CHARLES WESLEY'S HYMNS FOR CHRIST'S CHURCH- by CHARLES WOODRUFF

There is a little hymnbook that I have in my collection which has some very good, God honoring, hymns. I noticed that this particular book has several by the great hymn writer, Charles Wesley. The only notable thing about this is that the publisher only put the initials "C.W." for the author of Can it be That I Should Gain, and other of Wesley's hymns. Why? I surmise that the publisher, a staunch Calvinist, did not want to mention Charles Wesley by name because he and his brother John Wesley were Arminians. I am considered by some to be a narrow Calvinist; even a hyper-Calvinist. Yet I personally find it rather amusing that the publisher would publish Wesley's hymns in his compilation, but not give him writer's credit!

The hymns this man wrote speak much of a sovereign God (whether Charles Wesley fully understood that or not). He is said to have penned over 7000 songs! His songs belong to the Christian church at large, as do those of Watts and Newton, and I believe there is good evidence that the Wesley's knew Christ. Read the following hymn and tell me that this man didn't know Christ.I would find that incredible to comprehend. Most of the hymnals use only four verses of this hymn, and use the wonderful words Amazing love, how can it be, etc.., as a chorus to each verse. It has become my favorite hymn, at least for now! There are so many good ones. Let us sing God's praise and rejoice in His gift of salvation to His people!

And can it be, that I should gain

An interest in the Saviour'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?

'Tis mystery all! The Immortal dies:

Who can explore His strange design?

In vain the first-born seraph tries

To sound the depths of love divine.

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!

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.

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 the eternal throne,

And claim the crown, through Christ my own.

WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED?---COTTON MATHER

(By American Puritan, Cotton Mather-1663-1728; grandson of John Cotton, and the son of Increase Mather).

“It is impossible to ask a more weighty Question! It is deplorable that we hear it asked with no more Frequency, with nor more Agony. The Spirit of Slumber which the Poison of the old Serpent has brought upon the children of Men is to be deplored exceedingly. Awaken us out of this [terrible] stupidity, O God of all Grace, lest we perish [eternally]. My Design is to bring in a Good and full Answer to this Weighty Question, Oh! how Thankful ought we to be, for the Glorious Gospel of the Blessed God, that makes us able to Answer it! The Gospel which we have in our hands, this a Gospel of such astonishing Mystery, of such Heavenly Majesty, and of such Consummate Purity, that it can be no other than the Word of God; It must be of a Divine Original. Oh! highly Favoured People, who know this Joyful Sound! Oh! Unavoidably and Inexcusably Wretched, if we disregard it.”

GRACE ABOUNDS- J.C. PHILPOT

(Mr Philpot has so many choice things to share, so I thought I'd share another with you. I hope you don't mind)

"But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound." Romans 5:20

In order to know what grace is in its reign over sin, and in its superaboundings over the aboundings of iniquity, we must be led experimentally into the depths of the fall. We must be led by God himself into the secrets of our own heart; we must be brought down into distress of mind on account of our sin and the idolatry of our fallen nature. And when, do what we will, sin will still work, reign, and abound, and we are brought to soul poverty, helplessness, destitution, and misery, and cast ourselves down at the footstool of his mercy—then we begin to see and feel the reign of grace, in quickening our souls, in delivering us from the wrath to come, and in preserving us from the dominion of evil. We begin to see then that grace superabounds over all the aboundings of sin in our evil hearts, and as it flows through the channel of the Saviour's sufferings, that it will never leave its favoured objects till it brings them into the enjoyment of eternal life! And if this does not melt and move the soul, and make a man praise and bless God, nothing will, nothing can! But until we have entered into the depths of our own iniquities, until we are led into the chambers of imagery, and brought to sigh, groan, grieve, and cry under the burden of guilt on the conscience and the workings of secret sin in the heart—it cannot be really known. And to learn it thus, is a very different thing from learning it from books, or ministers. To learn it in the depths of a troubled heart, by God's own teaching, is a very different thing from learning it from the words of a minister or even from the word of God itself. We can never know these things savingly and effectually, till God himself is pleased to apply them with his own blessed power, and communicate an unctuous savour of them to our hearts, that we may know the truth, and find to our soul's consolation, that the truth makes us free!

