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Lorsque le document est trop grand pour Atre reprodult en un seul clichA, 11 est fiimA it partir da Tangle supArisur gauche, de gauche A drolte, et de haut en has, en prenant le nombre d'Imeges nAcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrant la m^thoda. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 F( Mo FOOTHOLDS FOR FAITH'S FEET IN SONG AND STORY. ILLUSTRATIVE LECTURES. BY REV. W. H. W. BOYLE, B.A. Late of Knox Church, St. Thotnas, Ont. TORONTO: WILLIAM BRIGGS, WESLEY BUILDINGS. Montreal : C. W. Coates. Halifax : S. F. Huestis. ! Entirid, according to Act of the Parliament of Canada, in the year one thousand eight hundred and ninety-one, by William Baioos, Book Steward of the Methodist Boole and Publishing House, Toronto, at the Department of ARrioulture. I' THE KIND AND CHRISTIAN PEOPLE OF THE TWO CONGREGATIONS, DUMFRIES STREET CHURCH, PARIS, AND KNOX CHURCH, ST. THOMAS; TO WHOM IT WAS MY GREAT PRIVILEGE TO MINISTER IN SPIRITUAL THINGS FOR FOUR AND TWO YEARS RESPECTIVELY, THIS LITTLE BOOK IS AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED. YOURS IN THE LOVE OF THE LQRD JESUS, W. H. W. BOYLE. COLORADO SPRINGS, U.S., Dec. asth, 1891. , ■ , ■ i f [ ... * , V .' ■: t f' \ ' i ' CONTENTS. I'AGG. THE SOUL'S SURE REFUGE ii (CHARLES WESLEY.) THE SOUL'S GREAT ROCK . ... . . 31 (AUGUSTUS M. TOPLADY.) GOD IN CREATION 49 ^ , (JOSEPH ADDISON.) GOD IN PROVIDENCE ........ 67 •^ (WILLIAM COWPER.) GOD IN REDEMPTION . . . . . . . 85 (ROBERT M. M'CHEYNE.) PREVAILING GRACE ... . ... .107 (PHILIP DODDRIDGE.) INTRbDUCTION. The following illustrative lectures were delivered in a Sabbath evening course, under the name of " Hymns and Hymn-writers." The object sought in the preparation of such a course was two-fold : First, to have my people become better acquainted with the subjects, the suggesting incidents and doc- trines of the most popular hymns, in order to give an intelligent rendering of them in the service of praise ; "Sing ye praises with the understanding." Psalm 47 : 7. Second, in giving a succinct history of the authors of those hymns, to present before the minds, especially of young Christians, fit models for their study and imitation in the lives of men who were bright reflections of the character of Jesus ; just as the ancient Romans were wont to place busts of celebrated men in the vestibules of their homes, that so their children, learning the history of their lives, might be led to emulate their virtues. The first five lectures of the course were delivered in Paris and St. Thomas. They were received in both places with evident favor, and to my knowledge were instrumental, under the blessing of God, in the awakening, quickening and comforting of souls, INTRODUCTION. They were by no means intended for publication at the time they were written; but circumstances having completely changed, the putting of these six lectures into book form ma; be deemed justifiable. Being forced to relinquish the work which had grown increasingly interesting to me, and having lost the use of my voice for ablic service by continued ill- health, I ray in this way still be able to continue my work of ministry. I trust my feeble efforts may be worthy of some degree of acceptation, and that some sentences from these pages may be owned and blessed of God to the salvation and strengthening of precious souls. I must acknowledge my indebtedness to several writers for facts relating to the lives of the Hymn- writers and incidents associated with the history of the hymns, but chiefly to the author of "English Hymns." The first lecture of the course was delivered, as it now appears, in St. Thomas, on the Centenary of the death of Charles Wesley ; the sixth was the last discourse delivered by me, on the evening of June 22nd, 1890, a few days before my sudden prostration. With an earnest desire to be still used by Him, "whose I am, and whom I serve." Yours in Christ, W. H. W. B. ■f ^t f Jesus^ Lover of my soul. Let me to Thy bosom fly y While the nearer waters roll. While the tempest still is high. Hide me, O my Saviour, hide. Till the storm of life is past; Safe into the haven guide j receive my soul at last ! Other refuge have I none; Hangs my helpless soul on Thee; Leave, ah ! leave me not alone ; Still support and comfort me. All my trust on Thee is stayed. All my help from Thee I bring; Cover my defenceless head With the shadow of Thy wing. Thou, O Christ, art all I want; ■ More than all in Thee I find: Raise the fallen, cheer the faint. Heal the sick, and lead the blind. Just and holy is Thy name; 1 am all unrighteousness ; False and full of sin I am : Thou art full of truth and grace. Plenteous grace with Thee is found, Grace to cover all my sin; Let the healing streams abound; Make and keep jne pure within. Thou of life the fountain art. Freely let me take of Thee; Spring Thou up within my heart. Rise to all eternity. ■''^'^. i THE SOUL'S SURE REFUGE. '' And a man shall be as an hiding-place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest." — Isaiah xxxii. 