The poetical works of John and Charles Wesley

O take away the stone;
Jesu, the bar remove,
The' accursed thing, to me unknown,
That stops Thy streaming love:
Thy grace is always free,
Thou waitest to be good,
And still Thy Spirit grieves for me,
And speaks Thy sprinkled blood.

Ah! do not let me trust
In gifts and graces past;
But lay my spirit in the dust,
And stop my mouth at last.
What Thou for me hast done
I can no longer plead;
Thy truth and faithfulness I own,
If now Thou strike me dead.

Surely I once believed,
And felt my sins forgiven;
Thy faithful record I received,
That Thou hast purchased heaven
For me and all mankind,
Who from their sins would part;
The peace of God I once could find,
The witness in my heart.

But soon the subtle fiend
Beguiled my simple mind,
Darkness with light he knew to blend,
Falsehood and truth he join'd;

Pride (he remember'd well)
Had cast him from the skies;
By pride the first transgressor fell,
And lost his paradise.

Arm'd with this fiery dart,
The enemy drew nigh,
And preach'd to my unsettled heart
His bold presumptuous lie;
“You are secure of heaven,”
(The tempter softly says,)
“You are elect, and once forgiven
Can never fall from grace.

“You never can receive
The grace of God in vain;
The gift, be sure, He did not give,
To take it back again;
He cannot take it back,
Whether you use or no
His grace; you cannot shipwreck make
Of faith, or let it go.

“You never can forget
Your God, or leave Him now,
Or once look back if you have set
Your hand unto the plough;
You never can deny
The Lord who you hath bought,
Nor can your God His own pass by,
Though you receive Him not.

“God is unchangeable,
And therefore so are you;
And therefore they can never fail
Who once His goodness knew;

In part perhaps you may,
You cannot wholly fall,
Cannot become a castaway
Like non-elected Paul.

“Though you continue not,
Yet God remains the same;
Out of His book He cannot blot
Your everlasting name:
Cut off you shall not be;
You never shall remove,
Secure from all eternity
In His electing love.

“If God the seed did sow
He sow'd it not in vain;
It cannot to perfection grow,
But it must still remain;
Nor cares nor sins can choke,
Or make the grace depart,
Nor can it be by Satan took
Out of your careless heart.

“You must for ever live,
If of the chosen race;
If God did but one talent give
Of special, saving grace,
You cannot bury it;
He never can reprove,
Or cast you out into the pit
For trampling on His love.

“God sees in you no sin;
On His decree depend;
You who did in the Spirit begin
In flesh can never end;

You never can reject
His mercies, or abuse;
His great salvation none neglect,
And death and evil choose.

“If once the spirit unclean
Out of his house is gone,
He never more can enter in,
Or seize you for his own;
You need not dread the fate
Of reprobates accurst,
Or tremble lest your last estate
Be worse than was the first.

“Surely the righteous man
Can never more draw back,
He his own mercies never can
With his good works forsake;
That he should sink to hell
In his iniquity,
God may suppose it possible,
But it can never be:

“His threatenings all are vain;
You fancy Him sincere,
But spare yourself the needless pain,
And cast away your fear.
He speaks with this intent—
To frighten you from ill
With sufferings, which He only meant
The reprobate should feel.

“He only meant to warn
The damn'd, devoted race,
Back from His ways, lest they should turn
Who never knew His ways;

He only cautions all
Who never came to God
Not to depart from God, or fall
From grace, who never stood.

“His threatenings are a jest,
Or not design'd for you;
He only means them for the rest,
And they shall find them true
Who slight His mercy's call,
Which they could ne'er embrace;
He warns the' apostates not to fall
From common (damning) grace.

“'Gainst those that faithless prove
He shuts His mercy's door,
And whom He never once did love
Threatens to love no more;
From them He doth revoke
The grace they did not share,
And blot the names out of His book
That ne'er were written there.

“But you may rest secure,
And safely take your ease;
If you are once in grace, be sure
You always are in grace;
Cast all your fears away;
My son, be of good cheer,
Nor mind what Paul or Peter say,
For you must persevere.

“And did they fright the child,
And tell it it might fall,
Might be of its reward beguiled,
And sin, and forfeit all;

Might to its vomit turn,
And wallow in the mire,
And perish in its sins, and burn
In everlasting fire?

“What naughty men be they,
To take the children's bread,
Their carnal confidence to slay,
And force them to take heed!
With humble useless doubt
The fearful babes they fill,
Compell'd with trembling to work out
Their own salvation still.

“Ah poor misguided soul!
And did they make it weep!
Come, let me in my bosom lull
Thy sorrows all to sleep:
Thine eyes in safety close,
Secure from all alarms,
And take thine undisturb'd repose
And rest within my arms.

“They shall not vex it so,
By bidding it take heed;
You need not as a bulrush go,
Still bowing down your head;
Your griefs and fears reject,
My other gospel own,
Only believe yourself elect,
And all the work is done.”

University of Virginia Library

HYMN III.

[O take away the stone]