Classic Poem

CHAPTER IV.

Envious and wicked priests appear
 In every age, the church to' oppose,
'Gainst every gospel-minister
 They head the troop of Jesus' foes;
Zealots and Sadducees combine
 The truth by violence to suppress,
Deists and priests their forces join
 To silence all the witnesses.

H IRELINGS without remorse or pain
 Dare to their passions sacrifice
The truth, the precious souls of men,
 And bar their passage to the skies.
The preacher's mouth, the hearer's ears,
 They stop through a malignant zeal,
And strive as Satan's messengers
 Heaven to defraud, and people hell

W HO preach the truth, the gospel-word,
 Must no repose expect to know,
To suffer like their patient Lord
 Is all their recompence below,
Their suffering is their mission's seal,
 They glory in captivity,
If Christ thereby His grace reveal,
 And set the' imprison'd spirits free.

F IVE thousand added in a day,
 Born by the Spirit from above,
The energy of grace display,
 The strength of their Redeemer's love.
The welcome truth they all receive,
 Joyful to know their sins forgiven;
Five thousand souls at once believe,
 And banquet on the bread from heaven.

The word is crown'd with more success,
 Because the preacher suffers more,
While God doth by the flock's increase
 Augment His patient servants' power;
His servants' constancy and zeal
 Confirm the followers of their Lord,
And all conspire to work His will,
 And spread through earth His pardoning word.

P OWER , wisdom, learning all combine,
 Churchmen and seculars agree
To frustrate, Lord, Thy love's design,
 And stop the men sent forth by Thee:
But lo, by all the world forsook,
 Like those who first Thy grace made known,
With stronger confidence we look
 For promised help to Thee alone.

 G OD permits His works to be
  By worldly judges tried,
 Shall not ours the scrutiny
  Of sinful men abide?
 Though Thy hand therein appears,
Thy hand, O God, they will not own,
 Sentencing the messengers,
  For what our Lord hath done.

 Who our conduct scrutinize,
  For this we dare not blame,
 But because they shut their eyes,
  Determined to condemn.
 To the truth they will not yield,
Or proof infallible receive,
 Though ten thousand souls are heal'd,
  And to Thy glory live.

D O ye not still, ye ruling men,
Permit that open vice should reign,
 And courtly wickedness;
Yet while the evil is allow'd,
Ye turn your zeal against the good,
 And all its friends oppress

Ye now into our deeds inquire,
Not through a laudable desire
 To praise and imitate,
But matter of offence to find,
(With sin, the world, and Satan join'd,)
 And blast the good ye hate.

R ULERS in church and state give ear;
And all the house of Israel , hear,
Hear His appointed witnesses,
And Christ the crucified confess;
Jesus the Lord, like us, receive,
Who lives and shall for ever live.

Author of immortality
By sin ye nail'd Him to the tree,
But God hath raised again His Son,
And made His life on sinners known,
And souls diseased, and spirits lame,
Are daily heal'd through Jesus' name.

Ye see the wonders of His hand,
The men that in your presence stand!
One step towards heaven they could not go;
But now the power of faith they know;
They walk in Christ, their feet are sure,
And pardon brings their perfect cure.

B E it to all the nations known,
Salvation is in Christ alone!
Jesus did every soul redeem,
And all the saved are saved by Him;
His only name can cancel sin,
His only blood can wash us clean.

Believing into Jesus' name
Through grace already saved I am,
I have redemption in His blood,
I have the peace and life of God;
The Spirit doth His mind impart,
And plant His nature in my heart.

Sinners, believe, and now be free
From sin, and Satan's tyranny,
From earth, and curse, and death, and fear,
Redeem'd by faith in Jesus here;
His name, His love, His nature given,
Plucks you from hell, and lifts to heaven.

No, there is no other name,
Feelingly convinced I am;
Unredeem'd to Jesus cry,
Help, or unredeem'd I die.

Sole Deliverer of Thine own,
Help is laid on Thee alone:
Thine the power to pardon sin,
Thine to bid my heart be clean.

Virtue still proceeds from Thee,
Vital grace, and purity;
Thou the open Fountain art,
Wash with blood my filthy heart.