2. " Jesus, Lover of my soul, Let me to Thy bosom fly. " HYMNOLOGY is said to be the truest theo- logy, because it is the expression of the heart that has met with Qod. In philosophical treatises on questions pertaining to theology, such as : the existence and character of God, or, the nature and immortality of the soul, the whole is apt to resolve itself into a form of argument or definition, with the strength of appeal to the reason and intellect, rather than to the affections and heart. But in ^ rder to the assurance of a genuine religion, both must be searcued. While the mind is enlightened and convinced by truth, the heart must be touched, enlarged, and chastened by love. Hymnology effects this. It deals not so much with principles, as with principles transformed 12 FOOTHOLDS FOR FAITH'S FEET. by practice. It is Scripture re-spoken in the language of the adoring worshipper. It is the skeleton of doctrine breathed upon by the Spirit of Qod, and made to throb in the being and beauty of a living thing. Let Miriam, the prophetess, but stand safe upon the shores of "Egypt's dark sea," with timbrel and dulcimer in hand, to lead Israel's daughters in songs of deliverance, and she will awaken the melody of abounding gratitude to God in the hearts of the emancipated people. Let the princely David but touch his harp to make music fit for his wonderful heart-songs, and all the people will say amen. He v/ill play the enchanter's part over the dark heart of Saul the king, and beguile his moments into forget- fulness of evil. He will light up the fire on the altar of Israel's devotions, and send down the music of his prayers to be re-prayed in the be- lieving life of every age. Let the captive people who sit by the streams of Babel, but lift their harps from the willows, and PS the breath of springtime gives the pro- mise of nature's resurrection, so a chord will thrill through their aching, home-sick hearts, and turn them back to the Qod of Zion with affection and hope. Let the attendant angels come down with the THE SOULS SURE REFUGE. 13 sonnets of Paradise, to proclaim over Bethlehem's plains the glory of the incarnate deity — the Child of Mary and the manger, and those morn- ing-songs of salvation shall roll down through the ages, until the loud amen of earth's great song of Christ-redemption shall lift up and blend with the hallelujahs of Heaven. Let dear old Simeon but hold in his em- brace the " Consolation of Israel," then his soul will " depart in peace," for he has seen the hope of Israel's salvation; but the sympathetic quaver of his grand benedictus still thrills within our hearts, when nineteen centuries have passed away. Let Paul and Silas but forget their sufferings in the prison-stocks of Philippi, as they think of Him who " endured the cross " on Calvary, and the lonely dungeon will at once be trans- formed into a sanctuary, jubilant with redeeming praises. Yes, the throbbing pulse of this blessed book before me, is the pulse of praise from beginning to end, from the shout of the " sons of God " at the daydawn of creation, until the beatific visions of Patmos were ushered in with ascrip- tions of praise, " Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His]own blood." The very heart of devotion here, for praise is 14 FOOTHOtDS FOR FAITH S FEfiT. ever mixed with prayer ; the heart of devotion hereafter, for all will praise — the angel-ladder between earth and heaven, upon which worship ascends from man to God, and upon which blessing returns from God to man. Everything sings. This great, wide universe is rich in rhapsodies of praise, if our faculties were but quick enough to catch up the strain. '* In reason's ear they all rejoice, And utter forth a glorious voice ; Forever singing as they shine, The hand that made us is Divine." When our hearts well forth in the songs of to-night, we are only keeping time with the baton-beat of God ; and if immortal man would not piaise Him, whom the angels delight to worship, the very stones would cry out. No book of sacred song would be considered perfect without the hymn of this evening's study : — " Jesus, Lover of my «oul, Let me to Thy bosom fly. " Charles Wesley, the author of this wonderful hymn, was born at Epworth, in Lincolnshire, England, in the year 1708. His father was a minister once, of the Episcopalian order, but later in life, having adopted certain views of the . THE SOULS SURE REFUGE. 