Not What My Hands Have Done

For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2: 8-10

Not what my hands have done
Can save my guilty soul;

Not what my toiling flesh has borne

Can make my spirit whole.

Not what I feel or do

Can give me peace with God;

Not all my prayers and sighs and tears

Can bear my awful load.

Thy work alone, O Christ,

Can ease this weight of sin;

Thy blood alone, O Lamb of God,

Can give me peace within.

Thy love to me, O God,

Not mine, O Lord, to thee,

Can rid me of this dark unrest,

And set my spirit free.

~Horatius Bonar

This hymn was definitely laid on my heart tonight. Do you know this one? I never knew this particular hymn until about twenty or so years ago. This, like so many of the oldies but goodies, as I call them, is solid doctrine and theology. Expressing the truths that we are not saved by our works, but by the work of Christ, its final stanzas contain utterances of praise to the God of Grace and His Son. For me, it's difficult to sing these words without getting all teary. Mr. Bonar is one of my all time favorites. His writings minister MUCH to my soul! I like him because he can write about deep things, but with simplicity. He was concerned for children and wanted them to learn biblical truths from his songs, so I like him for that also. If your children don't know "I Was a Wandering Sheep," I encourage you to search for it and teach it to them. I think I'll write about it one of these hymn posts.

I'm so thankful that my salvation is not dependent upon my work, but on HIS work, aren't you? You and I have no good in ourselves, no righteousness, but He provides it for us. Now isn't that worth all our praise?

I strongly encourage you to read all the verses while listening to the tune at the Trinity Hymnal.