(In Ears From Harvested Sheaves for December 8)

UNTO THEE I LIFT UP MINE EYES- J.C. PHILPOT

"Unto thee lift I up mine eyes, O thou that dwellest in the heavens." Psalm 123:1

O how simple, suitable, complete, and blessed a remedy is this for all our distresses, when the Lord is pleased to open our eyes, and fix them on himself. He must do it all. If the eyes are to be upon him, he must first give us eyes; if lifted upon him, he must raise them upwards; if kept upon him, he must hold them waking. It is good to be in this spot. There are times and seasons, perhaps, when we seem to have no religion whatever; when we look, and look, and look, and cannot find a grain. Where is our spirituality? where our heavenly affections? where our prayerfulness of spirit? where our tenderness of conscience? where our godly fear? where our meditations upon God's word? We look, and look, and look—they seem gone. Now, perhaps, in the midst of this uncertainty we are brought into some painful exercise, some affliction, some temptation, some apprehension, something that lies with weight and power upon the soul. Now is the time we want our religion. But it is gone, it is gone, leaving us empty, needy, naked, and bare; religion, as regards its blessedness and comfort, we seem to have none. This is emptying work; this is stripping the soul as it were to the very bone. But what a preparation to receive the religion which is from above! How the vessel must be emptied of the dirty water of creature religion, well rinsed, and washed out, to have the pure water of heavenly religion communicated from the divine fountain. God never mingles the pure stream of heavenly religion with the dirty, filthy water of our own creature religion. We must be emptied of every drop, so to speak, of our natural religion, to have the holy and spiritual religion, which is from above, poured into the soul. But to look, and look, and look, and find nothing but emptiness, nakedness, barrenness, and destitution—to have a "great company" of enemies all coming against us, and we as weak as water—what an emptying for divine filling, what a stripping for divine clothing, and what a bringing down of self for the raising up of Christ. True religion consists mainly in two points—to be emptied, stripped, made naked and bare; and then to be clothed and filled out of Christ's fulness.

(In Ears From Harvested Sheaves for November 13)

WE HAVE NO REAGAN- by W.F.BELL

Our fortieth President from 1981-1989 was Ronald Wilson Reagan (1911-2004). Though his latter years were spent in sadness and physical decline, still his memory is cherished by conservative Christians who are students of American history. We only wish we had a Reagan among us now to confront the absolute political and social madness of our times. Reagan was originally a Democrat, but switched parties in the 1960s, and it amazes us that anyone (with any degree of spiritual concern and political conservatism about them) could remain a Democrat in our day. For those of a new generation who either did not know or have no appreciation for Ronald Reagan, here are some quotes from him for the historical record, and may these words be burned into our sad, fearful hearts:

"We must have the clarity of vision to see the difference between what is essential and what is merely desirable; and then the courage to use this insight to bring our government back under control and make it acceptable to the people."

"Work and family are at the center of our lives; the foundation of our dignity as a free people. When we deprive people of what they have earned, or take away their jobs, we destroy their dignity and undermine their families."

"We have been told that there are no simple answers to complex problems. Well, the truth is that there are simple answers, just not the easy ones."

"Government doesn't cure inflation, government causes inflation."

"If we can get the federal government out of our nation's schools, maybe we can get God back in."

"I don't care if we are liked around the world, I just want us to be respected."

Such was the strong language of our beloved former President Reagan. No man has ever graced the Presidency with more dignity and statesmanship, writing a book against abortion (contrast this with our current President-elect). But, alas, ours is a different day, and it certainly seems our God has hidden His face from us, and in such a trying time we can only think of these words of Jehovah to Israel: "For a mere moment I have forsaken you, but with great mercies I will gather you. With a little wrath I hid my face from you for a moment; but with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you" (Isaiah 54:7-8). No, we have no Reagan, but may this mercy in Christ Jesus be our portion, or for sure we are doomed.

TAKE ME AS I AM WITH ALL MY SIN AND SHAME

By J.C. PHILPOT

"Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed;
save me, and I shall be saved." Jer. 17:14

Here is this sin! Save me from it!

Here is this snare! Break it to pieces!

Here is this lust! Lord, subdue it!

Here is this temptation! Deliver me out of it!

Here is my proud heart! Lord, humble it!

Here is my unbelieving heart! Take it away,
and give me faith; give me submission to
Your mind and will.

Take me as I am with all my sin and
shame and work in me everything well
pleasing in Your sight.

EXTOLLING GOD WITH OUR MOUTH---C.H. SPURGEON

(MORE GOOD WORDS FROM MR. SPURGEON)

Happy is he whose fingers are wedded to his harp. He who praises God for mercies shall never want a mercy for which to praise....Our thankfulness is not to be a dumb thing; it should be one of the daughters of music. Our tongue is our glory, and it ought to reveal the glory of God. What a blessed mouthful is God’s praise! How sweet, how purifying, how perfuming! If men’s mouths were always thus filled, there would be no repining against God, or slander of neighbours. If we continually rolled this dainty morsel under our tongue, the bitterness of daily affliction would be swallowed up in joy. God deserves blessing with the heart, and extolling with the mouth—good thoughts in the closet, and good words in the world.
—C. H. Spurgeon, Psalm 34:1, The Treasury of David