Jesus, Thy Boundless Love To Me
Jesus, Thy Boundless Love to Me
Jesus, Thy boundless love to me
No thought can reach, no tongue declare;
O knit my thankful heart to Thee,
And reign without a rival there!
Thine wholly, Thine alone, I’d live,
Myself to Thee entirely give.
O Love, how cheering is thy ray!
All fear before thy presence flies;
Care, anguish, sorrow melt away,
Where’er thy healing beams arise:
O Jesus, nothing may I see,
Nothing desire, or seek, but Thee!
In suffering be Thy love my peace;
In weakness be Thy love my power;
And when the storms of life shall cease,
O Jesus, in that solemn hour,
In death as life be Thou my guide,
And save me, who for me hast died.
Translated by John Wesley (1703–1791)
MANY HAVE NOTED a similarity between secular love songs and Christian songs about love for God. It is interesting that Paul Gerhardt wrote this hymn near the time of his marriage to a woman he had long loved. He was a theologian with strong convictions, a student and teacher whose plans had long been frustrated by the Thirty Years’ War. As a young man he had passionately argued the finer points of Lutheran theology, but with age he had mellowed. His passion turned to the overwhelming love of God. At forty-five, he found a steady job in a small village, married his sweetheart, and began publishing his hymns.
Nearly a century later, John Wesley heard Moravians singing this song in German as he sailed with them to America. Impressed by the rich hymns of the Moravians and by their deep personal devotion, Wesley translated many of their hymns into English.
Everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ.
Philippians 3:8
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