What shall I do, my God to love

130 What shall I do, my God to love

1. What shall I do, my God to love,
   My loving God to praise!
   The length, and breadth, and height to prove
   And depth of sovereign grace?

2. Thy sovereign grace to all extends,
   Immense and unconfined;
   From age to age it never ends,
   It reaches all mankind.

3. Throughout the world its breadth is known,
   Wide as infinity,
   So wide it never passed by one;
   Or it had passed by me.

4. Come quickly, then, my Lord, and take
   Possession of Thine own;
   My longing heart vouchsafe to make
   Thine everlasting throne.

5. Assert Thy claim, receive Thy right,
   Come quickly from above,
   And sink me to perfection’s height,
   The depth of humble love.
                         Charles Wesley
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
Not one of Wesley's more popular hymns, only occurring in about 70 hymnals. And, as usual, there are more verses. Cyberhymnal lists these:

4. My trespass was grown up to Heaven;
   But far above the skies,
   In Christ abundantly forgiven,
   I see Thy mercies rise!

5. The depth of all-redeeming love,
   What angel-tongue can tell?
   O may I to the utmost prove
   The gift unspeakable!

6. Deeper than hell, it plucked me thence;
   Deeper than inbred sin:
   Jesus’ love my heart shall cleanse,
   When Jesus enters in.

I really like verse 6: "Deeper than inbred sin." I wonder how many really believe that?
</idle musing>

A new thing!

On every front, it appears, Paul is concerned to frame the Christ-event not as the completion of a Torah-narrative, nor even as a surprising turn within its progression. It is the reversal of the previous human condition and is inexplicable when viewed from the preceding human state, including the state of those under the authority of the Torah.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 408

O happy day, that fixed my choice

128 O happy day, that fixed my choice

1 O happy day, that fixed my choice
   On thee, my Savior and my God!
   Well may this glowing heart rejoice,
   And tell thy goodness all abroad.

2 O happy bond, that seals my vows,
   To him who merits all my love!
   Let cheerful anthems fill his house,
   While to that sacred throne I move.

3 'Tis done, the great transaction's done;
   I am my Lord's, and he is mine.
   Help me, great God, to follow on,
   Obedient to thy voice divine.

4 Now rest, mine oft divided heart;
   Fix'd on this blissful centre, rest.
   With ashes who would grieve to part,
   When call'd on angels' bread to feast?

5 High heav'n, that heard the solemn vow,
   That vow renew'd shall daily hear;
   Till in life's latest hour I bow,
   And bless in death a bond so dear.
                         Philip Doddridge
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
A fairly common hymn, occurring in more than 1700 hymnals. Some add a chorus:

Happy day, happy day,
When Jesus washed my sins away!
He taught me how to watch and pray,
And live rejoicing every day;
Happy day, happy day,
When Jesus washed my sins away!

</idle musing>

The universal disruption caused by the gospel

Paul views the issues that arise in Galatia as both highly particular (specific demands for male circumcision and Torah-observance) and widely generalizable, since they represent one example of the universal disruption created by the good news. For Paul, the Christ-event changes the story of the cosmos (6:14) and, when creatively embedded in human relationships, it challenges the default setting of every classificatory system (3:28). He announces an unconditioned event that recognizes no cultural or historical pre-conditions and thus reaches into, and challenges, every cultural-historical context. Preexistent systems of distinction, whether derived from the Torah or from a culture of honor, yield to a higher authority established by a truth-event that is beholden to no criteria beyond itself (1:11).—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 399

Arise, my soul, arise

122 Arise, my soul, arise

1 Arise, my soul, arise,
   shake off your guilty fears;
   the bleeding Sacrifice
   in my behalf appears.
   Before the throne my Surety stands,
   before the throne my Surety stands;
   my name is written on his hands,

2 He ever lives above,
   for me to intercede,
   his all-redeeming love,
   his precious blood to plead.
   His blood atoned for ev'ry race,
   his blood atoned for ev'ry race,
   and sprinkles now the throne of grace,

3 Five bleeding wounds he bears,
   received on Calvary;
   they pour effectual prayers,
   they strongly plead for me.
   "Forgive him, O forgive," they cry,
   "forgive him, O forgive," they cry,
   "nor let that ransomed sinner die!"

4 The Father hears him pray,
   His dear anointed one;
   He cannot turn away
   The presence of his Son:
   His spirit answers to the blood,
   His spirit answers to the blood,
   And tells me I am born of God.

