The Story Behind The Song

The Story Behind The Song

No research on Hymnology can be complete without "Wonderful Grace." Superb Grace is probably one of the properly-identified, broadly printed and properly-beloved Hymns by all faiths. It has typically been referred to in fashionable-day conferences as the Baptist Anthem. There's probably not a more correct description of Grace than Superb and that is truly the case when you think about the biographical background of John Newton.
John Newton was born in London in 1725 but at the age of 6, his mother died. She was a godly, praying lady who instilled in him the Phrase of God proving what the Bible declares in Proverbs, "Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is previous, he is not going to depart from it." The song, Amazing Grace might very properly be the testimony of John's conversion and Christian life. In its original kind, there have been six verses. The primary three which are known and used now have been written by John Newton. In its authentic publication in Olney Hymns in 1779 it bore the title "Faith's Assessment and Expectation."
As we discover the verses of Amazing Grace, from the very first verse we see Newton's data of theology.
Superb Grace how candy the sound,
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, however now am discovered,
Twas blind however now I see.
The definition of Grace, in keeping with Emory H. Bancroft, is "unmerited favor to sinners." The phrase Grace seems within the New Testomony alone over one hundred seventy times. One cannot even learn the title, Amazing Grace, without immediately being reminded of Ephesians 2:eight "For by grace are ye saved via religion; and that not of yourselves: it's the reward of God:" It is Grace that saves us, Grace that keep us, Grace that leads us and Grace that can at some point lead us home. What John Newton was saying about Grace, is that has a nice ring to it, I like the sound of that.
The road "that saved a wretch like me" draws our consideration to the Depravity of man. Man is born with out a spark of divinity; all men are born with the depraved nature of Adam. Scriptures that show this are Romans 3:10, 3:23, Ecclesiastes 7:20, Galatians 3:22 and I John 1:8. The fact that John Newton realized that for man to see God there should be a brand new start can also be introduced in these lines. Acts 4:12 declares that there isn't any different identify whereby we should be saved.
Salvation, Regeneration, is the one method to Christ. Man is born lost. He doesn't should do anything to be lost, he's misplaced. The only approach for man to get to Heaven is he should be quickened, made alive. And that's what regeneration does and is. Regeneration is that non secular work by the Holy Ghost that imparts the brand new nature, the character of Christ in a man. That is what is supposed in the phrase, "I once was misplaced".
"Twas blind however now I see", man's lost situation is typified in the scriptures as blindness. No doubt John Newton had read the story of Jesus therapeutic the blind man in John 9 the place the blind man declared "Whereas I used to be blind, now I see".
The second verse of Superb Grace,
Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
and charm my fears relieved.
How treasured did that grace appear
the hour I first believed.
John states clearly, it's all of grace. He says the same grace that put me under conviction and condemnation, when I turned to Christ, it was that same grace that relieved all my fears, and it got here the identical hour, the same time that I believed. Little question, the promise of Romans 10:9 of "believing in the coronary heart" got here to John's mind as he penned these phrases. That phrase imagine has a strong which means, to trust or entrust, to have faith in. The implication is illustrated by believing that a chair will hold you up but have not really put your faith in the chair till you sit down in it. You imagine it will maintain you up and support you, however you have not demonstrated your religion till you commit your self to it by sitting down in it. That's what the word imagine means, to show your faith, committing your self to Christ.
The third verse, if you understand something about the life of John Newton speaks much to the guts:
By means of many risks toils and snares,
I've already come.
and charm will lead me house.
On the tender age of 6, after the loss of life of his mom, little John set sail together with his father, who was a sea captain. John later joined the British navy, but he was a really rebellious sailor. He even deserted the navy and was later caught, put in irons and publicly crushed. He later would become a captain of a ship himself, the captain of a slave ship. John was on a protracted trip from Brazil and to pass the time, he was studying a e-book entitled Imitation of Christ written 300 years earlier by Thomas Kempis. Then came a terrible, horrific storm that almost sent the ship and whole crew into the ocean. After surviving this storm, this got John to occupied with life and about loss of life. He knew he was misplaced, he knew he was a sinner. The teachings of his godly mom got here again to thoughts and John knelt and repented and obtained the Lord Jesus. You possibly can only imagine the storms and risks that John had been by way of when he penned these phrases. He knew that it was only by the Grace of God that he was not useless and in Hell.
After being saved, John would trade his position for the pulpit. John, a lover of the sea, took a land job and studied for sixteen years and then was ordained in the Anglican Church and was assigned a pastorate within the small English city of Olney. It was there that he wrote the phrases of Superb Grace, and he was completely right, How Candy the Sound!!
John Newton wrote the primary three verses of Wonderful Grace and wrote these extra verses that we do not use and it's possible you'll not know:
The Lord has promised good to me,
His phrase my hope secures;
He'll my defend and portion be,
So long as life endures.
Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall stop,
I shall possess, within the veil,
A lifetime of pleasure and peace.
The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;

But God, who known as me right here beneath,
Shall be forever mine.