Charles Hodge’s Letter to Pope Pius IX

Charles Hodge’s Letter to Pope Pius IX (1869)

Comment: Sharing this at this post-Pope Francis / US visit opportunity to underscore what Protestants and Catholics share in common and what divides. Only a brief excerpt is below. Readers are encouraged to read in entirety.

Excerpt:

We receive all those doctrines concerning sin, grace and predestination, known as Augustinian, which doctrines received the sanction not only of the Council of Carthage and of other provincial Synods, but of the Ecumenical Council of Ephesus AD431, and of Zosimus, bishop of Rome.

We therefore cannot be pronounced heretics without involving in the same condemnation the whole ancient church.

Neither are we schismatics. We cordially recognize as members of Christ’s visible Church on earth, all those who profess the true religion together with their children. We are not only willing but earnest to hold Christian communion with them, provided they do not require, as conditions of such communion, that we profess doctrines which the Word of God condemns, or that we should do what the Word forbids. If in any case any Church prescribes such unscriptural terms of fellowship, the error and the fault is with that church and not with us.

But although we do not decline your invitation because we are either heretics or schismatics, we are nevertheless debarred from accepting it, because we still hold with ever increasing confidence those principles for which our fathers were excommunicated and pronounced accursed by the Council of Trent, which represented, and still represents, the Church over which you preside.

1. The most important of those principles are: First, that the Word of God, contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, is the only infallible rule of faith and practice. The Council of Trent, however, pronounces Anathema on all who do not receive the teachings of tradition pari pietatis affectu (with equal pious affection) as the Scriptures themselves. This we cannot do without incurring the condemnation which our Lord pronounced on the Pharisees, who made void the Word of God by their traditions (Matt. 15:6).
2. Secondly, the right of private judgement. When we open the Scriptures, we find that they are addressed to the people. They speak to us. We are commanded to search them (John 5:39), to believe what they teach. We are held personally responsible for our faith. The apostle commands us to pronounce accursed an apostle or an angel from heaven who should teach anything contrary to the divinely authenticated Word of God (Gal. 1:8). He made us the judges, and has placed the rule of judgement into our hands, and holds us responsible for our judgements. Moreover, we find that the teaching of the Holy Spirit was promised by Christ not to the clergy only, much less to any one order of the clergy exclusively, but to all believers. It is written, ‘Ye shall all be taught of God.’ The Apostle John says to believers: ‘Ye have an unction from the Holy One, and know all things . . . but the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you; and ye need not that any man teach you; but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him’ (1 John 2:20,27). This teaching of the Spirit authenticates itself, as this same apostle teaches us, when he says, ‘He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself (1 John 5:10). ‘I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth’ (1 John 2:21). Private judgement, therefore, is not only a right, but a duty, from which no man can absolve himself, or be absolved by others.
3. Thirdly, we believe in the universal priesthood of all believers, that is, that all believers have through Christ access by one Spirit unto the Father (Eph. 2:18); that we may come with boldness to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need (Heb. 4:16); ‘Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; and having an high priest over the house of God; let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water’ (Heb. 10:19-22). To admit, therefore, the priesthood of the clergy, whose intervention is necessary to secure for us the remission of sin and other benefits of the redemption of Christ, is to renounce the priesthood of our Lord, or its sufficiency to secure reconciliation with God.
4. Fourthly, we deny the perpetuity of apostleship. As no man can be an apostle without the Spirit of prophecy, so no man can be an apostle without the gifts of an apostle. Those gifts, as we learn from Scripture, were plenary knowledge of the truth derived from Christ by immediate revelation (Gal.s 1:12), and personal infallibility as teachers and rulers. What the seals of apostleship were Paul teaches us, when he says to the Corinthians, ‘Truly the signs of an apostle were wrought among you in all patience, in signs, and wonders, and mighty deeds’ (2 Cor. 12:12). As for prelates who claim to be apostles, and who demand the same confidence in their teaching, and the same submission to their authority, as that which is due to the inspired messengers of Christ, without pretending to possess either the gifts or signs of the apostleship, we cannot submit to their claims. This would be rendering to erring men the subjection due to God alone or to his divinely authenticated and infallible messengers. Much less can we recognize the Bishop of Rome as the vicar of Christ on earth, clothed with the authority over the Church and the world which was exercised by our Lord while here in the flesh. It is plain that no one can be the vicar of Christ who has not the attributes of Christ. To recognize the Bishop of Rome as Christ’s vicar is therefore virtually to recognize him as divine.