5 My God is reconciled;
   his pard'ning voice I hear.
   He owns me for his child,
   I can no longer fear.
   with confidence I now draw nigh,
   with confidence I now draw nigh,
   and "Father, Abba, Father!" cry.
                         Charles Wesley
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

Quantity vs. Quality

Quality is the strongest foe of every kind of leveling of society. Socially this means abandoning the pursuit of position, breaking with the star cult, an opening out upward and downward particularly in connection with the choice of one’s friends, a delight in private life and courage for public life. Culturally the experience of quality signals a return from the newspaper and radio to the book, from haste to leisure and stillness, from distraction to composure, from the sensational to reflection, from idealized virtuosity to art, from snobbery to modesty, from extravagance to moderation. Quantities compete for space; qualities complement one another.—Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in After Ten Years, 27

<idle musing>
He could be writing that today, couldn't he?

That's the final quotation from that short little book. I highly encourage you to read the whole thing; it's only about 34 pages long, including the introduction. But it's a high-charged 34 pages!
</idle musing>

Cosmic repercussions

The enormous creativity made possible by this vision of reality is immediately obvious: “For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but new creation (καινὴ κτίσις)” (6:15). As in [Gal] 5:6, Paul announces the irrelevance of taxonomic systems by which society had been divided in subtly hierarchical terms: old “antinomies” are here discounted in the wake of a new reality that has completely reordered the world. The connotations of the phrase “new creation” stretch well beyond individual conversion, gesturing to a cosmic refashioning awaited in the future (cf. 1:4).—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 395

Tozer for Tuesday

In the great campaigns of a former generation, it ["accept Jesus"] became the catchword for evangelicalism, fundamentalism, full gospelism and world missions. It contained a mighty truth that has long since died, but the word stays on. It stays on the theological spectrum and is producing a generation of Christians, or so-called Christians, that are impenitent in their hearts, frivolous in their spirits and worldly in their conduct. Telling people who come to us to be converted, “Accept Jesus,” and so they say, “All right, I’ll accept Jesus.” So they accept Jesus and that is about all there is to it. There is no transformation and no impenitent root of their being that is ever cured. There is pride that has never been crucified, a worldliness they have never been able to deal with and a frivolity of spirit that is beyond description. There is a whole generation running around today that are the victims of this dead theological word “accept.”—A.W. Tozer, Reclaiming Christianity, 161–62

Jesus, the Sinner's Friend, to Thee

118 Jesus, the Sinner's Friend, to Thee

1. Jesus, the sinner’s friend, to Thee,
   Lost and undone, for aid I flee,
   Weary of earth, myself, and sin:
   Open Thine arms, and take me in.

2. Pity and heal my sin sick soul;
   ’Tis Thou alone canst make me whole;
   Fallen, till in me Thine image shine,
   And lost, I am, till Thou art mine.

3. At last I own it cannot be
   That I should fit myself for Thee:
   Here, then, to Thee I all resign;
   Thine is the work, and only Thine.

4. What shall I say Thy grace to move?
   Lord, I am sin, but Thou art love;
   I give up every plea beside—
   Lord, I am lost, but Thou hast died.

5. Jesus, the sinner’s friend, to Thee,
   Lost and undone, for aid I flee,
   Weary of earth, myself, and sin:
   Open Thine arms, and take me in.
                         Charles Wesley
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
Not a very popular hymn; it only occurs in about 170 hymnals, but the variations are abundant. Here's one that is eleven verses long!

1 Jesus, the Sinner’s Friend, to thee,
   Lost and undone for Aid I flee,
   Weary of Earth, myself, and Sin,
   Open thine Arms and take me in.

2 Pity and heal my Sin-sick Soul,
   ’Tis Thou alone canst make me whole;
   Fall'n, till in me thine Image shine,
   And curst I am till thou art mine.

3 Hear, Jesus, hear my helpless Cry,
   O save a Wretch condemn'd to die:
   The Sentence in myself I feel,
   And all my Nature teems with Hell.

4 When shall Concupiscence and Pride,
   No more my tortur'd Heart divide?
   When shall this Agony be o'er,
   And the old Adam rage no more?

5 Awake, the Woman's conquering Seed,
   Awake, and bruise the Serpent's Head:
   Tread down thy Foes, with Power controul,
   The Beast and Devil in my Soul.

6 The Mansion for thyself prepare,
   Dispose my Heart by ent'ring there;
   'Tis this alone can make me clean,
   'Tis this alone can cast out Sin.

