Rampant Calvinism in Wesleyan Hymnology

posted by Phil Johnson



purgeon said:

Mr. Wesley's hymn-book, which may be looked upon as being the standard of his divinity, has in it (upon some topics) higher Calvinism than many books used by ourselves. I have been exceedingly struck with the very forcible expressions there used, some of which I might have hesitated to employ myself.

I shall ask your attention while I quote verses from the hymns of Mr. Wesley, which we can all endorse as fully and plainly in harmony with the doctrines of grace, far more so than the preaching of some modern Calvinists. I do this because our low-doctrine Baptists and Morisonians ought to be aware of the vast difference between themselves and the Evangelical Arminians.

HYMN 131, verses 1, 2, 3.

"Lord, I despair myself to heal:
I see my sin, but cannot feel;
I cannot, till thy Spirit blow,
And bid the obedient waters flow.

'Tis thine a heart of flesh to give;
Thy gifts I only can receive:
Here, then, to thee I all resign;
To draw, redeem, and seal,—is thine.

With simple faith on thee I call,
My Light, my Life, my Lord, my all:
I wait the moving of the pool;
I wait the word that speaks me whole."

HYMN 133, verse 4.

"Thy golden sceptre from above
Reach forth; lo! my whole heart I bow;
Say to my soul, Thou art my love;
My chosen midst ten thousand, thou."

This is very like election.

HYMN 136, verses 8, 9, 10.

"I cannot rest, till in thy blood
I full redemption have:
But thou, through whom I come to God,
Canst to the utmost save.

From sin, the guilt, the power, the pain,
Thou wilt redeem my soul:
Lord, I believe, and not in vain;
My faith shall make me whole.

I too, with thee, shall walk in white;
With all thy saints shall prove,
What is the length, and breadth, and height,
And depth of perfect love."

Brethren, is not this somewhat like final perseverance? and what
is meant by the next quotation, if people of God can perish at
all?

HYMN 138, verses 6, 7.

"Who, who shall in thy presence stand,
And match Omnipotence?
Ungrasp the hold of thy right hand,
Or pluck the sinner thence?

Sworn to destroy, let earth assail;
Nearer to save thou art:
Stronger than all the powers of hell,
And greater than my heart."

The following is remarkably strong, especially in the expression
"force." I give it in full:—

HYMN 158

"O my God, what must I do?
Thou alone the way canst show;
Thou canst save me in this hour;
I have neither will nor power:
God, if over all thou art,
Greater than my sinful heart,
All thy power on me be shown,
Take away the heart of stone.

Take away my darling sin,
Make me willing to be clean;
Make me willing to receive
All thy goodness waits to give.
Force me, Lord, with all to part;
Tear these idols from my heart;
Now thy love almighty show,
Make even me a creature new.

Jesus, mighty to renew,
Work in me to will and do;
Turn my nature's rapid tide,
Stem the torrent of my pride;
Stop the whirlwind of my will;
Speak, and bid the sun stand still;
Now thy love almighty show,
Make even me a creature new.

Arm of God, thy strength put on;
Bow the heavens, and come down;
All my unbelief o'erthrow;
Lay th' aspiring mountain low:
Conquer thy worst foe in me,
Get thyself the victory;
Save the vilest of the race;
Force me to be saved by grace."

HYMN 206, verses 1, 2.

"What am I, O thou glorious God!
And what my father's house to thee,
That thou such mercies hast bestow'd
On me, the vilest reptile, me!
I take the blessing from above,
And wonder at the boundless love.

Me in my blood the love pass'd by,
And stopp'd, my ruin to retrieve;
Wept o'er my soul thy pitying eye;
Thy bowels yearn'd, and sounded, "Live!"
Dying, I heard the welcome sound,
And pardon in thy mercy found."

Nor are these all, for such good things as these abound, and they
constrain me to say, that in attacking Arminianism we have no
hostility towards the men who bear the name rather than the nature
of that error, and we are opposed not to any body of men, but to
the notions which they have espoused.

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A Taste of Vicious Anti-Calvinism, Too It must be added that Mr. Wesley also penned some rabidly anti-Calvinistic hymns. Some of them, in fact, were a tad mean-spirited. Here are some sample verses from a Charles Wesley hymn titled "The Horrible Decree": Ah! Gentle, gracious Dove, And art thou griev'd in me, That sinners should restrain thy love, And say, "It is not free: It is not free for all: The most, thou passest by, And mockest with a fruitless call Whom thou hast doom'd to die." They think thee not sincere In giving each his day, "Thou only draw'st the sinner near To cast him quite away, To aggravate his sin, His sure damnation seal: Thou shew'st him heaven, and say'st, go in And thrusts him into hell." O HORRIBLE DECREE Worthy of whence it came! Forgive their hellish blasphemy Who charge it on the Lamb: Whose pity him inclin'd To leave his throne above, The friend, and Saviour of mankind, The God of grace, and love. O gracious, loving Lord, I feel thy bowels yearn; For those who slight the gospel word I share in thy concern: How art thou grieved to be By ransom'd worms withstood! How dost thou bleed afresh to see Them trample on thy blood! To limit thee they dare, Blaspheme thee to thy face, Deny their fellow-worms a share In thy redeeming grace: All for their own they take, Thy righteousness engross, Of none effect to most they make The merits of thy cross. Sinners, abhor the fiend: His other gospel hear— "The God of truth did not intend The thing his words declare, He offers grace to all, Which most cannot embrace, Mock'd with an ineffectual call And insufficient grace. "The righteous God consign'd Them over to their doom, And sent the Saviour of mankind To damn them from the womb; To damn for falling short, "Of what they could not do, For not believing the report Of that which was not true. "The God of love pass'd by The most of those that fell, Ordain'd poor reprobates to die, And forced them into hell." "He did not do the deed" (Some have more mildly rav'd) "He did not damn them—but decreed They never should be saved. "He did not them bereave Of life, or stop their breath, His grace he only would not give, And starv'ed their souls to death." Satanic sophistry! But still, all-gracious God, They charge the sinner's death on thee, Who bought'st him with thy blood. They think with shrieks and cries To please the Lord of hosts, And offer thee, in sacrifice Millions of slaughter'd ghosts: With new-born babes they fill The dire infernal shade, "For such," they say, "was thy great will, Before the world was made."