We must stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free. We cannot forfeit our salvation by putting man in the place of God, giving one of like passions with ourselves the control of our inward and outward life which is due only to him in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, and in whom dwells all the fulness of the Godhead. Other and equally cogent reasons might be assigned why we cannot with a good conscience be represented in the proposed Council. But as the Council of Trent, whose canons are still in force, pronounces all accursed who hold the principles above enumerated, nothing further is necessary to show that our declining your invitation is a matter of necessity

Comment: Image sources: Pope Pius IX. Charles Hodge.  Context provided below:

The text of a letter written by Charles Hodge of Princeton Theological Seminary on behalf of the two General Assemblies of the Presbyterian Church in the USA, explaining why the Pope’s invitation to Protestants to send delegates to the first Vatican Council of 1869-70 was being declined.

EMV in the US: Fraud Liability Shift

What is EMV

Excerpt:

Starting on October 1, 2015, the liability shifts to businesses for fraudulent chip card transactions. This means if you accept a chip card with a magnetic stripe reader, you'll be responsible for the cost if the transaction is fraudulent.

Comment: Image capture from above link. EMV has been, with Apple Pay, the top projects of my wife who is a SME on EMV.

On the same day - The Pope and "Imagine" at the United Nations

Shakira Performs John Lennon’s ‘Imagine’ at the United Nations

Excerpt:

Pop superstar Shakira Mebarak performed a soulful rendition of “Imagine” at the United Nations General Assembly on Friday, the same day Pope Francis made a historic appearance at the meeting. Shakira lent her signature vibrato the John Lennon song, which she dedicated to Aylan and Ghalib Kurdi, two young Syrian boys who drowned fleeing violence in their home country. “Our children have the right to equal opportunities, to thrive, to be happy and healthy and safe,” she said. “Now is the time to not just imagine, but do.”

Pope Francis Addresses U.N., Calling for Peace and Environmental Justice

Excerpt:

With a passionate call from Pope Francis to choose environmental justice over a “boundless thirst for power and material prosperity,” world leaders on Friday adopted an ambitious agenda to reset their own priorities, from ending hunger to protecting forests to ensuring quality education for all.

“We want to change our world, and we can,” Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany told a packed General Assembly hall.

The global goals, which emerged after three years of negotiations, are 17 in all. Known as the Sustainable Development Goals, they are not legally binding, and therefore not enforceable. But they carry a moral force of coercion, because they are adopted by consensus by the 193 member states of the United Nations.

They apply to all countries, not just poor ones, as was the objective of the last round of ambitions, called the Millennium Development Goals, which expired this year.

“The new agenda is a promise by leaders to all people everywhere,” the secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, told the General Assembly. Central to the new set of global goals, which extend to 2030, is the idea of caring for the planet and for the world’s poorest citizens, which was also at the heart of the pope’s address — his first at the United Nations.

“Any harm done to the environment, therefore, is harm done to humanity,” Francis said, later reprising his argument that the poor are the biggest victims of environmental destruction. “A selfish and boundless thirst for power and material prosperity leads both to the misuse of available natural resources and to the exclusion of the weak and the disadvantaged,” he said.

Comment: Lyrics to Imagine below

Imagine there's no heaven It's easy if you try No hell below us Above us only sky Imagine all the people living for today

Imagine there's no countries It isn't hard to do Nothing to kill or die for And no religion too Imagine all the people living life in peace, you

You may say I'm a dreamer But I'm not the only one I hope some day you'll join us And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions I wonder if you can No need for greed or hunger A brotherhood of man

Imagine all the people sharing all the world, you You may say I'm a dreamer But I'm not the only one I hope some day you'll join us And the world will be as one

Comment: There's a lot of worldview in Lennon's lyric. In response Psalm 2 comes to mind: "He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision."

"Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom"

This blog post pertains to "truth" and whether there is absolute truth. The above photos are of McMicken Hall at the University of Cincinnati. I graduated from U.C. in 1971 and while I was there became a believer in Christ as Messiah, Lord and Savior (1969)

McMicken was the business school main building while I was there. The topmost photo is from 1906 and the others more modern.  The Medici lions guard the main entrance. Above the main portico is a quote from Proverbs 4:7. Below in broader context:

He taught me also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live. 5 Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth. 6 Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee. 7 Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. 8 Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her. 9 She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee. 10 Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings; and the years of thy life shall be many. 11 I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths.

While I was there what the front of McMicken was basically the back. I rarely entered McMicken past Mic and Mack (the lions) and under the "wisdom" saying.

The quote is interesting from a historical perspective ... that 100 years ago the U.C. "Fathers" had a high view of the God of the Old Testament as a source of wisdom.

Worldview - "I do not believe in the Bible as a divine revelation"

Darwin letter reveals, "I do not believe in the Bible"
Excerpt:

While many scholars believe Charles Darwin was an agnostic or even an atheist, it can be difficult to find hard evidence to back up those beliefs. He was reluctant to discuss religion and his writings are often silent on the issue. But now a simple one-sentence handwritten letter signed by the naturalist offers proof he did not believe in God. The letter, written 21 years after the publication of "The Origin of Species," was auctioned off Monday afternoon at Bonhams in New York. It fetched $197,000 at the auction, three times the previous record of $59,142 for a four-page letter that Darwin had penned to his niece. Darwin's letter is a reply to a young barrister named Francis McDermott, who wrote on November 23, 1880 with a very unusual request: "...If I am to have pleasure in reading your books I must feel that at the end I shall not have lost my faith in the New Testament. My reason in writing to you therefore is to ask you to give me a Yes or No to the question Do you believe in the New Testament."

McDermott continues by promising not to publicize Darwin's reply in the "theological papers."

The next day Darwin responded. He wasn't brusque but he was to the point and left no doubt about his beliefs, stating: "Dear Sir, I am sorry to have to inform you that I do not believe in the Bible as a divine revelation & therefore not in Jesus Christ as the son of God. Yours faithfully." McDermott promised not to publish the correspondence and he kept to his word. The letter was unknown to scholars for over 100 years.

Comment: It's called a presupposition

"We are Stardust" .. "Dust in the Wind"

"Dust In The Wind"
Lyrics:

I close my eyes only for a moment, and the moment's gone

All my dreams pass before my eyes, a curiosity

Dust in the wind, all they are is dust in the wind

Same old song, just a drop of water in an endless sea All we do crumbles to the ground, though we refuse to see

Dust in the wind, all we are is dust in the wind

Now, don't hang on, nothing lasts forever but the earth and sky It slips away, and all your money won't another minute buy

Dust in the wind, all we are is dust in the wind (all we are is dust in the wind)

Dust in the wind (everything is dust in the wind), everything is dust in the wind (the wind)

Woodstock by Joni Mitchell
Lyrics:

I came upon a child of God He was walking along the road And I asked him, where are you going And this he told me

I'm going on down to Yasgur's farm I'm going to join in a rock 'n' roll band I'm going to camp out on the land I'm going to try an' get my soul free

We are stardust ,We are golden, And we've got to get ourselves Back to the garden

Then can I walk beside you I have come here to lose the smog And I feel to be a cog in something turning

Well maybe it is just the time of year Or maybe it's the time of man I don't know who l am But you know life is for learning

We are stardust We are golden And we've got to get ourselves Back to the garden

By the time we got to Woodstock We were half a million strong And everywhere there was song and celebration

And I dreamed I saw the bombers Riding shotgun in the sky And they were turning into butterflies Above our nation

We are stardust Billion year old carbon We are golden

Caught in the devil's bargain And we've got to get ourselves Back to the garden

How 40,000 Tons of Cosmic Dust Falling to Earth Affects You and Me

 Excerpt:

Our bodies are made of remnants of stars and massive explosions in the galaxies, authors say. Talking from their home in Palo Alto, California, they explain how everything in us originated in cosmic explosions billions of years ago, how our bodies are in a constant state of decay and regeneration, and why singer Joni Mitchell was right. "We are stardust," Joni Mitchell famously sang in "Woodstock." It turns out she was right, wasn't she?

