Eucharistic Hymns of the Wesley's, and Receiving the Body and Blood of Christ: Part 5

This article is the last article to focus on the actual verses in John and Charles Wesley's Hymns on the Lord's Supper that specifically reference our receiving the body and blood of Christ.  In this article, I will reproduce hymn 112 and a verse each from 153 and 158.

In Part 6 of this series, I will take a look at particular references where John Wesley specifically discusses the body and blood of Christ in the Sacrament.  I will likely also take note of some of the comments of some of Wesley's interpreters.  Finally, I will attempt to draw some conclusions on this matter.  

At this point, I draw your attention, once again to the hymns, themselves.

112:1. Eternal Spirit, gone up on high
Blessing for mortals to receive,
Send down those blessings from the sky,
To us Thy gifts and graces give;
With holy things our mouths are fill'd,
O let our hearts with joy o'erflow;
Descend in pardoning love reveal'd,
And meet us in Thy courts below.

2. Thy sacrifice without the gate
Once offer'd up we call to mind,
And humbly at Thy altar wait
Our interest in Thy death to find;
We thirst to drink Thy precious blood,
We languish in Thy wounds to rest, 
And hunger for immortal food,
And long on all Thy love to feast.

3. O that we now Thy flesh may eat,
Its virtues really receive;
Empower'd by this immortal meat
Thy life of holiness to live:
Partakers of Thy sacrifice,
O may we all Thy nature share,
Till to the holiest place we rise
And keep the feast for ever there.

153:1 Father, Thy feeble children meet,
And make Thy faithful mercies known;
Give us through faith the flesh to eat,
And drink the blood of Christ Thy Son;
Honour Thine own mysterious ways,
Thy sacramental presence show,
And all the fulness of Thy grace,
With Jesus, on our souls bestow.

158:1 All praise to God above,
In whom we have believed,
The tokens of whose dying love
We have even now received
Have with His flesh been fed,
And drank His precious blood:
His precious blood is drink indeed,
HIs flesh immortal food.

Eucharistic Hymns of the Wesley's, and Receiving the Body and Blood of Christ: Part 4

This article continues my series that notes verses in John and Charles Wesley's Hymns on the Lord's Supper that speak specifically about our receiving the body and blood of Christ.  

There are a total of 166 hymns in the Hymns on the Lord's Supper.  With this fourth post in this series, we make our way through hymn 110.

81:4. He bids us drink and eat
Imperishable food,
He gives His flesh to be our meat,
And bids us drink His blood:
Whate'er the' Almighty can
To pardon'd sinners give,
The fulness of our God made man
We here with Christ receive.

85:3. From Thy blest wounds our life we draw;
Thy all-atoning blood
Daily we drink with trembling awe;
Thy flesh our daily food.
Come, Lord, Thy sovereign aid impart,
Here make Thy likeness shine
Stamp Thy whole image on our heart,
And all our souls be Thine!


92:5. 'Tis God we believe,
Who cannot deceive,
The witness of God
Is present, and speaks in the 
Mystical blood.

6. Receiving the bread,
On Jesus we feed:
It doth not appear,
His manner of working; but Jesus is here!

103:1. Take, and eat, the Saviour saith
This My sacred body is!
Him we take and eat by faith
Feed upon that flesh of His
All the benefits receive
Which His passion did procure
Pardon'd by His grace we live
Grace which makes salvation sure.

107:1. All hail, Thou suffering Son of God,
Who didst these mysteries ordain,
Communion of Thy flesh and blood
Some instrument Thy grace to gain,
Type of the heavenly marriage feast, 
Pledge of our everlasting rest.

108:1. Ah, give us, Saviour, to partake
The sufferings which this emblem shows;
Thy flesh our food immortal make,
Thy blood which in this channel flows
In all its benefits impart,
And sanctify our sprinkled heart.

110:3. O may we still abide
In Thee our pardoning God,
Thy Spirit be our guide
Thy body be our food,
Till Thou who hast the token given
Shall bear us on Thyself to heaven.

Eucharistic Hymns of the Wesley's, and Receiving the Body and Blood of Christ: Part 3

This is the third blog post in a series that notes verses in John and Charles Wesley's Hymns on the Lord's Supper that speak specifically about our receiving the body and blood of Christ.  

In this post, I will reproduce hymn 57 in its entirety.  This is one of my very favorite of the Eucharistic hymns.  In addition, I will reproduce two verses from hymn 58, and one verse, each, from hymns 61 & 65.

57:1.  O the depth of love Divine,
Th' unfathomable grace!
Who shall say how bread and wine
God into man conveys!
How the bread His flesh impart,
How the wine transmits His blood,
Fills His faithful people's hearts 
With all the life of God!

2.  Let the wisest mortal show
How we the grace receive,
Feeble elements bestow
A power not theirs to give.
Who explains the wondrous way,
How through these the virtue came?
These the virtue did convey,
Yet still remain the same.

3.  How can heavenly spirits rise,
By earthly matter fed,
Drink herewith Divine supplies,
And eat immortal bread?
Ask the Father's Wisdom how;
Him that did the means ordain!
Angels round our altars bow
To search it out in vain.

4.  Sure and real is the grace,
The manner be unknown;
Only meet us in Thy ways,
And perfect us in one.
Let us taste the heavenly powers;
Lord, we ask for nothing more:
Thine to bless, 'tis only ours 
To wonder and adore.

