Sacramental Hymns
53
Welcome to the Table
By Cowper
I
This is the feast of heav’nly wine,
And God invites to sup;
The juices of the living vine
Were press’d to fill the cup.
II
O bless the Saviour, ye that eat,
With royal dainties fed;
Not heaven affords a costlier treat,
For Jesus is the bread.
III
The vile, the lost, he calls to them,
Ye trembling souls, appear!
The righteous in their own esteem
Have no acceptance here.
IV
Approach, ye poor, nor dare refuse
The banquet spread for you:
Dear Saviour, this is welcome news,
Then I may venture too.
V
If guilt and sin afford a plea,
And may obtain a place,
Surely the Lord will welcome me.
And I shall see his face.
54
Christ Crucified
By Newton
I
When on the cross my Lord I see,
Bleeding to death for wretched me,
Satan and sin no more can move,
For I am all transform’d to love.
II
His thorns and nails pierce through my heart,
In every groan I bear a part;
I view his wounds with streaming eyes:
But see! he bows his head and dies!
III
Come, sinners, view the Lamb of God,
Wounded and dead and bathed in blood!
Behold his side, and venture near,
The well of endless life is here.
IV
Here I forget my cares and pains,
I drink—yet still my thirst remains;
Only the fountain-head above
Can satisfy the thirst of love.
V
Oh that I thus could always feel!
Lord, more and more thy love reveal!
Then my glad tongue shall loud proclaim
The grace and glory of thy name.
VI
Thy name dispels my guilt and fear,
Revives my heart, and charms my ear,
Affords a balm for every wound,
And Satan trembles at the sound.
55
Jesus Hasting to Suffer
By Cowper
I
The Saviour, what a noble flame
Was kindled in his breast,
When, hasting to Jerusalem,
He march’d before the rest!
II
Good-will to men, and zeal for God,
His every thought engross;
He longs to be baptized with blood,
He pants to reach the cross.
III
With all his suff’rings full in view,
And woes to us unknown,
Forth to the task his spirit flew;
’Twas love that urged him on.
IV
Lord, we return thee what we can!
Our hearts shall sound abroad,
Salvation to the dying Man,
And to the rising God!
V
And while thy bleeding glories here
Engage our wond’ring eyes,
We learn our lighter cross to bear,
And hasten to the skies.
56
It Is Good to Be Here
By Newton
I
Let me dwell on Golgotha,
Weep and love my life away,
While I see Him on the tree
Weep and bleed and die for me!
II
That dear blood for sinners spilt
Shows my sin in all its guilt;
Ah! my soul, He bore thy load—
Thou hast slain the Lamb of God.
III
Hark! his dying word, “Forgive!
Father, let the sinner live:
Sinner, wipe thy tears away,
I thy ransom freely pay.”
IV
While I hear this grace reveal’d,
And obtain a pardon seal’d,
All my soft affections move,
Waken’d by the force of love.
V
Farewell, world, thy gold is dross,
Now I see the bleeding cross;
Jesus died to set me free
From the law and sin and thee!
VI
He has dearly bought my soul;
Lord, accept and claim the whole!
To thy will I all resign,
Now, no more my own, but thine.
57
Looking at the Cross
By Newton
I
In evil long I took delight,
Unawed by shame or fear,
Till a new object struck my sight,
And stopp’d my wild career.
II
I saw one hanging on a tree,
In agonies and blood,
Who fix’d his languid eyes on me
As near his cross I stood.
III
Sure never till my latest breath
Can I forget that look;
It seem’d to charge me with his death
Though not a word He spoke.
IV
My conscience felt, and own’d the guilt
And plunged me in despair;
I saw my sins his blood had spilt,
And help’d to nail Him there.
V
Alas! I knew not what I did:
But now my tears are vain;
Where shall my trembling soul be hid?
For I the Lord have slain.
VI
A second look He gave, which said,
“I freely all forgive;
This blood is for thy ransom paid,
I die, that thou may’st live.”
VII
Thus while his death my sin displays
In all its blackest hue,
(Such is the mystery of grace,)
It seals my pardon too.
VIII
With pleasing grief and mournful joy
My spirit now is fill’d,
That I should such a life destroy
Yet live by Him I kill’d.
58
Supplies in the Wilderness
By Newton
I
When Isr’el, by divine command,
The pathless desert trod,
They found, though ’twas a barren land,
A sure resource in God.
II
A cloudy pillar mark’d their road,
And screen’d them from the heat;
From the hard rocks the water flow’d,
And manna was their meat.
III
Like them, we have a rest in view,
Secure from adverse pow’rs;
Like them, we pass a desert too,
But Isr’el’s God is ours.
IV
Yes, in this barren wilderness
He is to us the same,
By his appointed means of grace,
As once he was to them.
V
His word a light before us spreads,
By which our path we see;
His love, a banner o’er our heads,
From harm preserves us free.
VI
Jesus, the bread of life, is giv’n
To be our daily food;
We drink a wondrous stream from heav’n,
’Tis water, wine, and blood.
VII
Lord, ’tis enough, I ask no more;
These blessings are divine;
I envy not the worldling’s store
If Christ and heav’n are mine.
59
Communion with the Saints in Glory
By Newton
I
Refreshed by the bread and wine,
The pledges of our Saviour’s love,
Now let our hearts and voices join
In songs
