Edward Mote – birth, Jan. 21, 1797

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly trust in Jesus’ Name.

 

Refrain

On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

 

2. When darkness seems to hide His face,
I rest on His unchanging grace.
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.

 

3. His oath, His covenant, His blood,
Support me in the whelming flood.
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my Hope and Stay.

 

4. When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh may I then in Him be found.
Dressed in His righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne.

 

            “One morn­ing it came into my mind as I went to la­bour, to write an hymn on the ‘Gra­cious Ex­per­i­ence of a Christ­ian.’ As I went up Hol­born I had the chor­us,

                        ‘On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
                        All other ground is sinking sand.’

            “In the day I had four first vers­es com­plete, and wrote them off.  On the Sab­bath fol­low­ing I met bro­ther King as I came out of Lisle Street Meet­ing…who in­formed me that his wife was ve­ry ill, and asked me to call and see her. I had an ear­ly tea, and called af­ter­wards.  He said that it was his usu­al custom to sing a hymn, read a por­tion, and en­gage in pray­er, be­fore he went to meet­ing.  He looked for his hymn-book but could find it no­where.  I said, ‘I have some vers­es in my pock­et; if he liked, we would sing them.’ We did, and his wife en­joyed them so much, that af­ter ser­vice he asked me, as a fa­vour, to leave a co­py of them for his wife.  I went home, and by the fire­side com­posed the last two vers­es, wrote the whole off, and took them to sis­ter King…As these vers­es so met the dy­ing wo­man’s case, my at­ten­tion to them was the more ar­rest­ed, and I had a thou­sand print­ed for dis­tr­ibu­tion.  I sent one to the Spir­it­u­al Mag­a­zine, with­out my ini­tials, which ap­peared some time af­ter this. Bro­ther Rees, of Crown Street, So­ho, brought out an edi­tion of hymns [1836], and this hymn was in it.  Da­vid Den­ham in­tro­duced it [1837] with Rees’ name, and others af­ter…Your in­sert­ing this brief out­line may in fu­ture shield me from the charge of stealth, and be a vin­di­ca­tion of truth­ful­ness in my con­nect­ion with the Church of God.”

Edward Mote
Let­ter to the Gos­pel Her­ald

 

The above is reported to be his words about this song.

 

Edward Mote was born this date, 1/21/1797 at London.  He was a cabinet maker who became a minister.  During his last 22 years he penned some 100 songs.  It is thought that Mote FIRST used the term “Gospel Songs.” 

He died11/13/1874at Hor­sham,Sus­sex,Eng­land.

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John Donne – death, Mar. 31, 1631

Hymn to God, My God, in My Sickness

 Since I am coming to that holy room,
        Where, with thy choir of saints for evermore,
    I shall be made thy music; as I come
        I tune the instrument here at the door,
        And what I must do then, think here before.

    Whilst my physicians by their love are grown
        Cosmographers, and I their map, who lie
    Flat on this bed, that by them may be shown
        That this is my south-west discovery,
    Per fretum febris, by these straits to die,

  I joy, that in these straits I see my west;
      For, though their currents yield return to none,
  What shall my west hurt me? As west and east
      In all flat maps (and I am one) are one,
      So death doth touch the resurrection.

  Is the Pacific Sea my home? Or are
      The eastern riches? Is Jerusalem?
  Anyan, and Magellan, and Gibraltar,
      All straits, and none but straits, are ways to them,
      Whether where Japhet dwelt, or Cham, or Shem.

  We think that Paradise and Calvary,
      Christ’s cross, and Adam’s tree, stood in one place;
  Look, Lord, and find both Adams met in me;
      As the first Adam’s sweat surrounds my face,
      May the last Adam’s blood my soul embrace.

  So, in his purple wrapp’d, receive me, Lord;
      By these his thorns, give me his other crown;
  And as to others’ souls I preach’d thy word,
      Be this my text, my sermon to mine own:
  “Therefore that he may raise, the Lord throws down.”

