And Can It Be?

Charles Wesley was saved on May 21st 1738. On that same date in 2011, my wife and I were married. In our wedding service, we sang “And Can it Be” immediately after the vows; the very first thing we did as husband and wife was to sing this great hymn together. We were married in a Methodist Church, and the sound of the band accompanying several hundred loved ones all singing with gusto moved me to tears. I leaned over to my wife, who was hoping that I might whisper something romantic to her; she presumed I was overcome with the joyful emotion of having finally married the girl of my dreams. She was very surprised when I said to, “darling…it…it just sounds so good!”

She has since forgiven me. All I can claim in my defence is that the sound of “And Can it Be” being sung with life, passion and vigour is one of the great sounds one can experience. It is akin to seeing the Alps for the first time, gazing at the Northern Lights, or watching the sunset over the sea.
The hymn is full of the joy of conversion expressed through the skill of the poet evangelist. Charles Wesley, along with his brother John, preached in the Evangelical Revival. Together with George Whitefield and others, they travelled the length and breadth of Britain, Ireland and the American colonies preaching the message of new birth in Christ and justification by faith alone. Thousands were saved through their ministry. As with every great movement of the Holy Spirit, the revival was accompanied by songs. Most of them were written by Charles Wesley.

The hymn is infused with wonder. The opening line is full of shock and amazement, and the whole first verse is full of questions. These aren’t the questions of someone doubting the atoning work of Christ; rather, they are the questions of someone who is so overwhelmed and so in awe that Christ should bear their sins upon the cross.

1. And can it be that I should gain 
an interest in the Saviour's blood! 
Died he for me? who caused his pain! 
For me? who him to death pursued? 
Amazing love! How can it be 
that thou, my God, shouldst die for me? 
Amazing love! How can it be 
that thou, my God, shouldst die for me? 

Verse two continues this theme of wonder. Through Wesley’s skill as a poet, he is able to ask how it is that the Immortal should die. This is indeed a strange design. Angels long to look into such things.

2. 'Tis mystery all: th' Immortal dies! 
Who can explore his strange design? 
In vain the firstborn seraph tries 
to sound the depths of love divine. 
'Tis mercy all! Let earth adore; 
let angel minds inquire no more. 
'Tis mercy all! Let earth adore; 
let angel minds inquire no more. 
The third verse begins to describe the whole sweep of the salvation story. There are echoes of the hymn in Philippians 2:5-11, where Paul talks about the descent of Christ from the splendour of the Godhead to the shame of slavery.

3. He left his Father's throne above 
(so free, so infinite his grace!), 
emptied himself of all but love, 
and bled for Adam's helpless race. 
'Tis mercy all, immense and free, 
for O my God, it found out me! 
'Tis mercy all, immense and free, 
for O my God, it found out me! 
 
Verse four is one of the great verses in the history of hymnody. Wesley takes the story in Acts 12 of Peter’s miraculous escape from prison and reimagines in. This time, the prisoner is not at apostle, but a guilty and condemned sinner. His heart is made alive with the penetrating gaze of Christ, and he is released.

4. Long my imprisoned spirit lay, 
fast bound in sin and nature's night; 
thine eye diffused a quickening ray; 
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light; 
my chains fell off, my heart was free, 
I rose, went forth, and followed thee. 
My chains fell off, my heart was free, 
I rose, went forth, and followed thee. 


And then the hymn reaches its dramatic conclusion. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. We are united with Him by faith, and have received every one of His riches and blessings. His is our life, our hope and our righteousness. And through Him, we have the confidence to approach the throne of God and receive the crown.

5. No condemnation now I dread; 
Jesus, and all in him, is mine; 
alive in him, my living Head, 
and clothed in righteousness divine, 
bold I approach th' eternal throne, 
and claim the crown, through Christ my own. 
Bold I approach th' eternal throne, 
and claim the crown, through Christ my own. 

What then are the great themes within this hymn, and the reasons for its enduring legacy?

