Come, Thou almighty King,
Help us Thy name to sing,
Help us to praise!
Father all glorious,
O’er all victorious,
Come and reign over us,
Ancient of days.

Come, Thou incarnate Word,
Gird on Thy mighty sword,
Our prayer attend;
Come and Thy people bless,
And give Thy Word success:
Spirit of holiness,
On us descend!

Come, Holy Comforter,
Thy sacred witness bear
In this glad hour:
Thou who almighty art,
Now rule in every heart,
And ne’er from us depart,
Spirit of power!

To the great One in Three
Eternal praises be
Hence—evermore!
His sovereign majesty
May we in glory see,
And to eternity
Love and adore.

Written by Charles Wesley

Hymn #1 in Hymn Book

Songs for Sunday is back, and this time I am selecting hymns from my grandmother’s old hymnal, published in 1901. The texts to 929 hymns and choruses are contained therein, and only the Lord knows whether we will ever get to them all.

The old hymns are an excellent source of doctrine. If you don’t know the tune, that’s quite all right. Whether you know the tune or not, I invite you to read the hymn as a poem. Read it carefully, for it was written carefully. Every word was deliberately chosen to convey a message: a message of God’s grace, of His goodness, of His majesty and power, of Christ’s intercession for us, of the glories of heaven, of the blessed Trinity, of our fellowship in Christ, and of many more wonderful truths. I will not elaborate on the hymns, but simply give them to you, just as they are, straight from my grandmother’s hymnbook.

Hymn Book, Methodist Episcopal Church, South: Nashville, TN, 1901.

Photo taken in Milton, FL, 2018