Comments:

This is my second blogpost on Worldview. Click on the label "Worldview" for all posts on this subject (so far just one besides this one!).

I grew up on this kind of music and frankly I like some of it. I particularly like the sound of Kansas. Aside from the sound of Kansas and Joni's beautiful voice, the lyrics are worth considering. Elements (major elements!) of a worldview are in these songs. I personally believe, but am not defending here, that Adam was the first man and was created from the dust of the earth. One can read about this in the early chapters of Genesis.

Today's question as one considers Worldview: Are we but dust ... carbon ... stardust .. in the wind? Is there an metaphysical part of a human that has a soul that is eternal? I think so because I believe the Bible about these things.

Worldview - Is That All There Is?

"Wide Field Imager view of a Milky Way look-alike NGC 6744" by ESO - http://www.eso.org/public/images/eso1118a/. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Commons.

I've been thinking more particularly about the subject of "Worldview" the last several weeks - prompted by viewing the Master’s Seminary Presuppositional Apologetics Lectures– Dr. Michael Vlach

What is Worldview? "A worldview is a theory of the world, used for living in the world. A world view is a mental model of reality — a framework of ideas & attitudes about the world, ourselves, and life, a comprehensive system of beliefs — with answers for a wide range of questions: What are humans, why we are here, and what is our purpose in life? What are your goals for life? When you make decisions about using time — it's the stuff life is made of — what are your values and priorities? What can we know, and how? and with how much certainty? Does reality include only matter/energy, or is there more?"

Here's my simplistic "me" oriented view of the world - as if "I" (b. Aug 19, 1949) were the absolute center of the universe. Below represents "me" (There is no actual picture of me at this age!):

By Christopher Michel from San Francisco, USA (Flickr) [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

My "me-related" questions:

• Who made me? Or how did "I" come to exist? 
• Am I real or am I just dreaming - a la The Matrix. What does it mean that I am a "person"?
• I hardly understood death then - but now that Daddy is dead along with a host of other persons I once knew! What happens to me once the heart stops pumping, the lungs stop breathing and the brain stops computing?
• More simplistically: what was before me? The past!
• What is real around me? The present! How can I know anything?
• What should I do? How should I live?
• What will happen after me? The future! And since I am entirely selfish (it's all about me), where will I be in that future? 

This small, humble blog post by, what I have come to understand,  a fairly average individual with a limited knowledge of all now quotes Wikipedia (the more than me!):

According to Apostel, a worldview is an ontology, or a descriptive model of the world. It should comprise these six elements:

1. An explanation of the world
2. A futurology, answering the question "Where are we heading?" 
3. Values, answers to ethical questions: "What should we do?"
4. A praxeology, or methodology, or theory of action: "How should we attain our goals?"
5. An epistemology, or theory of knowledge: "What is true and false?"
6. An etiology. A constructed world-view should contain an account of its own "building blocks," its origins and construction.

One of my favorite films is Rebel Without a Cause, and one of my favorite scenes (after "The Chicken Game") is the Griffith Planetarium scene:

 Here's the text of the planetarium lecture:

For many days before the end of our earth people will look into the night sky and notice a star, increasingly bright and increasingly near.

The last of us search the heavens and stand amazed. For the stars will still be there, moving through their ancient rhythms.

The familiar constellations that illuminate our night will seem as they have always seemed, eternal, unchanged and little moved by the shortness of time between our planet's birth and its demise.

Orion, the Hunter. Gemini, the Twins. Cancer, the Crab. Taurus, the Bull. Sagittarius and Aries--all as they have ever been.

And while the flash of our beginning has not yet traveled the light years into distance-- Has not yet been seen by planets deep within the other galaxies, we will disappear into the blackness of the space from which we came .

Destroyed as we began in a burst of gas and fire. The heavens are still and cold once more. In all the complexity of our universe and the galaxies beyond, the Earth will not be missed.

