Depth Of Mercy!

Depth of mercy! can there be

Mercy still reserved for me?

Can my God His wrath forbear,

Me, the chief of sinners, spare?

I my Master have denied;

I afresh have crucified,

Oft profaned His hallowed name,

Put Him to an open shame.

Now incline me to repent;

Let me now my sins lament;

Now my foul revolt deplore,

Weep, believe, and sin no more.

There for me the Savior stands,

Holding forth His wounded hands;

God is love! I know, I feel,

Jesus weeps and loves me still.

CHARLES WESLEY (1707–1788)

LIFE WOULD BE much tidier if Christians were suddenly made perfect, incapable of sin. Certainly by the power of God’s Spirit we can walk in righteousness, but our sinful nature still drags us down. We are tempted. We go astray.

This was originally part of a thirteen-stanza hymn entitled, “After a Relapse into Sin.” Charles Wesley knew that people would wander from the faith. He also knew that God welcomed them back. The first three stanzas of this compact version clearly depict the plight of the wanderer. The guilt is strong, often keeping the person from returning to Christ. It’s the last stanza that answers the doubts—yes, Jesus is there, holding out His wounded hands. He is weeping, He mourns my sin, but He still loves me. It’s a great picture. We have a great Savior to come home to.

If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.

1 John 1:8-9