7 Long have I hop'd and vainly strove,
   To force my Hardness into Love;
   To give thee all thy Laws require,
   And labour'd in the purging Fire.

8 Frail, dark, impure I still remain,
   Nor hope to break my Nature's Chain;
   The fond self-emptying Scheme is past,
   And lo! constrain'd I yield at last.

9 At last I own it cannot be,
   That I should fit myself for thee:
   Here then to thee I all resign,
   Thine is the Work, and only thine.

10 No more to lift my Eyes I dare,
   Abandon'd to a just Despair,
   I have my Punishment in View,
   I feel a thousand Hells my Due.

11 What shall I say thy Grace to move?
   Lord I am Sin, but Thou art Love;
   I give up ev'ry Plea beside.
   Lord I am damn'd, - but thou hast died!

</idle musing>

Good out of bad (Bonhoeffer)

I believe that God can and will let good come out of everything, even the greatest evil. For that to happen, God needs human beings who let everything work out for the best. I believe that in every moment of distress God will give us as much strength to resist as we need. But it is not given to us in advance, lest we rely on ourselves and not on God alone. In such faith all fear of the future should be overcome. I believe that even our mistakes and shortcomings are not in vain and that it is no more difficult for God to deal with them than with our supposedly good deeds. I believe that God is no timeless fate but waits for and responds to sincere prayer and responsible actions.—Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in After Ten Years, 25

Complete—in Christ

The denial of the pairing “male and female” is particularly intriguing in its contradiction of Genesis 1:26: it may relate to Paul’s preference for celibacy as a better condition for both genders (1 Cor 7). Neither gender requires “completion” or “expression” through marriage (or sex), as each is independently valued and fulfilled in Christ.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 396n18

I Am Coming to the Cross

116 I Am Coming to the Cross

1 I am coming to the cross;
   I am poor and weak and blind;
   I am counting all but dross;
   I shall full salvation find.

2 Long my heart has sighed for Thee;
   Long has evil reigned within;
   Jesus sweetly speaks to me--
   "I will cleanse you from all sin."

3 Here I give my all to Thee--
   Friends and time and earthly store;
   Soul and body Thine to be--
   Wholly Thine forevermore.

4 I am trusting, Lord, in Thee,
   Blessed Lamb of Calvary;
   Humbly at Thy cross I bow,
   Save me, Jesus, save me now.

5 Jesus comes! He fills my soul!
   Perfected in Him I am;
   I am every whit made whole:
   Glory, glory to the Lamb!
                         William McDonald
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
A fairly popular hymn, although I don't recall ever singing it. It occurs in 841 hymnals. Some add the following refrain:

I am trusting, Lord, in thee,
Dear Lamb of Calvary;
Humbly at thy cross I bow,
Save me, Jesus, save me now.

</idle musing>

How happy every child of grace

115 How happy every child of grace

1 How happy every child of grace,
   Who knows his sins forgiven!
   This earth, he cries, is not my place,
   I seek my place in heaven:
   A country far from mortal sight;
   Yet, O! by faith I see
   The land of rest, the saints delight,
   The heaven prepar'd for me.

2 O what a blessed hope is ours!
   While here on earth we stay,
   We more than taste the heavenly powers,
   And antedate that day;
   We feel the resurrection near,
   Our life in Christ conceal'd,
   And with his glorious presence here
   Our earthen vessels fill'd.
                         Charles Wesley
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
Not one of Charles Wesley's more popular hymns, occurring in only 379 hymnals. But, it does have some variants. The base text at hymnary.org adds this third verse:

3 O would he more of heaven bestow,
   And let the vessel break,
   And let our ransom'd spirits go,
   To grasp the God we seek:
   In rapturous awe on him to gaze,
   Who bought the sight for me,
   And shout and wonder at his grace
   Through all eternity.

But, the Salvation Army hymnal omits that and our second verse and instead has these:

2 A stranger in the world below,
   I calmly sojourn here;
   Nor can its happiness or woe
   Provoke my hope or fear.
   Its evils in a moment end,
   Its joys as soon are past;
   But O the bliss to which I tend
   Eternally shall last!

3 To that Jerusalem above
   With singing I repair;
   While in the flesh, my hope and love,
   My heart and soul, are there;
   There my exalted Saviour stands,
   My merciful high priest,
   And still extends his wounded hands
   To me, of saints the least.

