An Ode to Sovereign Grace

May not the Sovereign Lord on high ,
Dispense His favours as He will ,
Choose some to life while others die ,
And yet be just and gracious still ?
Shall man reply against the LORD ,
And call His Maker's ways unjust ,
The thunder of whose dreadful word
Can crush a thousand worlds to dust ?
But , O my soul , if truths so bright
Should dazzle and confound thy sight ,
Yet still His written will obey,
And wait the great decisive day !

God's ways are just , His counsels wise ,
No darkness can prevent His eyes ;
No thought can fly , nor thing can move ,
Unknown to Him that sits above .
He in the thickest darkness dwells ,
Performs His work , the cause conceals ,
But though His methods are unknown ,
Judgement and Truth support His Throne .
In Heaven and earth and air and seas ,
He executes His firm decrees ;
And by His saints it stands confessed ,
That what He does is ever best .
Wait then , my soul , submissive wait ,
Prostrate thyself before His awful seat ,
And midst the terrors of His rod ,
Trust in a wise and gracious God .

Not all the outward forms on earth ,
Nor rites that God hath given ,
Nor will of man , nor blood , nor birth ,
Can raise a soul to Heaven .
The Sovereign will of God alone
Creates us heirs of grace
Both in the image of His Son ,
A new peculiar race .
Thus quickened souls awake and rise
From the long sleep of death ;
On heavenly things they fix their eyes ,
And praise employs their breath .

How oft have sin and Satan strove ,
To rend my soul from Thee , my God ,
But everlasting is Thy love ,
And Jesus seals it with His blood .

The Gospel bears my spirit up ,
A faithful and unchanging God ,
Lays the foundation of my hope ,
In oaths and promises and blood .

Not as the world , the Saviour gives :
He is no fickle friend ;
Whom once He loves , He never leaves ,
But loves him to the end .
Though thousand snares enclose his feet ,
Not one shall hold him fast ;
Whatever dangers he may meet ,
He shall get safe at last .

The spirit that would this truth withstand ,
Would pull God's temple down ,
Wrest Jesus' sceptre from His hand ,
And spoil Him of His crown .
Satan might then full victory boast ,
The church might wholly boast ,
The church might wholly fall ;
If one believer may be lost ,
It follows , so may all .
But Christ in every age has proved ,
His purchase firm and true ;
If this foundation be removed ,
What shall the righteous do ?

( By Christopher Ness [ 1700 ] )

 

A belated thanks ,Ken . I am glad you appreciated it . Ness was also the author of An Antidote Against Arminianism . That was not a poem . It was a full-length treatment replete with scriptural proofs against non-Pauline positions of Bible doctrine . I had it printed out years ago . It's worth looking at , if you haven't already .

 

O Father , you are sovereign
In all affairs of man ;
No pow'rs of death or darkness
Can thwart your perfect plan.
All chance and change transcending ,
Supreme in time and space ,
You hold your trusting children
Secure in your embrace .

O Father , you are sovereign !
We see you dimly now,
But soon before your triumph
Earth's every knee shall bow .
With this glad hope before us
Our faith springs up anew :
Our sovereign Lord and Savior ,
We trust and worship you !

( Margaret Clarkson , 1982 )

 

Lord , my weak thought in vain would climb
To search the starry vault profound ,
In vain would wing her flight sublime
To find creation's utmost bound .

But weaker yet that thought must prove
To search thy great eternal plan ,
Thy sovereign counsels , born of love
Long ages ere the world began .

When my dim reason would demand
Why that , or this , thou dost ordain ,
By some vast deep I seem to stand ,
Whose secrets I must ask in vain .

When doubts disturb my troubled breast ,
And all is dark as night to me ,
Here , as on solid rock , I rest --
That so it seemeth good to thee .

Be this my joy , that evermore
Thou rulest all things at thy will ;
Thy sovereign wisdom I adore ,
And calmly , sweetly , trust in thee .

( Ray Palmer , 1858 )