THE STORY OF THE HYMNS AND THEIR WRITERS 217
In the evening he got up. Speaking of a lady whom he had lately got to know, he said he believed she had real religion. How necessary for every one to be on the right foundation !
I the chief of sinners am, But Jesus died for me.
We must be justified by faith, and then go on to sanctification. Charles Wesley s daughter, Sarah, died in Bristol on September 19, 1828, when nearly seventy years old. Joseph Entwisle visited her on her death-bed. She was too weak to talk much, but would often repeat the same lines. They were almost her last words. She was buried in St. James s Church yard, Bristol, where five infant children of Charles Wesley s had been laid to rest. Her father s verses were put on her grave stone
Hosanna to Jesus on high,
Another has entered her rest ; Another is scaped to the sky, And lodged in Immanuel s breast.
The soul of our sister is gone
To heighten the triumph above, Exalted to Jesus s throne,
And clasped in the arms of His love.
Wesley tells (Journal, June 17, 1767) of a girl at Maccles- field to whom the same lines were made a means of special blessing. When she opened her hymn-book and read them she was quite transported, being overwhelmed with peace and joy unspeakable. At the same time she was restored to the full use of her reason, and in a little while was strong and healthy as ever.
Hymn 324. O that I, first of love possessed. CHARLES WESLEY (i).
Hymns for the Use of Families, and on Various Occasions, 1767; Works, vii. 135. Six verses.
In ver. 3 the original is, Thy mercy brings salvation sure."
Hymn 325. Ah! whither should I go. CHARLES WESLEY (i).
Hymns on God s Everlasting Love, London, 1741 ; Works, iii. 89. God will have ALL men to be saved (i Tim. ii. 4). Sixteen verses.
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