16 Nonconformists, he forfeited his living, and sooner than do violence to his conscientious con- victions, he wrought, like Paul, with his own hands for his earthly bread, while he earnestly sought to break the bread of eternal life unto others. Charles was the youngest child of the family, and early in life gave unmistakable evidence of remarkable cleverness and originality. While still a youth, a wealthy namesake in Ireland proposed to adopt him as his son, and make him heir of all he possessed, but Charles declined. The person who was chosen in his stead became an Earl, and was also the grandfather of the famous Duke of Wellington ; while this poor lad, the seventeenth child of a debt-oppressed parsonage, was spared for a better life, and a career of wider usefulness. " All things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His pur- pose." Charles we.s educated for the ministry in Oxford and Westminster. In the former place, he and his brother John, and a few class-mates who joined them, were nick-named "Methodists," from the fact that they did not conform to cus- tomary and established usages in conducting their services. They believed that in all devo- 16 FOOTHOLDS FOR FAITH's FEET. tion, spirit without form is better than form without spirit. They practised what they be- lieved, and according to promise, the Spirit gave life. The blessing came, and one of the grandest miracles of modern Christianity is " Methodism." After his ordination he accompanied his bro- ther John as a missionary to a colony in Georgia, but soon afterwards returned to England. It was about this time, according to his own testimony, that he received the " witness of spiritual adoption," while listening to the sin- cere experience of a poor mechanic, whom he declares, " knew nothing but Jesus." At once he joined his brother in the great evangelistic work upon which he had entered, and preached, in the face of bitter opposition and persecution, with whole-souled fervor and earnestness, the simple and yet sublime story of a great salvation. But whatever his other gifts and graces may have been, it is as the most gifted and volumin- ous of English hymn-writers that his fame and influence still live. His facility for the ex- pression of spiritual ideas was truly wonderful, and the range of his thought was very wide. Within four years, from 1768 until 1772, he placed before the Methodist Episcopal Confer- ence, thirteen volumes of sacred poetry, contain- ing altogether 6,000 pages, and from that time THE SOULS SURE REFUGE. 17 until the close of his life, new productions were continually appearing. He wrote everywhere ; in the stage coach while travelling ; on horyeback, and even in the hour of death, when no longer able to articulate distinctly, he composed a hymn. He sang the doctrines of his creed into the hearts of believers, and thus he was able to make, in the words of his gifted and sainted brother, " all the world his parish." This love of music and poetry was born with the Wesleys. Their father before them had gained considerable notoriety as the authoi of a volume ]of hymns, the best known of which is entitled, "Behold, the Saviour of Mankind." Their mother was a woman o^ remarkable piety and strength of character. The following is re- lated in the writings of John concerning her death : " As we stood together by her bedside, with the awful realization that we were losing a mother, she calmly said, ' Children, as soon as your mother is released, sing a psalm of praise ;' and with broken accents we fulfilled her request in the words of a hymn which Charles had written for this very use." Nearly every condition and experience of spiritual life is provided for in the productions of his pen, and these he celebrated with a rich- ness of diction and a splendor of coloring, which 18 FOOTHOLDS FOR FAITHS FEET. have rarely if ever been surpassed. Some one writes of him : " As might be expected his finer pieces are sometimes found in too high a key of ecstasy or agony ; yet his intensely sincere and earnest spirit, his intellectual strength and acute- ness, his unmistakably high culture, and match- less spontaneity of his eloquence, place him easily at the head of British sacred lyrists." Upon a tablet in Westminster Abbey three names are associated : Isaac Watts, John Wesley and his brother Charles, and beneath them is written the threefold inscription, which fitly represents the sentiments of the lives it com- memorates : " The best of all is God is with us." "I look upon all this world as my parish." "God buries His workmen, but carries on His work." Charles Wesley was one evening sitting by his opened window, which overloolced the sea on the south-west coast of England. A tremendous storm was raginjj on the ocean. The billows were running mountains high and hurling their strength upon the shore. The elements above, as the lightning flashed and thunder pealed, combined with the elementfj below to complete a picture of wrathful nature. The spiritual per- ception of Wesley was wide awake. He heard God's voice in the thunder ; in the storm he be- held His omnipotence ; the lightning betokened THE soul's sure REFUGE. 