John Donne died this date, 3/31/1631.  Donne was born on Bread Street, 1/24/1573 at London.  He was first educated by Jesuits, then studied at Oxford and later Cambridge.  He was twenty-one when he left the Roman Catholic system though he did not publish his Pseudo-Martyr and Ignatius his Conclave (anti-catholic works) until 1610, 1611 respectfully.  He was ordained for Church of England and became known as one of the more remarkable poet-preachers of his day. Some of his earlier poetry is undesirable but his later works show a clear spiritual side. Devotions upon Emergent Occasions (1623-1624) contains his most quoted line: “No man is an island, entire of itself…any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind.”  A couple other well known lines are “For whom does the bell toll?  It tolls for thee” and “Death be not proud.”

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John Donne – preached last sermon, Feb. 15, 1631

“As peace is of all goodness,

so war is an emblem, a hieroglyphic, of all misery.”

 

“Keep us, Lord, so awake in the duties of our callings

that we may sleep in Thy peace and wake in Thy glory.”

 

“No man is an island entire of itself…” (the beginning of his most quote)

 

“No man ever saw God and lived.

And yet, I shall not live till I see God;

and when I have seen him, I shall never die.”

 

“Tribulation is treasure in the nature of it, but it is not current money in the use of it, except we get nearer and nearer our home, heaven, by it.”

            – all the above are attributed to Donne-

John Donne, on this date, 2/15/ 1631 brought his last sermon.  He was born in 1573 at London and died 3/31/1631.  John Donne changed from a “love poet” (some might say “the greatest of the English” tongue) to a minister, preaching the Gospel of Christ.

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John Wesley – wrote, Jan. 25, 1738

On this date, 1/25/1738, John Wesley is said to have penned in his journal,

“I went to America to convert the Indians.  But oh!  Who shall convert me?  I have a fair summer religion…But let death look me in the face, and my spirit is troubled.”

He had come here as a “missionary.”     (How many modern pastors are unconverted?) 

Thank the Lord John Wesley was genuinely converted to Christ on May 24^th (of that same year) at 8:45 PM, at Aldersgate Chapel, London.  To his journal he again turned, stating, “I felt my heart strangely warmed…”

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Isaac Newton – admitted to Cambridge, Jun. 5,1661

It should interest readers that the “greatest scientific genius the world has ever known” Isaac Newton (1643-1727) actually spent less of his life studying science than theology, writing 1.3 million words on biblical subjects.

“Kings and Chronicles frequently agree with one another in words for many sentences together. Where they agree in sense, there they agree in words also.”

                – Isaac Newton, Observations Upon the Prophecies of Daniel, London: Darby & Browne, chap.1.

 

“…Giving ear to the Prophets is a fundamental character of the true Church.”

                – Isaac Newton, Observations Upon the Prophecies of Daniel, London: Darby & Browne, chap.1.

 

“The predictions of things to come relate to the state of the Church in all ages: and amongst the old Prophets, Daniel is most distinct in order of time, and easiest to be understood:”

                – Isaac Newton, Observations Upon the Prophecies of Daniel, London: Darby & Browne, chap.1.

 

“Daniel was in the greatest credit amongst the Jews, till the reign of the Roman Emperor Hadrian: and to reject his Prophecies, is to reject the Christian religion. For this religion is founded upon his Prophecy concerning the Messiah.”

                – Isaac Newton, Observations Upon the Prophecies of Daniel, London: Darby & Browne, chap.4.

 

“…all the four Beasts are still alive, tho the dominion of the three first be taken away.”

                – Isaac Newton, Observations Upon the Prophecies of Daniel, London: Darby & Browne, chap.4.

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Joseph Swain – death, Apr.16, 1796

O Thou in whose presence my soul takes delight,
On whom in affliction I call,
My comfort by day, and my song in the night,
My hope, my salvation, my all.

Where dost Thou at noontide resort with Thy sheep,
To feed on the pastures of love?
Say, why in the valley of death should I weep,
Or alone in the wilderness rove?

O, why should I wander an alien from Thee,
And cry in the desert for bread?
Thy foes will rejoice when my sorrows they see,
And smile at the tears I have shed.

Ye daughters of Zion declare, have ye seen
The Star that on Israel shone?
Say, if in your tents my Belovèd has been,
And where, with His flocks, He is gone.

This is my Belovèd; His form is divine;
His vestments shed odors around:
The locks of His head are as grapes on the vine,
When autumn with plenty is crowned.

The roses of Sharon, the lilies that grow
In vales, on the banks of the streams:
On His cheeks, all the beauties of excellence glow,
And His eyes are as quivers of beams.

