Right now, I am really treasuring an old hymn, and I just wanted to share it with you all. The author of the hymn is Horatius Bonar.
Horatius Bonar was born in Scotland in 1808. He was born into a long line of ministers, who had all together, through their combined life times, served a total of 364 years as ministers. He also became a minister, and is best known for his prolific hymn writing. He wrote over 150 hymns, which include;
No, not distrustingly bend I the knee:
Sin hath gone over me, yet is this still my plea,
Jesus hath died.
Ah! mine iniquity crimson hath been,
Infinite, infinite—sin upon sin:
Sin of not loving Thee, sin of not trusting Thee—
Infinite sin.
Lord, I confess to Thee sadly my sin;
All I am tell I Thee, all I have been:
Purge Thou my sin away, wash Thou my soul this day;
Lord, make me clean.
Faithful and just art Thou, forgiving all;
Loving and kind art Thou when poor ones call:
Lord, let the cleansing blood, blood of the Lamb of God,
Pass o’er my soul.
Then all is peace and light this soul within;
Thus shall I walk with Thee, the loved Unseen;
Leaning on Thee, my God, guided along the road,
Nothing between.
Horatius Bonar was born in Scotland in 1808. He was born into a long line of ministers, who had all together, through their combined life times, served a total of 364 years as ministers. He also became a minister, and is best known for his prolific hymn writing. He wrote over 150 hymns, which include;
- I Heard the Voice of JESUS Say
- HE is Risen
- Let Us Draw Near
- Safe Across the Waters
~~~
No, not despairingly come I to Thee;No, not distrustingly bend I the knee:
Sin hath gone over me, yet is this still my plea,
Jesus hath died.
Ah! mine iniquity crimson hath been,
Infinite, infinite—sin upon sin:
Sin of not loving Thee, sin of not trusting Thee—
Infinite sin.
Lord, I confess to Thee sadly my sin;
All I am tell I Thee, all I have been:
Purge Thou my sin away, wash Thou my soul this day;
Lord, make me clean.
Faithful and just art Thou, forgiving all;
Loving and kind art Thou when poor ones call:
Lord, let the cleansing blood, blood of the Lamb of God,
Pass o’er my soul.
Then all is peace and light this soul within;
Thus shall I walk with Thee, the loved Unseen;
Leaning on Thee, my God, guided along the road,
Nothing between.
~~~
What a treasure this hymn has been to me. So comforting. Yes, I'm a sinner. Yes, I'm wretched beyond imagination, but this...this one thing, one blessed thing, is my plea before GOD; JESUS has died. And it's enough. HE is enough.
Oh, I pray that I can learn to trust HIM, to wholly lean on HIM instead of myself. I'm so prideful, so focused on my ability. So many times I think, "If only I prayed more...." or "If only I read my Bible more..." then GOD would accept me and I would affirm my salvation. But NO! Nothing I can do can add to the salvation GOD has given me. No work of mine can make me any more saved. NO! Such thoughts degrade the perfect work of CHRIST. Such thoughts stem from my pride and thinking I can save myself! NO, I cannot!
All my righteous deeds are like filthy rags! All my good works are like a pig's wallow! There is nothing righteous in me! The WORD of GOD says that we are to love the LORD our GOD with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength, and that is the greatest commandment. And yet, wretched me, I cannot even perfectly love HIM with even one aspect of my being for a single second! How could I save myself when I cannot keep HIS command to love HIM perfectly for even a second? No!
All my righteous deeds are like filthy rags! All my good works are like a pig's wallow! There is nothing righteous in me! The WORD of GOD says that we are to love the LORD our GOD with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength, and that is the greatest commandment. And yet, wretched me, I cannot even perfectly love HIM with even one aspect of my being for a single second! How could I save myself when I cannot keep HIS command to love HIM perfectly for even a second? No!
THIS must be my one, saving plea, "Jesus has died." THAT is what my trust must be in. THAT is what my hope must be in. Why? Because there is nothing in me, no single molecule of my being that can keep the law of GOD perfectly. There is nothing perfect I can do. It all depends on HIM, and on HIS work! Entirely on HIM.
And from my gratitude for HIS great love, HIS great sacrifice, and from the new creation that HE has made me to be comes the change that we call sanctification. And daily, HE is working in me to make me reflect HIS glory to the world, and HE has promised that HE will bring this work to completion. Thus, HE is my sole sustainer, the AUTHOR and PERFECTER of my faith. It is all in HIS hands.
Because my hands are so weak. My flesh is so sinful. My desires so wicked. Yes, I try, but the victory can only come from HIM. And this I continuously forget and need to be reminded of daily. Thanks be to GOD, HE gives me, the vile wretch that I am, mercy every day. What an amazing GOD we serve.
And from my gratitude for HIS great love, HIS great sacrifice, and from the new creation that HE has made me to be comes the change that we call sanctification. And daily, HE is working in me to make me reflect HIS glory to the world, and HE has promised that HE will bring this work to completion. Thus, HE is my sole sustainer, the AUTHOR and PERFECTER of my faith. It is all in HIS hands.
Because my hands are so weak. My flesh is so sinful. My desires so wicked. Yes, I try, but the victory can only come from HIM. And this I continuously forget and need to be reminded of daily. Thanks be to GOD, HE gives me, the vile wretch that I am, mercy every day. What an amazing GOD we serve.