19 the gleam of righteous judgment ; and in the surging waves, as they wearily sighed to the shore, he heard the groaning of a creation that waited for deliverance, and the solo of a weary soul, tired of earthly dissatisfaction and seeking for rest. He was about to close his window and retire, when a little bird, driven, by the in-blow- ing tempest, flew through the window and nestled affrighted on his bosom. Meditation had already (juickencd the energies of his spirit, and the suggestion was enough. The touching incident presented to his ready mind some beau- tiful imagery, and grasping his pen, with an in- spiration which seemed borrowed from the very minstrelsy of heaven, he wrote these matchless lines, which " have yielded the marching song for millions on their way to glory" : " Jesus, Lover of my soul, Let me to Thy bosom fly." This at first view is the language of a heart that is broken ; the outcry of a soul that is struggling for life; the note of a half-despair whiwi melts away into symphonies of hope. It is the language of a soul who realizes the misery of sin and is seeking for salvation from it ; who 20 FOOTHOLDS FOR FAITHS FEET. has realized the utter hel pi eisuness of self and the need of a Saviour. " Other refugo have I none, Hangs my helpless soul on Thee." It is Lot arisinfj from wrath-doomed Sodom and reaching Zoar. It is the first-born of Israel with blood upon the lintels and door-posts, as the angel of death went by. It is the opened way through the sea, for the rescue of God's people, as the hosts of Pharaoh came up behind. It is the cry of the penitent publican pleading from the dust, " God be merciful to me a sinner." It is blind Bartimseus sitting bewildered by the way side, and craving for sight at the touch of Jesus. It is the despairing woman pressing through the throng, and stealing virtue from the hem of the Saviour's garment. It is the weary, ship-wrecked mariners of life everywhere, drift- ing too and fro on some boisterous Galilee and crying out : " Master, save us, or we perish." It is in short, the look of a contrite soul to Christ crucified. . It is all this, but it is more. It is the sav- ing realization that Jesus does love the soul of the sinner; that He did come down from the purity of heaven to the defilements of earth, with a purpose of love on His pitying heart ; ,"«• THE SOULS SURE REFUGE. 21 that He did go out on the trackless mountains of a guilty world to seel: for wanderers ; that He did in self-sacrificing love " lay down His life for the sheep." It is just this thought that brings Him so near to us. We can come to Him as a kinsman in the flesh, who is our Saviour ; we can feel that the infinite One is our own. When Martin Luther was laboring under deep conviction of sin, he reasoned thus with a faith- ful friend, who was seeking to lead him to the only source of help and comfort. " My guilt is so very great that I do not believe Christ can save me." " That is well," replied his friend; "if thou wert only the semblance of a sinner, then Jesus would only be to thee the semblance of a Saviour, but if thou feel est thyself to be a real sinner, then rejoice that Jesus is to thee a real Saviour." Luther recognized the force of the argument, and from that very hour experienced the blessedness of that rest, which Wesley after- wards described : I " All ray trust on Thee is stayed, All my help from Thee I bring." " If Thou wilt," said a poor leper to Him one day, "Thou canst make me cl^ean." Of His power to save him the leper seemed to be in no doubt, but likely, considering his own unworthi- %% FOOTHOLDS FOR FAITH S FEET. ness, he was not so sure that the Siviour was willing. But sooner would he have us doubt His existence than doubt His willingness to help and save. Not more willingly, ungrudgingly, gladly, did He give Himself to the cross of shame eighteen hundred years ago, than He gives Himself to-night to all who are waiting to receive Him. " Does Jesus love me, then ? " said an ungodly stranger 'who hud stepped into Exeter Hall, London, while the hymn was being sung. " If that be really so," he continued, " I will tiy to the refuge ; if He is any sinner's Saviour, He is mine." Not only this. He is a Saviour for every kind of sinner, and so our hymn expresses it : " Thou, O Christ, art all I want, More than all in Thee I find ; Raise the fallen,