JESUS CHRIST >> LOVE OF CHRIST FOR US
SDAH 184
I hear the Savior say,
“Thy strength indeed is small;
Child of weakness, watch and pray,
Find in Me thine all in all.”
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For Worship Leaders
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Hymn Spotlight: Jesus Paid It All
Born in a church pew during a long prayer, this hymn by Elvina M. Hall expresses the deep assurance that Christ has paid the full price for our redemption. The refrain, “All to Him I owe,” becomes our humble response to Calvary. John Grape’s melody gently carries the message of complete surrender and freedom through grace. As we sing, may we remember that Christ’s finished work invites us into peace with God.
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Introductions for Sabbath School Song Service (based on specific lesson quarterlies):
Our lesson today reminds us that it is only through the sacrifice of Jesus that our relationship with God has been reconciled. (Lesson 5, 4th Quarter 2020 – Wednesday, The Master Teacher and Reconciliation, 10/28/2020)
Salvation is freely offered to us all that there is nothing we can do to earn it. The blood of Christ has power and is enough to redeem us and that we may be worthy to be called sons and daughters of God. (Lesson 11, 1st quarter 2021 -Sunday, Buy Something Free, 3/7/2021)
Someone has said: “When I look to myself, I see no reason why I can be saved. But, when I look to Jesus, I see no reason why I should be lost.” The sacrifice and death of Jesus on the cross is enough to pay for the penalty of all my sins and shortcomings. (Lesson 12, 2nd Quarter 2021 -Tuesday, The faith of Abraham: Part 1, 6/15/2021)
Elvina Mabel Hall was a member of the choir of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Baltimore. While she was sitting in the choir during a rather long prayer, in the spring of 1865, she jotted down the words of this hymn on the flyleaf of a hymnbook, the New Lute of Zion. After the service she passed them to the minister, the Reverend Shrick, who kept them until he could find a suitable tune. The title of the hymn was “All to Christ I Owe.” There was one more stanza:
- When from my dying bed
My ransomed soul shall rise,
Then “Jesus paid it all”
Shall rend the vaulted skies.
This was omitted from SDAH because of its teaching on the immediate flight of the soul to heaven after death.
Hall was born on June 4, 1820, in Alexandria, Virginia; she moved to Baltimore, where she was a member of the Monument Street Methodist Church for more than 40 years. Following the death of her husband, she married the Reverend Thomas Myers in 1885. She died on July 18, 1889, at Ocean Grove, New Jersey.
The tune, sometimes called ALL TO CHRIST, was composed by John Thomas Grape, the organist of the same church in Baltimore. He took care of the cabinet organ at home while the church was undergoing alterations, and thus had the opportunity to play and compose in his spare time. He was trying to find a melody for William Batchelder Bradbury’s words “Jesus Paid It All.” His wife considered his effort a good one, but his friends and the choir members thought it rather commonplace. However, the Reverend Shrick coupled Hall’s words with Grape’s tune, and it was well received as a gospel song. It was published in Sabbath Chords in 1868.
Grape was born on May 6, 1835, in Baltimore. He was a coal merchant who was interested in music as a hobby. He directed the choir of the Monument Street Methodist Church and wrote other hymn tunes. He died in Baltimore on November 2, 1915.
Stanza:
1 – 2 Corinthians 13:4
Colossians 3:11
2 – Ezekiel 36:26
3 – Revelation 7:14
4 – Revelation 4:10
R – Isaiah 1:18
Text
1
I hear the Savior say,
“Thy strength indeed is small;
Child of weakness, watch and pray,
Find in Me thine all in all.”
Refrain
Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow.
2
Lord, now indeed I find
Thy power and Thine alone,
Can change the leper’s spots
And melt the heart of stone.
3
Since nothing good have I
Whereby Thy grace to claim,
I’ll wash my garment white
In the blood of Calvary’s Lamb.
4
And when before the throne
I stand in Him complete,
I’ll lay my trophies down
All down at Jesus’ feet.
Hymn Info
Biblical Reference
(a) 2 Cor 13:14; Col 3:11 (b) Eze 36:26 (c) Rev 7:14 (d) Rev 4:10 (r) Isa 1:18
Author
Mrs. Elvina M. Hall (1820-1889)
Year Published
1865
Metrical Number
6.6.6.6.Ref.
Composer
John T. Grape (1835-1915)