1. The words and tune endorse one another.
This may seem like a trivial point, especially when one considers the riches of Wesley’s lyrics. But the fact is that we sing so that hymns and words can be used together. Jonathan Edwards, a contemporary of Wesley, once said that singing is intended to excite our religious affections. People sing at all kinds of times for all sorts of reasons; weddings, parties, sports victories, concerts, funerals, as well as religious ceremonies. When we sing as Christians, our minds and emotions are married together through the combination of music and words. Just as David played to calm King Saul, so too God has created us to respond to music. Of course music can manipulate us, but this is because we are sinful. If somebody closed their eyes because the vista of mountains was “too manipulative”, we would think they were strange. So too those who refuse to enjoy the goodness of God in the gift of music. Wesley redeems the gift of music here, because as we sing a rousing tune, our minds are focused on the words, and our souls are delighted in the saving grace of Christ. The music is the frame, and the gospel is the picture.
 

2. Wesley skill as a wordsmith.
Wesley uses excellent poetry throughout the hymn. The rhetorical questions, the use of paradoxes (“The Immortal dies”), the developing story throughout the hymn; these all serve to excite the imagination. Our minds respond to these things, and as such, they offer fresh insight into the wonders of the gospel. Verse four is one extended metaphor, likening our salvation to a jailbreak. It is dramatic and it is powerful. Thank God for the gift of prose, used in preaching, teaching and theological writing. But also, thank God for the gift of poetry. There are many ways to tell your own testimony, but in this hymn, all of our stories are the same, as we sing triumphantly,
“my chains fell off, my heart was free
I rose, went forth and followed Thee.”
 

3. Wesley’s use of doctrine.
This is a hymn rich with doctrine, especially in the final verse. The wonder and amazement of the opening verses give way to firm declarations of the gospel in the last. Justification, union with Christ, new birth, imputed righteousness; these are all encapsulated in a few short lines before reaching their climactic conclusion, where the singer, having received these blessings of grace through Christ, dares to boldly approach the very throne of God.

We live in an age where doctrine is often seen as the antithesis to passionate worship. Expressions such as, “I don’t want to think, I just want to feel” are not uncommon. Yes, there is a place for simple, reflective songs. But doctrine is the fuel for the fire of passionate, exuberant praise. When the great truths of what Christ has done for us, and who we are in Him are expressed through beautiful lyrics, wedded to a strong melody, this must result in joyful praise to our God. To sing words of clear doctrine with dull disinterest is surely worse than singing simple songs passionately. For Wesley, who saw these doctrines were changing lives throughout the Evangelical Revival, they had to put into song. Strong, clear, sound theology ought to be the diet of our songs, and these songs should be sung with the passion that these doctrines deserve.
 

4. He reminds us of our conversion
My uncle had been a believer in his early twenties, but for three decades did not walk with the Lord.  One Sunday, he visited his wife’s church, where they sang this song. It had been a hymn at his wedding many years ago. The words of the song nagged at him and the next day, he repented and turned back to God. I had the privilege of playing at the Keswick Convention, where he was attending as a delegate. Tears streamed down my face as I saw him, with thousands of other Christians, singing his hymn.
Wesley brings us back to that first sweet moment of conversion. Christians can be guilty of forgetting what we once were, and forgetting that it is only by grace what we are now. As we sing this hymn, it reminds us of our condition outside of Christ; dead in sin, lost in nature’s dark night, bound in cruel chains forged by our own rebellion to God. And as we sing this hymn, we are reminded of the miracle of our conversion. We are new creations, freed from the bondage and penalty of sin, living in the light of Christ’s gospel. Amazing love, how can it be, that Thou my God shouldst die for me!

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Daniel Johnson

Daniel Johnson, my good friend from England, has agreed to write two posts interpreting two hymns over the next two weeks. This week he'll be interpreting "And Can It Be?"
Daniel is a musician whose own hymns can be listened to on his website, danieljohnsonhymns,co.uk. and he's doing postgrad in the hymn writing of Isaac Watts.