Hear a desperate sinner pray,
Tear me from myself away:
Do what only Thou canst do,
Make my heart entirely new.

Save me that I may proclaim
All the wonders of Thy name;
Live by deeds to testify
Jesus is the Lord Most-High.

Jesus is my light within,
Rooting out the seeds of sin,
Is salvation from above,
Peace, and power, and perfect love.

W HERE is now the feeble reed
 Shaken by a damsel's breath?
Man he can no longer dread,
 Pain, imprisonment, and death;
Fill'd with virtue from his Lord,
 With the Spirit of faith and power,
Peter stands, by grace restored,
 Stands a rock and shakes no more!

Reeds may still, if Thou ordain,
 Into rocks and pillars rise:
Me, the weakest child of man,
 Jesus, strengthen from the skies;
Fill me with that Spirit of grace
 Witness for a dying God,
Then I shall the truth confess,
 Dare to seal it with my blood.

 W EAKNESS still with ignorance
  And poverty combined
 Triumph o'er the boasted sense
  And wisdom of mankind;
 Grandeur, wealth, and power subdue,
For Jesus' self maintains our cause,
 Jesus who the world o'erthrew
  While bleeding on His cross.

 Men in every age are seen
  By grace Divine employ'd,
 Simple, rude, unletter'd men,
  And only taught of God.
 Sent into the world we go,
And gather souls on every side,
 Nothing else resolved to know
  But Jesus crucified.

 Let the great and wise confess
  From whence this boldness flows,
 Jesus' meanest witnesses
  We cannot dread our foes;
 Men who have with Jesus been,
And at His mouth received the word,
 Conquerors of the world and sin
  We only fear the Lord.

T HE greatest miracles of grace
 Can only silence and confound,
Not change the persecuting race,
 Unless the Lord their conscience wound,
His efficacious love exert
And break the unbeliever's heart.

The dire effects of envious pride
 Even now our blind opposers show:
The proofs stand forth on every side,
 The sinners heal'd they see and know,
And can no longer, Lord, gainsay,
Yet still refuse the truth to' obey.

T O ' elude His wonders and suppress,
 To' o'erthrow His merciful design,
Who now revives His work of grace,
 The world in fruitless counsel join;
Their counsel vain shall never stand,
Or shorten an Almighty hand.

Jehovah sends by whom He will,
 His grace in season due bestows:
Who now the chair of Moses fill,
 Confederate with your Saviour's foes,
Ye cannot stop the growing word,
Or bind that Spirit of the Lord.

S TILL at a loss, ye know not how
 With these wild vagabonds to deal:
Shall priests irregulars allow,
 Or stop by force the growing ill?
But, should ye crush by open force,
Ye fear to make the mischief worse.

N OT speak at all in Jesus' name?
 For this alone we live,
The Friend of sinners to proclaim,
 Who would the worst forgive:
From house to house we still must teach
 His love whate'er betide,
In streets, highways, and deserts preach
 Jehovah crucified.

G OD bids, To all My name confess,
 And make My gospel known;
Man orders us to hold our peace,
 And publish it to none:
But saved from earthly hopes and fears
 Whate'er our elders say
We speak as Jesus' messengers,
 And God, not man obey.

Yourselves must judge it meet and right
 That we the thing should do
Well-pleasing in our Master's sight,
 And God prefer to you:
Wherefore we exercise His will
 As His first servants did,
And thus our ministry fulfil
 Though all the world forbid.

Unawed by man's authority,
 Unable to forbear,
What we have seen and heard of Thee,
 Our God, we must declare:
Who have Thy great salvation seen,
 And heard the Lord from heaven,
We tell the sinful sons of men
 They all may live forgiven.

The bleeding Lamb before our eyes
 Set forth we have beheld,
And heard His dead-reviving cries,
 And felt our pardon seal'd;
We speak as Jesus' witnesses,
 His power on others shown,
And testify the works of grace
 He hath for thousands done.

We speak because we have believed,
 So freely justified
Forgiveness through His blood received,
 His precious blood applied:
The balmy virtue of His death
 We must through life proclaim,
And publish with our latest breath
 The all-redeeming Lamb!

