Holy Spirit, Truth Divine
Holy Spirit, Truth Divine
Holy Spirit, Truth divine,
Dawn upon this soul of mine;
Word of God and inward light,
Wake my spirit, clear my sight.
Holy Spirit, Love divine,
Glow within this heart of mine;
Kindle every high desire;
Perish self in Thy pure fire.
Holy Spirit, Power divine,
Fill and nerve this will of mine;
By Thee may I strongly live,
Bravely hear and nobly strive.
Holy Spirit, Right divine,
King within my conscience reign;
Be my Lord, and I shall be
Firmly bound, forever free.
HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW, one of the first great American poets, is renowned for works like “Evangeline,” “The Song of Hiawatha,” and “Tales of a Wayside Inn.” About the same time that he was writing “Tales of a Wayside Inn,” his brother, Samuel Longfellow, was compiling a hymnbook. In this hymnal, Samuel included a hymn he had recently written, “Holy Spirit, Truth Divine.” Though Samuel was a minister in the Unitarian church, as he grew older he refused to be called a Unitarian.
The hymn itself is one that is acceptable to all Christians. The Holy Spirit is praised as truth, love, power, and right. The last stanza reminds us of the words in the Gospel of John where Jesus says that the Holy Spirit would convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. The Spirit does carry on this ministry within us as that “still, small voice” that shows us the way.
Let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants.
Galatians 5:16-17
From the book
