Wesley Corpus

The devil's factors still we hear, The sinful advocates for sin, Who cause the little ones to err, And teach, they never can be clean. Page 289 We suffer them for sin to plead, Still they promote the devil's cause, Deny that thou for all hast bled, And stain the glory of thy cross. Before thy people's face they cast The stumbling-block of creature-love, "The power of sin must always last, The power thou never canst remove." They speak; and we to ill inclin'd Have gladly drank the poison in, And gratified the carnal mind, The idol of indwelling sin. But let us plead for sin no more, But let the stumbling-block depart, Our vile idolatries be o'er, Thine, only thine be all our heart. Lord, we renounce whoe'er oppose, And fight against thy saving power; Consume not us among thy foes, Nor let thy two-edg'd sword devour. O let us of thy strength take hold, Thy143 utmost promises embrace, The finisher of faith behold, The God of all-victorious grace. To him, that conquers in thy might, Thou wilt the hidden manna give, Thou hast obtain'd it as thy right, And he shall thy deserts receive. Thou, Lord, wilt144 give him a white stone, A new, mysterious name impart, To none but the receiver known, 143"Thy" changed to "thine" in 2nd edn. (1745) and following. 144Charles Wesley changed "wilt" to "will" in All in All (1761). Page 290 "Unto the angel of the church in Thyatira." Revelation ii. 18, 19, c. O Son of God, whose flaming eyes A sin-consuming virtue dart, To scatter all thy foes, arise And search, and purify our heart. Lift up thy feet of burnish'd brass, Satan, the world, and sin tread down, Pity a froward, faithless race, And call us yet again thine own. The service which our fathers paid, The faith thou didst in them approve, Of this we now have shipwreck made, And lost our hope, and left our love. The prophets of smooth things we hear, Who all thy promises deny, Entrap thy servants in their snare, And catch them with a soothing lie. They teach them things unclean to eat, To fold their arms, and take their ease, Spiritual whoredom to commit, Mammon and God at once to please.