Through the infinite reaches of space, the problems of Man seem trivial and naive indeed. And Man, existing alone, seems to be an episode of little consequences. That's all. Thank you very much.

Plato remarks: "What does he know about Man alone?"

Good question Plato!

(Is it any wonder those kids (most now dead) were so messed up!?)

That scene in particular presents a worldview:

• Man is of little consequence
• That's all

Perhaps we (a collective "we") are rebels without a cause because we regard ourselves of little consequence and in the end - that's all!

Que Peggy Lee:
Changing course a bit, and not revealing my own worldview, here are some worldview questions (thinking ... if someone asked me (since this post is about me) these questions, he would know my worldview:

1. Is there a Creator?
2. What / who was there before the beginning of the universe?
3. Is God (or god) (depending on previous question) knowable?
4. What is His nature?
5. Does He transcend the universe?
6. How does He interact with the universe?
7. How is He knowable?
8. Is man just an animal or unique in some way?
9. Is there evil? (thinking of Aurora theatre killer, ISIS, Nazis, Columbine, et cetera)
10. Why is there evil? Where is God in this?
11. What happens after one’s end (death)?
12. Will there be some type of culmination or end? What then?
13. Will good ever triumph over evil?
14. Is man’s soul eternal?
15. Is there a heaven? Hell? (will evil be judged?)
16. Is truth knowable?

Property Listing Extremes (San Francisco - Detroit)

16 De Long Street, San Francisco, San Francisco County, CA 94112

Below: Comment: Not the cheapest Detroit listing by far ... but livable.

17624 Saint Louis St, Detroit, MI 48212

The Torn Veil

The Thickness of the Temple Veil

Excerpt:

Three hundred priests were told off [sic; the idea is that they were designated] to draw the veil (of the Temple) aside; for it is taught that Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel declared in the name of Rabbi Shimon the Sagan (or high priest’s substitute), that the thickness of the veil was a handbreadth. It was woven of seventy-two cords, and each cord consisted of twenty-four strands. It was forty cubits long and twenty wide. Eighty-two myriads of damsels worked at it, and two such veils were made every year. When it became soiled, it took three hundred priests to immerse and cleanse it.

Comment: Images from Google images

And you shall hang the veil from the clasps. Then you shall bring the ark of the Testimony in there, behind the veil. The veil shall be a divider for you between the holy place and the Most Holy. (Exodus 26:33)

Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51)

Then the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was torn in two. (Luke 23:45)

Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. (Mark 15:38)

This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil, (Hebrews 6:19)

For a tabernacle was prepared: the first part, in which was the lampstand, the table, and the showbread, which is called the sanctuary; 3 and behind the second veil, the part of the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of All, 4 which had the golden censer and the ark of the covenant overlaid on all sides with gold, in which were the golden pot that had the manna, Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tablets of the covenant; (Hebrews 9:2-4)

Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21 and having a High Priest over the house of God, (Hebrews 10:19-21)

Two Ways - John 3:16-21

John 3:16-21

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. 21 But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”

Comment: Helpful chart from the NIV Study  Bible p. 2152

Jesus the Suffering Servant - Isaiah 53

The Seven New Testament Quotations of Isaiah 53

Comment: Top image source

"Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully" 1 Peter 1:10-11

Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. (1 Peter 1:10-11)

Comment: Above chart based upon a resource in the ESV Study Bible. Click image for larger view

The Messianic Genealogy

Comment: Links on genealogy of Christ.