4 Then let me joyfully remove
   That fuller life to share;
   I shall not lose my friends above,
   But more enjoy them there.
   There we in Jesus’ praise shall join,
   His boundless love proclaim,
   And sing the everlasting song
   Of Moses and the Lamb.

</idle musing>

Sinners, Turn: Why Will You Die

112 Sinners, Turn: Why Will You Die

1 Sinners! turn, why will ye die?
   God, your Maker, asks you why?
   God, who did your being give,
   Made you with himself to live:
   He the fatal cause demands,
   Asks the works of his own hands;
   Why, ye thankless creatures, why
   Will ye cross his love and die?

2 Sinners, turn, why will ye die?
   God, your Saviour, asks you why?
   God, who did our souls retrive,
   Dy'd himself, that you might live,
   Will you let him die in vain?
   Crucify your Lord again?
   Why, ye ransom'd sinners, why
   Will ye slight his grace, and die?

3 Sinners, turn, why will ye die?
   God the Spirit, asks you why?
   He, who all your lives hath strove,
   Woo'd you to embrace his love;
   Will you not the grace receive?
   Will you still refuse to live?
   Why, ye long-sought sinners, why
   Will you grieve your God, and die?
                         Charles Wesley
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
This one is a bit more popular than yesterday's, occurring in nearly one thousand hymnals. And, as usual, there are more verses:

4. Let the beasts their breath resign,
   Strangers to the life divine;
   Who their God can never know,
   Let their spirit downward go.
   You for higher ends were born,
   You may all to God return,
   Dwell with Him above the sky;
   Why will you forever die?

5. You, on whom He favors showers,
   You, possessed of nobler powers,
   You, of reason’s powers possessed,
   You, with will and memory blessed,
   You, with finer sense endued,
   Creatures capable of God;
   Noblest of His creatures, why,
   Why will you forever die?

6. You, whom He ordained to be
   Transcripts of the Trinity,
   You, whom He in life doth hold,
   You for whom Himself was sold,
   You, on whom He still doth wait,
   Whom He would again create;
   Made by Him, and purchased, why,
   Why will you forever die?

7. You, who own His record true,
   You, His chosen people, you,
   You, who call the Savior Lord,
   You, who read His written Word,
   You, who see the Gospel light,
   Claim a crown in Jesus’ right;
   Why will you, ye Christians, why,
   Will the house of Israel die?

8. Turn, He cries, ye sinners turn;
   By His life your God hath sworn;
   He would have you turn and live,
   He would all the world receive;
   He hath brought to all the race
   Full salvation by His grace;
   He hath not one soul passed by;
   Why will you resolve to die?

9. Can ye doubt, if God is love,
   If to all His mercies move?
   Will ye not His Word receive?
   Will ye not His oath believe?
   See, the suffering God appears!
   Jesus weeps! Believe His tears!
   Mingled with His blood they cry,
   Why will you resolve to die?

10. Dead, already dead within,
   Spiritually dead in sin,
   Dead to God while here you breathe,
   Pant ye after second death?
   Will you still in sin remain,
   Greedy of eternal pain?
   O you dying sinners, why,
   Why will you forever die?

11. What could your redeemer do
   More than He hath done for you?
   To procure your peace with God,
   Could He more than shed His blood?
   After all His waste of love,
   All His drawings from above,
   Why will you your Lord deny?
   Why will you resolve to die?

12. Turn, He cries, ye sinners, turn;
   By His life your God hath sworn,
   He would have you turn and live,
   He would all the world receive.
   If your death were His delight,
   Would he you to life invite?
   Would he ask, obtest, and cry,
   Why will you resolve to die?

13. Sinners, turn, while God is near:
   Dare not think Him insincere:
   Now, even now, your Savior stands,
   All day long He spreads His hands,
   Cries, you will not happy be!
   No, you will not come to Me!
   Me, who life to none deny:
   Why will you resolve to die?

