Wednesday, April 10, 2013

"O Love of God, How Strong and True" - Horatius Bonar

I love this poet's metaphorical use of "reading" in this hymn.  It reminds me of Romans 2.  Paul says that even for those without the law, the moral/natural law is innate, it is "written on our hearts."

To some degree, we can even read the law in our own hearts, even if we don't have the clarity of Christ and the reasoning power of the Holy Spirit.  Morality, at least, is somewhat innate, but our flesh fights against reason and we create all kinds of excuses for sin.

Romans 2 (12-16)
For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law will be judged by the law (for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified; for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them) in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.
Poetry from CyberHymnal:
O love of God, how strong and true!
Eternal, and yet ever new;
Uncomprehended and unbought,
Beyond all knowledge and all thought.

O love of God, how deep and great!
Far deeper than man’s deepest hate;
Self fed, self kindled, like the light,
Changeless, eternal, infinite.

O heavenly love, how precious still,
In days of weariness and ill,
In nights of pain and helplessness,
To heal, to comfort, and to bless!

O wide embracing, wondrous love!
We read thee in the sky above,
We read thee in the earth below,
In seas that swell, and streams that flow.

We read thee best in Him who came
To bear for us the cross of shame;
Sent by the Father from on high,
Our life to live, our death to die.

We read thy power to bless and save,
E’en in the darkness of the grave;
Still more in resurrection light,
We read the fullness of thy might.

O love of God, our shield and stay
Through all the perils of our way!
Eternal love, in thee we rest
Forever safe, forever blest.



Horatius Bonar:

There's something special about this guy..this poet.. besides his crazy hair and his awesome sideburns.