58:6.  Break to me now the hallow'd bread,
And bid me on Thy body feed;
Give me the wine, Almighty God,
And let me drink Thy precious blood

7.  Surely if Thou the symbols bless,
The covenant blood shall seal my peace;
Thy flesh even now shall be my food,
And all my soul be fill'd with God.

61:6.  Thou in this sacramental bread
Dost now our hungry spirits feed,
And cheer us with the hallow'd wine;
(Communion of Thy flesh and blood,)
We banquet on immortal food,
And drink the streams of life Divine.

65:3.  Now, on the sacred table laid,
Thy flesh becomes our food,
Thy life is to our souls convey'd
In sacramental blood.

Eucharistic Hymns of the Wesley's, and Receiving the Body and Blood of Christ: Part 2

This is the second blog post in a series that notes verses in The Eucharistic Hymns of John & Charles Wesley (also known as Hymns on the Lord's Supper) that speak specifically about our receiving the body and blood of Christ.  

In part one, I presented hymns 71 and 73 in their entirety.  In this post, I will go back and highlight verses from various hymns, prior to hymn 71.

4:2.  The eucharistic feast
Our every want supplies,
And still we by His death are blest
And share His sacrifice:
By faith His flesh we eat,
Who here HIs passion show,
And God out of His holy seat
Shall all His gifts bestow.

30:5.  The cup of blessing, blest by Thee,
Let it Thy blood impart;
The bread Thy mystic body be,
And cheer each languid heart.

8.  Now, Lord, on us Thy flesh bestow,
And let us drink Thy blood,
Till all our souls are fill'd below
With all the life of God.

33:2.  In the rite Thou hast enjoin'd
Let us now our Saviour find,
Drink Thy blood for sinners shed
Taste Thee in the broken bread.

35:1.  O Thou Paschal Lamb of God
Feed us with Thy flesh and blood;
Life and strength Thy death supplies,
Feast us on Thy sacrifice.

42:4.  This is the richest legacy 
Thou hast on man bestow'd:
Here chiefly, Lord, we feed on Thee,
And drink Thy precious blood.

54:5.  Communion closer far I feel
And deeper drink the' atoning blood;
The joy is more unspeakable,
And yields me larger draughts of God,
Till nature faints beneath the power,
And faith fill'd up can hold no more.

The Eucharistic Hymns of the Wesley's, and Receiving the Body and Blood of Christ: Part 1

 Currently, during Morning and Evening Prayer, I am, once again, singing through The Eucharistic Hymns of John & Charles Wesley (also known as Hymns on the Lord's Supper).  This time, as a personal project (prompted by two different sources), I have been noting verses which speak specifically about our receiving the body and blood of Christ.  

To be clear, there are plenty of places in the hymns that speak of the sacrament as a means of grace, and there are plenty that speak about Christ's real presence.  There are also hymns that speak about the sacrament pointing us to the body and blood of Christ.  However, I am watching for those that talk about our eating Christ's body and drinking His blood.  

After I finish singing through these hymns, I will go back and look at other statements that John Wesley makes concerning what manner the bread and cup convey to us the body and blood of Christ.

I have been singing through these hymns for nearly a month, now.  In fact, I am up to hymn number 76, but it finally dawned on me; I should be making notes about these verses on my blog!  So, here I am!

Now, most of the time, I will just be presenting particular verses from the various hymns.  However, there will be times when the entire hymn is closely connected to this specific focus.  The latter is the case with two of the hymns from today's Morning and Evening Prayer.  -  So, I will begin this ongoing series by reproducing hymns 71 and 73, below.  -  I will go back to cover verses from previous hymns, as the series continues.

My hope is that this will be thought provoking and helpful in deepening the sacramental awareness of those within the Wesleyan tradition.  I also hope that it might give some insight for those looking in from outside of Wesleyanism.

71:1.  Draw near, ye blood-besprinkled race.

And take what God vouchsafes to give;

The outward sign of inward grace,

Ordain'd by Christ Himself, receive:

The sign transmits the signified,

The grace is by the means applied.

2.  Sure pledges of His dying love,

Receive the sacramental meat,

And feel the virtue from above,

The mystic flesh of Jesus eat,

Drink with the wine His healing blood,

And feast on th' Incarnate God.

3.  Gross misconceit be far away!

Through faith we on His body feed

Faith only cloth the Spirit convey,

And fills our souls with living bread,

Th' effects of Jesu's death imparts,

And pours His blood into our hearts.

73:1.  Is not the cup of blessing, blest

By us, the sacred means t' impart

Our Saviour's blood, with power imprest

And pardon to the faithful heart?

2.  Is not the hallow'd broken bread

A sure communicating sign,

An instrument ordain'd to feed

Our souls with mystic flesh Divine?

3.  Th' effects of His atoning blood,

His body offer'd on the tree,
Are with the awful types bestow'd

On me, the pardon'd rebel, me;

4.  On all who at HIs word draw near,

In faith the outward veil look through:

Sinners, believe, and find Him here;

Believe, and feel He died for you.

5.  In memory of your dying God,
The symbols faithfully receive,

And eat the flesh and drink the blood

Of Jesus, and for ever live.