I can't imagine that very many people ever sang the whole thirteen verses!
</idle musing>

The danger of contempt

The danger of allowing ourselves to be driven to contempt for humanity is very real. We know very well that we have no right to let this happen and that it would lead us into the most unfruitful relation to human beings. The following thoughts may protect us against this temptation: through contempt for humanity we fall victim precisely to our opponents’ chief errors. Whoever despises another human being will never be able to make anything of him. Nothing of what we despise in another is itself foreign to us. How often do we expect more of the other than what we ourselves are willing to accomplish? Why is it that we have hitherto thought with so little sobriety about the temptability and frailty of human beings? We must learn to regard human beings less in terms of what they do and neglect to do, and more in terms of what they suffer. The only fruitful relation to human beings—particularly to the weak among them—is love, that is, the will to enter into and to keep community with them. God did not hold human beings in contempt but became human for their sake.—Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in After Ten Years, 24

<idle musing>
He hits the nail on the head with this one! When we dehumanize our opponents, we do unto them just as they are doing unto us. The inverse of the Golden Rule! And the inverse of what God did in Christ. May we always remember that...
</idle musing>

The original radically unconditioned event

The cross of Christ shatters every ordered system of norms, however embedded in the seemingly “natural” order of “the world” (cf. 43). In form (as unconditioned gift), in content (as death), and in mode (the shame of crucifixion), the cross of Christ breaks believers’ allegiance to preconstituted notions of the honorable, the superior, and the right. Whereas Philo took “the world” (ο κόσμος) to be the properly ordered gift of God, whose stable Values were reinforced by gifts to worthy beneficiaries, Paul parades the cross as the standard by which every norm is judged and every value relativized. This single and particular event is of universal significance not because it reveals some timeless and universal principle of the cosmos, but because it is beholden to no pre-calculated system of distinction, and privileges no subset of humanity. It is the original radically unconditioned event.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 394–95 (emphasis original)

Come, Let Us, Who in Christ Believe

111 Come, Let Us, Who in Christ Believe

1 Come, let us who in Christ believe,
   Our common Saviour praise:
   To Him with joyful voices give
   The glory of His grace.

2 He now stands knocking at the door
   Of every sinner’s heart:
   The worst need keep Him out no more,
   Nor force Him to depart.

3 Through grace we hearken to Thy voice,
   Yield to be saved from sin;
   In sure and certain hope rejoice,
   That Thou wilt enter in.

4 Come quickly in, Thou heavenly Guest,
   Nor ever hence remove;
   But sup with us, and let the feast
   Be everlasting love.
                         Charles Wesley
                         The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition

<idle musing>
I don't recall ever singing this hymn, and uniquely for a Wesley hymn, there only seems to be these four verses. It isn't very popular, only occurring in 96 hymnals.
</idle musing>

Herein lies the danger

[I]t seems that under the overwhelming impact of rising power, humans are deprived of their inner independence and, more or less consciously, give up establishing an autonomous position toward the emerging circumstances. The fact that the stupid person is often stubborn must not blind us to the fact that he is not independent. In conversation with him, one virtually feels that one is dealing not at all with him as a person, but with slogans, catchwords, and the like that have taken possession of him. He is under a spell, blinded, misused, and abused in his very being. Having thus become a mindless tool, the stupid person will also be capable of any evil and at the same time incapable of seeing that it is evil. This is where the danger of diabolical misuse lurks, for it is this that can once and for all destroy human beings.—Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in After Ten Years, 23

All symbolic capital is false…

If the issue here were the gaining of salvation by self-reliant works (Luther) it is hard to see why Paul would discount both circumcision and uncircumcision. Circumcision could be figured as a work aimed to elicit God’s favor, but it is not clear how leaving oneself uncircumcised is a “work” in this or any other sense. Yet Paul equally discounts both circumcision and uncircumcision. Similarly if the issue were “nationalistic imperialism” or the “restriction” of the covenant to Jews alone (Dunn), why is uncircumcision also here devalued? It seems Paul’s target is neither ethnocentrism nor the false opinion that good works can gain benefit from God. He subverts any form of symbolic capital that operates independently of Christ.—J. M. G. Barclay, Paul and the Gift, 393 (emphasis original)

Jesus is tenderly calling

110 Jesus is tenderly calling

1 Jesus is tenderly calling thee home-
   Calling today, calling today;
   Why from the sunshine of love wilt thou roam
   Farther and farther away?

Refrain:
   Calling today,
   Calling today,
   Jesus is calling,
   Is tenderly calling today.

2 Jesus is calling the weary to rest-
   Calling today, calling today;
   Bring Him thy burden and thou shalt be blest-
   He will not turn thee away. [Refrain]

3 Jesus is waiting; O come to Him now-
   Waiting today, waiting today;
   Come with thy sins, at His feet lowly bow-
   Come, and no longer delay. [Refrain]

4 Jesus is pleading; O list to His voice-
   Hear Him today, hear Him today;
   They who believe on His name shall rejoice-
   Quickly arise and away. [Refrain]
                         Fanny Crosby The Methodist Hymnal 1964 edition