A talk with a heartbroken brother today reminded me once again of a scourge that plagues the Church and our society at this juncture of history. Men charged with responsibility under God so often abandon the standard of Christ.
That thought brought me to this hymn by Charles Wesley, "A Charge to Keep I Have." (To hear Lowell Mason's melody for this song, CLICK HERE.)
According to Nethymnal, Wesley based his lyrics on a passage from Matthew Henry's Commentary on Leviticus:
We have every one of us a charge to keep, an eternal God to glorify, an immortal soul to provide for, needful duty to be done, our generation to serve; and it must be our daily care to keep this charge, for it is the charge of the Lord our Master, who will shortly call us account about it, and it is our utmost peril if we neglect it. Keep it “that ye die not”; it is death, eternal death, to betray the trust that we are charged with; by the consideration of this we must be kept in awe.
Christian Warrior, remember that to remain faithful to your calling and your Lord, you must be willing to side with him, even against yourself, if need be.
A charge to keep I have,
A God to glorify,
A never-dying soul to save,
And fit it for the sky.
To serve the present age,
My calling to fulfill:
O may it all my powers engage
To do my Master’s will!
Arm me with jealous care,
As in Thy sight to live;
And O Thy servant, Lord, prepare
A strict account to give!
Help me to watch and pray,
And on Thyself rely,
Assured, if I my trust betray,
I shall for ever die.
That thought brought me to this hymn by Charles Wesley, "A Charge to Keep I Have." (To hear Lowell Mason's melody for this song, CLICK HERE.)
According to Nethymnal, Wesley based his lyrics on a passage from Matthew Henry's Commentary on Leviticus:
We have every one of us a charge to keep, an eternal God to glorify, an immortal soul to provide for, needful duty to be done, our generation to serve; and it must be our daily care to keep this charge, for it is the charge of the Lord our Master, who will shortly call us account about it, and it is our utmost peril if we neglect it. Keep it “that ye die not”; it is death, eternal death, to betray the trust that we are charged with; by the consideration of this we must be kept in awe.
Christian Warrior, remember that to remain faithful to your calling and your Lord, you must be willing to side with him, even against yourself, if need be.
A charge to keep I have,
A God to glorify,
A never-dying soul to save,
And fit it for the sky.
To serve the present age,
My calling to fulfill:
O may it all my powers engage
To do my Master’s will!
Arm me with jealous care,
As in Thy sight to live;
And O Thy servant, Lord, prepare
A strict account to give!
Help me to watch and pray,
And on Thyself rely,
Assured, if I my trust betray,
I shall for ever die.
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