Wesley Corpus

Teach me to cast my net aright, The gospel-net of general grace, So shall I all to thee invite, And draw them to their Lord's embrace, Within thine arms of love include, And catch a willing multitude. O might I every mourner chear, And trouble every heart of stone, Save, under thee, the souls that hear, Nor lose, in seeking them, my own, Nor basely from my calling fly, But for thy gospel live, and die. Another Before Preaching in Cornwall. Unchangeable Almighty Lord, The promise of thy help I claim, Intrusted80 with the gospel-word, I look to find thee still the same. To me thy powerful presence shew, As when thro' thee in ages past His net the human fisher threw, And caught three thousand at a cast. 80Ori., "Instrusted"; corrected in errata and 2nd edn. (1755). Page 322 Long the lost souls of men I sought Thro' a dark, dismal, legal night, Yet nothing found, myself untaught To cast the gospel-net aright. But let the terrors of thy law, The wrath, the curse at last remove, While with the cords of love I draw, Th' allurements of thy pardning love. Give me to catch them by thy grace, Thy grace for every sinner free, Incline their willing hearts t' embrace Pardon, and life, and heaven in thee. Speak but the word of grace and power, And lo! At thy benign command I draw them to the eternal shore, I bring them to the heavenly land. After Preaching. Not unto me, O Lord, Not unto me the praise, If I with power have spoke thy word, And testified thy grace. Thou didst thy power bestow, Thou didst thy servant find, And raise, and send me forth to shew Thy love to all mankind. Thy messenger of peace I have to sinners shewn The blood that sign'd their soul's release, And did for all atone: Page 323 Thy Spirit the word applied And witness'd with the blood, And many a sprinkled rebel cried Thou art my Lord my God! Thou only didst reveal, How good in Christ thou art, And powerfully the message seal On the believing heart: Thine is the work of grace, Lord, I the whole disclaim, All glory, love, and thanks, and praise Be paid to Jesus' name.