The poetical works of John and Charles Wesley

See the first fatal step to part
Men of one soul, and of one heart!
Undue respect of man,
Pride imperceptibly steals in,
Begets the discontented sin,
And mars the perfect plan.

Where are humility and peace?
The root of envious bitterness
Pride, only pride could prove:
Envy unkind suspicion wakes;
Suspicion all the murmurs makes
And poisons social love.

Who can, O God, Thy counsels tell!
Thy judgments are unsearchable!
The pure and perfect way,
Religion undefiled and true
Scarcely appear'd to mortal view,
And vanish'd in a day!

2476.

[Excused from earthly cares]

It is not reason that we should leave the word, &c. —vi. 2.

Excused from earthly cares,
Detach'd from all below,

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Jesus' authentic ministers
Should only Jesus know:
Their privilege to deal
Supersubstantial bread,
And with the meat invisible
Poor hungry souls to feed.

Ye apostolic men
Your one great business own,
The low concerns of earth disdain,
And live for Christ alone:
By ministering His word
His people multiply,
And with the Spirit of your Lord
The growing church supply.

Your call is to dispense
His blessings from above,
The peace of cancell'd guilt, the sense
Of holy joy and love:
Make the full proof appear
On multitudes forgiven,
Go on to save the souls that hear,
Go on to people heaven.

2477.

[We live to make the Saviour known]

We will give ourselves continually to prayer, &c. —vi. 4.

We live to make the Saviour known,
And bring His gifts and blessings down
On those who Christ obey;
Joyful in this to persevere,
For all the pastor's business here
Is but to preach and pray.

Still let us earthly matters leave,
Ourselves to God entirely give
And to His church below;

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Live out a life of prayer and love,
And to our great reward above
In Jesus' footsteps go.

2478.

[When superior pastors show]

And the saying pleased the whole multitude. —vi. 5.

When superior pastors show
Their humble zeal and love,
In the' apostles' footsteps go,
The church their deed approve:
When of worldly honours proud
Their state and grandeur they maintain,
Irksome both to man and God
The lordly tyrants reign.

2479.

[Happy were the church, could all]

And they chose Stephen, a man full of faith, &c. —vi. 5.

Happy were the church, could all
Her ministers agree;
Evidence their lawful call
To their high ministry,
Fulness of the Spirit obtain,
And Stephen's faithful zeal express,
Offering up their lives, to gain
The crown of righteousness.

2480.

[When the stumbling-block is gone]

And the word of God increased. —vi. 7.

When the stumbling-block is gone
Envy and contentious pride,
Then the word doth swiftly run,
Then the church is multiplied;
When the Christians all agree
Priests themselves in troops submit,
Those that nail'd Him to the tree
Fall and kiss His bleeding feet.

199

2481.

[One single minister renew'd]

Stephen, full of faith and power, did great, &c. —vi. 8.

One single minister renew'd
And fill'd with faith's resistless might,
Does wonders in the cause of God,
Puts Satan's synagogue to flight,
In all his loving toils succeeds,
And Christ among the people spreads.

Such ministry, O Christ ordain,
And fill with power invincible
Thy truth and goodness to maintain
Through Stephen's faith, and fervent zeal
Mighty the alien host to' o'erthrow,
And all Thy gracious wonders show.

2482.

[Who Jesus' work resolves to do]

Then there arose certain...disputing with, &c. —vi. 9.

Who Jesus' work resolves to do
Will always contradiction meet,
In every age disputers new
Satan's strong arguments repeat;
But all the hellish sophists yield
To one with heavenly wisdom fill'd.

Champion of God, in Jesus' might,
In Jesus' Spirit he goes on,
Single against a world to fight;
He treads their baffled reasons down,
And all the' opposers of his Lord
Quells with the hammer of the word.

2483.

[Silenced, but not convinced, the foes]

Then they suborned men,...which said, We, &c. —vi. 11, 12.

Silenced, but not convinced, the foes
Of Christ a surer method take,
Violence and fraud to truth oppose,
Slander and lies their refuge make,

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And rouse the sons of wickedness,
The furious crowd, their prey to seize.

Whose words they can no more withstand
They now their persons apprehend,
Attended with a ruffian band
Like ravenous wolves the sheep they rend
As guilty criminals entreat,
And drag them to the judgment-seat.

2484.

[See ye misbelieving race]

And all that sat in the council, looking, &c. —vi. 15.

See ye misbelieving race,
Read it on your prisoner's face;
By the shining token know
Stephen is not Moses' foe:
God Himself doth witness bear,
More than innocent declare,
With celestial grace endued,
Marks him for the friend of God.

Signs alas! cannot suffice,
Blind your hearts, if not your eyes,
All the human angel see,
All that angel's death decree!
Thus, my God, if Thou bestow
Angels on Thy church below,
Still the world refuse to own,
Still the messengers they stone.

University of Virginia Library

CHAPTER VI.

2475.

[See the first fatal step to part]