T HEIR hate they can no further show,
Constrain'd to let the preachers go,
 Though thirsting for their blood:
What power obstructs the fierce career
Of men, who God disdain to fear?
 They fear the multitude.

Elders, and priests, and rulers rage,
Against the Lord their powers engage;
 His work the people own,
His truth and ministers embrace,
And glorify the God of grace
 For all which He hath done.

The people praise a pardoning God,
His miracles of healing show'd
 On young and old confess;
They see His hand with joyful eyes,
And heal'd themselves through Jesus rise
 A cloud of witnesses!

T HE evils which the church befall,
Its dangers and escapes to all
 The faithful we make known,
That wrestling all in mighty prayer
They may the common burden bear,
 And bring the Spirit down.

 L ORD of hosts, our God and Lord,
  To Thee we lift our voice,
 Praise Thy name with one accord,
 And in Thy strength rejoice:
 Heaven is Thine, and earth, and sea,
The work of Thine Almighty hand,
 Every creature made by Thee
  Must bow to Thy command.

 Thy prophetic word we find
  Fulfill'd before our eyes,
  Heathens still with Jews are join'd,
  And kings and rulers rise;
 Thee and Christ Thy Son to' oppose,
The lords of earth conspire again,
 Rage the world of Jesus' foes,
  But all their rage is vain.

 Lo with furious malice wild
  They rush impetuous on,
 Leagued against Thy holy Child,
  Thy dear anointed Son!
 Successors to those of old,
Who when they nail'd Him to the tree,
 Verified the thing foretold,
  And answer'd Thy decree.

 L ORD the cause belongs to Thee
  When truth's opposers rise,
 Thou who dost their evil see
  Disperse it with Thine eyes!
 They and we are in Thine hand
Who sittest on Thy righteous throne,
 Let Thine awful counsel stand,
  Thy sovereign will be done.

 Now behold their threatenings, Lord,
  Who Thee and Thine withstand,
 Arm the preachers of Thy word
  By stretching forth Thy hand;
 Now exert Thy power to heal,
Thy hated ministers inspire,
 Warm their hearts with heavenly zeal,
  And touch their lips with fire.

 Through the name and sprinkled blood
  Of Thy unspotted Child,
 Miracles of grace be show'd
  On sinners reconciled;
 Dying sinners to relieve
To certify their sins forgiven,
 Jesus' purchased Spirit give,
  And send the sign from heaven.

 T HOU who once didst shake the place
  Where praying saints were met,
 Spirit of faith and holiness
  The miracle repeat;
 Shake our souls, and stir them up
To seize the crown prepared above,
 Fill with confidence of hope,
  And purity of love.

 Power to every messenger
  And ready utterance give,
 That we boldly may declare
  The Name through which we live,
 Preach the reconciling Word
Who did His peace to all bequeath,
 Followers of our lamb-like Lord,
  And faithful unto death.

 H APPY the multitude
  (But far above our sphere)
 Redeem'd by Jesus' blood
  From all we covet here!
To Him, and to each other join'd
They all were of one heart and mind.
 His blood the cement was
  Who died on Calvary ,
 And fasten'd to His cross
  They could not disagree;
One soul did all the members move,
The soul of harmony and love

 Jesus Thy church inspire
  With apostolic love,
 Infuse the one desire
  To' ensure our wealth above,
Freely with earthly goods to part,
And joyfully sell all in heart.

 With Thy pure Spirit fill'd,
  And loving Thee alone,
 We shall our substance yield,
  Call nothing here our own,
Whate'er we have or are submit,
And lie as beggars at Thy feet.

S EE here an apostolic priest,
 Commission'd from the sky,
Who dares of all himself divest,
 The needy to supply!
A primitive example rare
 Of gospel poverty,
To feed the flock his only care,
 And like his Lord to be.
Jesus to us apostles raise,
 Like-minded pastors give
Who freely may dispense Thy grace
 As freely they receive;
Who disengaged from all below
 May earthly things despise,
And every creature good forego
 For treasure in the skies.