.
Awake from guilty nature’s sleep,
And Christ shall give you light,
Cast all your sins into the deep,
And wash the Æthiop white.
Harlots and publicans and thieves
In holy triumph join!
Saved is the sinner that believes
From crimes as great as mine.
Murderers and all ye hellish crew
In holy triumph join!
Believe the Savior died for you;
For me the Savior died.
With me, your chief, ye then shall know,
Shall feel your sins forgiven;
Anticipate your heaven below,
And own that love is heaven.
On the day of Charles Wesley’s conversion, he penned the hymn Where Shall My Wondering Soul Begin which we looked at in a past post. Soon after, he penned a much more familiar hymn with much the same message – And Can It Be. Like his first hymn, he expresses his amazement that God would save him – notice expecially his use of the phrase “for me” in the first verse. Notice his excitement at his forgiveness, the quenching of God’s wrath, and the reality that in Christ he will face no condemnation. By the way, also notice that he wrote more than the four verses in our typical hymnals. I particularly like the fifth verse. The entire hymn is one of my favorites, and I especially like verse four. I confess though that I have a doctrinal difference with one line in verse three. “Emptied himself of all but love” I suspect attempts to address Philippians 2, but I would disagree that the Son gave up his other attributes to become a man. If you want the music, you can link here for an organ version of the first verse or try a beautiful rendition of the four most common verses in the music video at the beginning of this post.
And can it be that I should gain
An interest in the Savior’s blood?
Died He for me, who caused His pain—
For me, who Him to death pursued?
Amazing love! How can it be,
That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?
Amazing love! How can it be,
That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?
’Tis mystery all: th’Immortal dies:
Who can explore His strange design?
In vain the firstborn seraph tries
To sound the depths of love divine.
’Tis mercy all! Let earth adore,
Let angel minds inquire no more.
’Tis mercy all! Let earth adore;
Let angel minds inquire no more.
He left His Father’s throne above
So free, so infinite His grace—
Emptied Himself of all but love,
And bled for Adam’s helpless race:
’Tis mercy all, immense and free,
For O my God, it found out me!
’Tis mercy all, immense and free,
For O my God, it found out me!
Long my imprisoned spirit lay,
Fast bound in sin and nature’s night;
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray—
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.
Still the small inward voice I hear,
That whispers all my sins forgiven;
Still the atoning blood is near,
That quenched the wrath of hostile Heaven.
I feel the life His wounds impart;
I feel the Savior in my heart.
I feel the life His wounds impart;
I feel the Savior in my heart.
No condemnation now I dread;
Jesus, and all in Him, is mine;
Alive in Him, my living Head,
And clothed in righteousness divine,
Bold I approach th’eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own.
Bold I approach th’eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own.
Today, we begin my plan (which I mentioned a few posts ago) to regularly feature a great hymn of the faith. We begin with what was probably Charles Wesley’s first hymn. It was written on the same day of his conversion – May 21, 1738. I personally don’t remember ever singing it, but as we are going to look at several Charles Wesley hymns in the next few weeks, it seems a good place to start. Wesley’s journal for that day reads:
At nine, I began an hymn upon my conversion, but I was persuaded to break off for fear of pride. Mr. Bray, coming encouraged me to proceed in spite of Satan. I prayed Christ to stand by me, and finished the hymn. Upon my afterwards showing it to Mr. Bray, the devil threw in a fiery dart, suggesting that it was wrong, and I had displeased God. My heart sunk within me; when, casting my eye upon a Prayer-book, I met with an answer for him. “Why boastest thou thyself, thou tyrant, that thou canst do mischief?” Upon this, I clearly discerned it was a device of the enemy to keep back glory from God.
As you read the hymn, notice in the third and fourth verses how he seems to wrestle with Satan on whether he should continue with the hymn. Notice also how he begins with amazement that God should save him, and ends with a plea for sinners of every kind to come and find this great salvation that he has just experienced. Oh that we too would be amazed at God’s salvation and desire to tell others! If you want the music, you can link here for an organ version of the first verse.