His voice, as the sound of the dulcimer sweet,
Is heard through the shadows of death;
The cedars of Lebanon bow at His feet,
The air is perfumed with His breath.

His lips as a fountain of righteousness flow,
That waters the garden of grace,
From which their salvation the Gentiles shall know,
And bask in the smiles of His face.

Love sits on His eye-lids, and scatters delight
Through all the bright mansions on high;
Their faces the cherubim veil in His sight,
And tremble with fullness of joy.

He looks, and ten thousands of angels rejoice,
And myriads wait for His word;
He speaks, and eternity, filled with His voice,
Re-echoes the praise of her Lord.

Dear Shepherd, I hear and will follow Thy call;
I know the sweet sound of Thy voice.
Restore and defend me, for Thou art my All,
And in Thee I will ever rejoice.

Joseph Swain died this date, 4/16/1796, at Walworth, London.  He was once apprenticed to an engraver.  After his conversion to Christ he began expressing his poetic thoughts in hymns. Then 1791 became minister of a Baptist congregation in East Street, Walworth.  He is remembered today for “O Thou in Whose Presence My Soul Takes Delight.”

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Francis Bacon – death, Apr. 9, 1626

The more discordant, therefore, and incredible, the divine mystery is, the more honour is shown to God in believing it, and the nobler is the victory of faith.

There are two books laid before us to study, to prevent our falling into error; first, the volume of the Scriptures, which reveal the will of God; then the volume of the Creatures, which express His power.

The die is cast, the book is written, to be read either now or by posterity — I care not which; it may wait a century for a reader, as God has waited six thousand years for an observer. (Bacon, Novum Organum)

The above quotes are attributed to Sir Francis Bacon

Francis Bacon died this date 4/9/1626, in Highgate, a village near London.  He wrote many Essayes – “Of Studies” is an example.  Bacon was born 1/22/1561, in London, England.

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Rodney “Gipsy” Smith – birth, Mar. 31, 1860

Christ, the Transforming Light,

Touches this heart of mine,  

Piercing the darkest night,

Making His glory shine.

Refrain:

Oh, to reflect His grace

Causing the world to see

Love that will glow,

Till others shall know

Jesus revealed in me.

Rodney “Gipsy” Smith born was born this date, 3/31/1860, in a gyp­sy tent, in Ep­ping For­est, near Wanstead (6 miles northeast of London).  His father, Cornelius (yet unconverted) told his mother (as she was dying) how to be saved and she was.  Later he was converted and (when Rodney was about 15) Cornelius let his son to Christ. 

After a stint with the Salvation Army, Gipsy became a Methodist evangelist and traveled to several countries preaching and singing.  He was in American a number of times.  In fact, he was on his way here when he died, aboard the Queen Ma­ry 8/4/1947.

 A quote attributed to Smith says, “Anyone can preach to a crowd, but it takes the grace of God to preach to one man.”

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George Fox – death, Jan. 13, 1691

George Fox died this date, 1/13/1691, at London England.  As a boy/young man he associated with some Puritans and some Anabaptist.  These associations may well have lead Fox (at about 23) to leave the Church of England (Anglican Church) and become a wandering minister.

Fox and the Society of Friends (“Quakers”) which he founded in his mid-thirties, stressed the Holy Spirit’s dwelling in the human heart and each individual’s direct communion with God.  He married Margaret Fell (a widow) in 1669.  George Fox was born 7/?/1624, at Fenny Drayton, Leicestershire, England.

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Edward Mote – death, Nov. 13, 1874

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly trust in Jesus’ Name.

Refrain

On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

When darkness seems to hide His face,
I rest on His unchanging grace.
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.

His oath, His covenant, His blood,
Support me in the whelming flood.
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my Hope and Stay.

When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh may I then in Him be found.
Dressed in His righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne.

Edward Mote died this date, 11/13/1874, at Horsham, Sussex, England.  He wrote “My Hope Is Built” (at the age thirty-seven).

 He was for many years a successful cabinetmaker (Jesus worked with wood).  Later Mote took a Baptist pastorate and stayed there twenty-six years.  His congregation loved him, in fact, they offered him the title to their church building.  He is reported to have said, “I do not want the chapel, I only want the pulpit…when I cease to preach Christ, then turn me out of that.”  Well said, brother.  Mott had been born 1/21/1797 at London, England.

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