Charles Wesley
(1707-1788)
Prisoners of hope, arise,
And see your Lord appear;
Lo! on the wings of love He flies,
And brings redemption near;
Redemption in His blood
He calls you to receive:
“Look unto Me, the pardoning God.
Believe,” He cries, “believe!”
The reconciling word
We thankfully embrace;
Rejoice in our redeeming Lord,
A blood-besprinkled race.
We yield to be set free;
Thy counsel we approve;
Salvation, praise, ascribe to Thee,
And glory in Thy love.
Jesus, to Thee we look,
Till saved from sin’s remains;
Reject the inbred tyrant’s yoke,
And cast away his chains.
Our nature shall no more
O’er us dominion have;
By faith we apprehend the power
Which shall for ever save.1
- The first and third stanzas of this hymn are quoted by John Wesley in A Plain Account of Christian Perfection: Part 2. ↩