Where shall my wondering soul begin?
How shall I all to heaven aspire?
A slave redeemed from death and sin,
A brand plucked from eternal fire,
How shall I equal triumphs raise,
Or sing my great Deliverer’s praise?
O how shall I the goodness tell,
Father, which Thou to me hast showed?
That I, a child of wrath and hell,
I should be called a child of God,
Should know, should feel my sins forgiven,
Blessed with this antepast of Heaven!
And shall I slight my Father’s love?
Or basely fear His gifts to own?
Unmindful of His favors prove?
Shall I, the hallowed cross to shun,
Refuse His righteousness to impart,
By hiding it within my heart?
No! though the ancient dragon rage,
And call forth all his host to war,
Though earth’s self-righteous sons engage
Them and their god alike I dare;
Jesus, the sinner’s friend, proclaim;
Jesus, to sinners still the same.
Outcasts of men, to you I call,
Harlots, and publicans, and thieves!
He spreads His arms to embrace you all;
Sinners alone His grace receives;
No need of Him the righteous have;
He came the lost to seek and save.
Come, O my guilty brethren, come,
Groaning beneath your load of sin,
His bleeding heart shall make you room,
His open side shall take you in;
He calls you now, invites you home;
Come, O my guilty brethren, come!
For you the purple current flowed
In pardons from His wounded side,
Languished for you the eternal God,
For you the Prince of glory died:
Believe, and all your sin’s forgiven;
Only believe, and yours is Heaven!
Charles Wesley wrote over 9000 hymns and sacred poems in his lifetime. His last a few days before he died was this:
In age and feebleness extreme,
Who shall a sinful worm redeem?
Jesus, my only hope Thou art,
Strength of my failing flesh and heart;
O could I catch a smile from Thee,
And drop into eternity!
May we have that same hope when our turn comes!
Just finished reading biographies about George Whitefield, Charles Wesley, and John Wesley – the three leaders of the Great Awakening in England. I confess I was most interested in Whirefield as I am more at home with his theology. The Wesleys were interesting when they weren’t railing against the Biblical doctrine of predestination or pushing their unBiblical view of Christian perfection. Okay that was strong – but that was Whitefield’s view. Of course, the Wesleys thought Whitefield’s views were unBiblical. And yet, for most of their lives, they were friends.
They met and became friends at school before any of them were saved or famous. After they were born again, they ministered together preaching the gospel around England (and beyond). But then, despite Whitefield’s plea, John began preaching against and writing against predestination. Whitefield felt he had no choice but to respond and defend the doctrine. The cord of three was broken. But over time they came together again. The gospel was central in each of their lives and it was around this that they came together. They agreed to disagree on the other issues – the main thing was the gospel. Indeed at the end they were preaching for each other again. When George Whitefield died, John Wesley led the service in England. Charles Wesley wrote a long poem about his friend. In particulars they differed, but they were friends in the gospel.
Which brings us to today. Calvinism is on the rise – and I praise God for it. Yet it is often antagonistic toward non-Calvinists. On the other side is a responding antagonism against Calvinism. Can we agree to disagree? Can we come together around the gospel like Whitefield and the Wesleys? Can we keep the main thing the main thing? Whitefield didn’t want Wesley to publish against predestination because he didn’t want to divide the church and hurt the revival that was going on. For the sake of the church, and the hope of revival, can we keep the gospel central and rally around it?
We have much to learn from these men. For further reading, check out these biographies that I just read:
George Whitefield – Arnold Dallimore (I read the one volume edition, there is also a much more complete two volume edition)
George Whitefield and the Great Awakening – John Pollock
Assist Me To Proclaim: Life and Hymns of Charles Wesley – John Tyson
John Wesley – Stephen Tomkins
Brian J. Mikul 