Above image from Answers in Genesis. HT: GodIssues

• amazingbibletimeline.com/images/genealogyofjesuschrist_tree.pdf
• complete-bible-genealogy.com/cbgjesus.pdf
• actscambridge.org/assets/images/bible_genealogy_a1_chart.pdf (Most detailed)

The "Horror" still "Creeps" ... the "Evil" still exists

Comment: Snap of NY Times cover from 9/12/2001 / Snap of WSJ cover

Did John and Charles Wesley use "salvation language" (eg "born again", "saved")

John Wesley: A resource of his sermons

"while he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation; and an assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death." Source

"Ye are saved (to comprise all in one word) from sin. This is the salvation which is through faith. This is that great salvation foretold by the angel, before God brought his First-begotten into the world: "Thou shalt call his name Jesus; for he shall save his people from their sins." And neither here, nor in other parts of holy writ, is there any limitation or restriction. All his people, or, as it is elsewhere expressed, "all that believe in him," he will save from all their sins; from original and actual, past and present sin, "of the flesh and of the spirit." Through faith that is in him, they are saved both from the guilt and from the power of it." Source

"Ye must be born again." John 3:7

1. If any doctrines within the whole compass of Christianity may be properly termed fundamental, they are doubtless these two, -- the doctrine of justification, and that of the new birth: The former relating to that great work which God does for us, in forgiving our sins; the latter, to the great work which God does in us, in renewing our fallen nature. In order of time, neither of these is before the other: in the moment we are justified by the grace of God, through the redemption that is in Jesus, we are also "born of the Spirit;" but in order of thinking, as it is termed, justification precedes the new birth. We first conceive his wrath to be turned away, and then his Spirit to work in our hearts.

2. How great importance then must it be of, to every child of man, throughly to understand these fundamental doctrines! From a full conviction of this, many excellent men have wrote very largely concerning justification, explaining every point relating thereto, and opening the Scriptures which treat upon it. Many likewise have wrote on the new birth: And some of them largely enough; but yet not so clearly as might have been desired, nor so deeply and accurately; having either given a dark, abstruse account of it, or a slight and superficial one. Therefore a full, and at the same time a clear, account of the new birth, seems to be wanting still; such as may enable us to give a satisfactory answer to these three questions:" Source

Charles Wesley: Source

1 And can it be that I should gain An int'rest in the Savior's blood? Died He for me, who caused His pain? For me, who Him to death pursued? Amazing love! how can it be That Thou, my God, should die for me? Refrain: Amazing love! how can it be That Thou, my God, should die for me!

2 'Tis mystery all! Th'Immortal dies! Who can explore His strange design? In vain the firstborn seraph tries To sound the depths of love divine! 'Tis mercy all! let earth adore, Let angel minds inquire no more. [Refrain]

3 He left His Father's throne above, So free, so infinite His grace; Emptied Himself of all but love, And bled for Adam's helpless race; 'Tis mercy all, immense and free; For, O my God, it found out me. [Refrain]

4 Long my imprisoned spirit lay Fast bound in sin and nature's night; Thine eye diffused a quick'ning ray, I woke, the dungeon flamed with light; My chains fell off, my heart was free; I rose, went forth and followed Thee. [Refrain]

5 No condemnation now I dread; Jesus, and all in Him is mine! Alive in Him, my living Head, And clothed in righteousness divine, Bold I approach th'eternal throne, And claim the crown, through Christ my own. [Refrain]

Source:

1. Come, sinners, to the gospel feast; let every soul be Jesus' guest. Ye need not one be left behind, for God hath bid all humankind.

2. Sent by my Lord, on you I call; the invitation is to all. Come, all the world! Come, sinner, thou! All things in Christ are ready now.

3. Come, all ye souls by sin oppressed, ye restless wanderers after rest; ye poor, and maimed, and halt, and blind, in Christ a hearty welcome find.

4. My message as from God receive; ye all may come to Christ and live. O let his love your hearts constrain, nor suffer him to die in vain.

5. This is the time, no more delay! This is the Lord's accepted day. Come thou, this moment, at his call, and live for him who died for all.

Comment: But a quick sampling. Image source: John,  Charles. A resource on Charles Wesley hymns

Redeemed because Christ was my Substitute

Image Source

Key Verses:

• Galatians 3:13, "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”)"
• Galatians 4:5, "to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons."
• Titus 2:14, "who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works."
• 1 Peter 1:18, "knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot"
• Revelation 5:9, "And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation"
• Romans 3:24, "being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus"
• Ephesians 1:7, "In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace"
• Romans 5:6, "For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly."
• Romans 5:8, "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
• Romans 8:34, "Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us."
• 1 Corinthians 15:3, "For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,"