And brings to erring, guilty man
Sure mercy from his God.
4 Then, sinners, dry your tears,
Let hopeless sorrow cease;
Bow to the sceptre of his love,
And take the offered peace.
5 We joy to hear the call;
We bless the Saviour's name; And praise the first Almighty cause, From which such favor came.
"By grace are ye saved." Eph. ii. 5.
1 GRACE 't is a pleasing sound,
Harmonious to the ear;
Heaven with the echo shall resound;
And all the earth shall hear.
2 Grace first contrived the way,
To save rebellious man ;
And all the steps that grace display
Who drew the wondrous plan.
3 Grace taught our wandering feet
To tread the heavenly road;
And fresh supplies each hour we meet,
While pressing on to God.
4 Grace all the work shall crown,
Through everlasting days;
It lays in heaven the topmost stone,
And well deserves the praise.
Benignity of God in the Gospel.
1 PRAISE to God the great Creator!
Bounteous source of every joy,
He whose hand upholds all nature,
He whose word can all destroy !
Saints, with pious zeal attending,
Now the grateful tribute raise;
Solemn songs to heaven ascending,
Join the universal praise.
2 Light of those whose dreary dwelling
Bordered on the shades of death,
He, in Christ rich grace revealing,
Scattered all the clouds beneath.
Lo! the eternal page before us
Bears the covenant of his love,
Full of mercy to restore us,
Mercy beaming from above.
3 Father, source of all compassion,
Pure, unbounded love thou art;
Hail the God of our salvation;
Praise him every thankful heart:
Joyfully on earth adore him,
Till in heaven our songs we raise
There enraptured fall before him,
Lost in wonder, love, and praise.
Christian Privileges and Obligations.
1 WHAT Countless myriads draw their breath In lands of ignorance and death,
While God allots my share of time,
Within his gospel's favored clime!
2 Shall I receive this grace in vain ?
Shall I my great vocation stain ?
Away, ye works in darkness wrought!
Away, each sensual, earthly thought!
3 My soul! I charge thee to excel
In thinking right and acting well;
Deep let thy searching powers engage,
Unbiassed, in the sacred page.
4 Heighten the force of good desire,
To deeds of shining worth aspire;
More firm in fortitude, despise
The world's seducing vanities.
5 Strong and more strong thy passions rule,
Advancing still in virtue's school;
Contending still, with noble strife,
To imitate thy Saviour's life.
The Christian Church, a living Temple. 1 Pet. ii. 4, 5.
1 WITH ecstasy of joy
Extol his glorious name,
Who raised the spacious earth,
And formed the human frame;
He built the church, who built the sky,
Shout and exalt his honors high.
2 See the foundation laid
By power and love divine;
In Christ his first-born son,
How bright his glories shine!
Low he descends, in dust he lies,
That from his tomb a church may rise.
3 But he for ever lives,
Nor for himself alone;
Each saint new life derives
From him the living stone;
His influence spreads through every soul,
And in one house unites the whole.
4 To him with joy we move,
In him cemented stand,
The living temple grows,
And owns the founder's hand :
That structure, Lord! still higher raise,
Louder to sound its builder's praise.
5 Descend and shed abroad
The tokens of thy grace;
And with more radiant beams
Let glory fill the place;
Our joyful souls shall prostrate fall,
And own our God is all in all.
The Invitations of the Gospel. Mat. xi. 28.
1 COME! said Jesus' sacred voice,
Come, and make my paths your choice:
I will guide you to your home;
Weary pilgrim, hither come!
2 Thou, who houseless, sole, forlorn,
Long hast borne the proud world's scorn, Long hast roamed the barren waste, Weary pilgrim, hither haste!
3 Ye, who tost on beds of pain,
Seek for ease, but seek in vain :
Ye, whose swollen and sleepless eyes,
Watch to see the morning rise:
4 Ye, by fiercer anguish torn,
Guilt, in strong remorse, who mourn;
Here repose your heavy care:
Conscience wounded, who can bear?
5 Sinner, come! for here is found
Balm that flows for every wound;
Peace that ever shall endure;
Rest eternal, sacred, sure.
The Highway to Zion. Isa. xxxv. 8, 9, 10.
1 SING, ye redeemed of the Lord,
Your great deliverer sing;
Pilgrims, for Zion's city bound,
Be joyful in your King.
2 See the fair way his hand hath raised,
How holy and how plain!
Nor shall the simplest traveller err
Nor ask the track in vain.
3 No ravening lion shall destroy,
Nor lurking serpent wound;
Pleasure and safety, peace and praise,
Through all the path are found.
4 A hand divine shall lead you on
Along the blissful road,
Till on the sacred mount you see
The glory of your God.
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