CHRISTIAN EXPERIENCE

555.

"O save me for thy mercies' sake.” Psa. vi. 4.

C. M.

1 MERCY alone can meet my case;

For

mercy,

Lord! I cry.

Jesus, Redeemer! shew Thy face
In mercy, or I die.

2 Save me, for none beside can save.
At Thy command I tread,

With failing step, life's stormy wave;
The wave goes o'er my head.

3 I perish, and my doom were just;
But wilt Thou leave me?-No:

I hold Thee fast, my Hope, my Trust;
I will not let Thee go.

4 Still sure to me Thy promise stands,
And ever must abide:

Behold it written on Thy hands,
And graven in Thy side.

5 To this, this only will I cleave;
Thy word is all my plea:

That word is truth, and I believe :---
Have mercy, Lord! on me.

556.“ Exalted ... to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance. ...and forgiveness of sins." Acts v. 31.

C. M.

1 PROSTRATE, dear Jesus! at Thy feet A guilty rebel lies,

And upwards to the mercy-seat
Presumes to lift his eyes.

2 Oh, let not justice frown me hence:
Stay, stay the vengeful storm.
Forbid it that Omnipotence

Should crush a feeble worm.

3 If tears of sorrow would suffice
To pay the debt I owe,

Tears should from both my weeping eyes
In ceaseless torrents flow.

4 But no such sacrifice I plead
To expiate my guilt;

No tears, but those which Thou hast shed ;
No blood, but Thou hast spilt.

5 Think of Thy sorrows, dearest Lord!
And all my sins forgive.

Justice will well approve the word
That bids the sinner live.

557.

"Rise: he calleth thee." Mark x. 49.

C. M.

1 HOW long the time since Christ began To call in vain on me!

Deaf to his warning voice, I ran
Through paths of vanity.

2 He called me, when my thoughtless prime Was early ripe to ill.

I passed from folly on to crime,
And yet He called me still.

3 He called me, in the time of dread,
When death was full in view.

I trembled on my feverish bed,
And rose to sin anew.

4 Yet, could I hear Him once again,
As I have heard of old,

Methinks He should not call in vain
His wanderer to the fold.

5 O Thou that every thought dost know,
And answerest every prayer!
Try me with sickness, want, or wo,
But snatch me from despair.

6 My struggling will by grace control.
Renew my broken vow.-

What blessed light breaks on my soul?
My God! I hear Thee now.

558. "Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God." Eph. iv. 30.

L. M.

1 STAY, Thou insulted Spirit! stay, Though I have done Thee such despite : Nor cast the sinner quite away,

Nor take Thine everlasting flight.

2 Though I have steeled my stubborn heart, And still shook off my guilty fears; And vexed, and urged Thee to depart, For many long rebellious years.

3 Though I have most unfaithful been, Of all who e'er Thy grace received; Ten thousand times Thy goodness seen, Ten thousand times Thy goodness grieved;

4 Yet, oh, the chief of sinners

spare,

In honour of my great High-Priest;
Nor in Thy righteous anger swear
To' exclude me from Thy people's rest.

5 This only wo I deprecate;

This only plague I pray remove;
Nor leave me in my lost estate,

Nor curse me with this want of love.

6 Now, Lord! my weary soul release;
Upraise me with Thy gracious hand;
And guide into Thy perfect peace,
And bring me to the promised land.

559.

"Enoch walked with God." Gen. v. 24. C. M.

1 OH for a closer walk with God, A calm and heavenly frame! A light to shine upon the road

That leads me to The Lamb!

2 Where is the blessedness I knew,
When first I saw the Lord?
Where is the soul-refreshing view
Of Jesus and His word?

3 What peaceful hours I once enjoyed!
How sweet their memory still!
But they have left an aching void
The world can never fill.

4 Return, O holy Dove! return,
Sweet messenger of rest!

I hate the sins that made Thee mourn,
And drove Thee from my breast.

5 The dearest idol I have known,
Whate'er that idol be,

Help me to tear it from Thy throne,
And worship only Thee.

6 So shall my walk be close with God,
Calm and serene my frame:
So purer light shall mark the road
That leads me to The Lamb.

560. "Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation." Psa.li. 12r

C. M.

1 OH, speak that gracious word again,
And cheer my broken heart.

No voice but Thine can soothe my pain,
Or bid my fears depart.

2 And canst Thou still vouchsafe to own
A wretch so vile as I?

And may I still approach Thy throne,
And Abba, Father! cry?

3 Oh then, let saints and angels join,
And help me to proclaim

The grace that healed a breach like mine,
And put my foes to shame.