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HOSOEVER shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God. 16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. 19 We love him, because he first loved us. (1 John 4:15-19)
A sweet and meaningful hymn composed in 1862 by William Ralph Featherston (1846-1873) of Canada. The tune, GORDON, was composed by Adoniram J. Gordon in 1870 – founder of Gordon College and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.
My Jesus, I love Thee
My Jesus, I love thee, I know thou art mine;
for thee all the follies of sin I resign;
my gracious Redeemer, my Savior art thou;
if ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.
I love thee because thou hast first loved me
and purchased my pardon on Calvary's tree;
I love thee for wearing the thorns on thy brow;
if ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.
I'll love thee in life, I will love thee in death,
and praise thee as long as thou lendest me breath,
and say when the deathdew lies cold on my brow:
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.
In mansions of glory and endless delight,
I'll ever adore thee in heaven so bright;
I'll sing with the glittering crown on my brow:
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.
1 My Jesus, I love thee, I know thou art mine; for thee all the follies of sin I resign; my gracious Redeemer, my Savior art thou; if ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now. Our investment in love returns a high yield of value. It begins as a glowing ember, lit in our hearts by the divine spark of the love of Christ from His unbounded reserve from on high. That ember grows to consume all the soul of the believer so that all is sanctified by the consuming fire. Of course, we love our Savior and Redeemer, but that love is credited to Him and not to our own righteous will. He loved us first, and that love compelled a response activated by the beckoning of the Holy Spirit in our hearts. That fountain of love is so effulgent as to spill over to all around us since our hearts cannot contain it for selfish ends. Mary Magdalene loved our Lord unconditionally because of the change His love made in her soul. The same is true of you and me. The question is implied in its answer: How could we not love Him so?
2 I love thee because thou hast first loved me and purchased my pardon on Calvary's tree; I love thee for wearing the thorns on thy brow; if ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now. Please note the CAUSE of love – not our initiative but His! We love him, because he first loved us. Christ not only made offer of His love, but sealed His offer by dying on the cross in atonement of our sins. His Last Will and Testimony of His earthly ministry was written in sinless blood at Calvary. The longer our years, the more we realize that we are feeble as dust, but the certainty constantly grows in our awareness of our great want and need of Him and His love. It was love alone that compelled Him to suffer the shame of being stripped, beaten, publicly humiliated and treading the Via Dolorosa to Golgotha’s brow.
3 I'll love thee in life, I will love thee in death, and praise thee as long as thou lendest me breath, and say when the deathdew lies cold on my brow: If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now. If we loved Him not in life, we could never love Him in death. Love is the only resource we carry with us beyond the grave: Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? (Romans 8:35) The days of man on earth are fleeting as the vapors of the kettle. Our years on earth, whether of tender age or three score years and ten, are all a gift of God. Our spark of life is on loan from Heaven and subject to collection on demand thereof. We must know Him by faith, and that faith engenders a knowing love that represents an echo of that love showered on us. But that faith must be confirmed in life, for there is no open door to salvation once life is over. I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?(John 11:25-26) To the believer, death is a transition and not an end.
4 In mansions of glory and endless delight, I'll ever adore thee in heaven so bright; I'll sing with the glittering crown on my brow: If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now. Christ is the Light of the World. How much more brilliantly do you believe that Sun of Righteousness shall shine beyond the Gates of Splendor? No crown, no glorious garment of fine linen, no golden slippers, or fine adornment can approach the joy of simple fellowship with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He is the King of Kings, and we are thereby made Princes and Princesses of the Most High God – should we not quit ourselves as such, guarding preciously the Name we bear? But those titles and roles are nothing compared to our being accounted worthy to enter in to the marriage Feast of the Son. If we love Him now, we shall love Him even more with each passing moment.
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