CHRISTIAN CHURCH >> Mission of the church
SDAH 370
Christ for the world we sing,
the world to Christ we bring,
with loving zeal;
the poor, and them that mourn,
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For Worship Leaders
Make each hymn more meaningful with these helpful tools: Short, ready-to-use hymn introductions for church bulletins, multiple ways to introduce a hymn based on your worship theme and in-depth history and insights to enrich your song service.
Hymn Spotlight: Christ for the World We Sing
This hymn was inspired by the 1869 YMCA convention motto: “Christ for the World, and the World for Christ.” Samuel Wolcott, deeply moved by its message, composed the text as a call to mission and Christian service. Set to Felice de Giardini’s rousing Italian Hymn, the song stirs believers to actively share the gospel with love, zeal, and hope. May we echo its vision by living out our calling to bring Christ to the world—beginning with those around us.
📖 Reference: Feel free to share but please cite hymnsforworship.org when reproducing.
Introductions for Sabbath School Song Service (based on specific lesson quarterlies):
The 1869 convention of the Young Men’s Christian Association was held in Cleveland, Ohio. The motto over the pulpit, made in evergreen letters, spelled out the words “Christ for the World, and the World for Christ.” Samuel Wolcott, who attended the convention, was so impressed by the slogan that as he walked home on February 7, 1869, he composed this hymn. There is one other stanza.
Wolcott was born at South Windsor, Connecticut, on July 2, 1813. He was educated at Yale and then graduated from Andover Theological Seminary in 1837. In 1840 he went as a missionary to Syria, but ill health compelled him to return in 1842. He pastored in Congregational churches in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Chicago. For a time he was secretary of the Ohio home Missionary Society. Though beginning late in life to write hymns, he did compose more than 200. He died at Longmeadow, Massachusetts, on February 24, 1886.
ITALIAN HYMN was composed in 1769 by Felice de Giardini (1716-1796; see SDAH 71), where it is also used, with alternate harmony, for the words “Come, Thou Almighty King,” for which it was especially written.
📖 Reference: Companion to the Seventh-day Adventist Hymnal by Wayne Hooper and Edward E. White. Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1988.
Text
1
Christ for the world we sing,
the world to Christ we bring,
with loving zeal;
the poor, and them that mourn,
the faint and overborne,
sin-sick and sorrow-worn,
whom Christ doth heal.
2
Christ for the world we sing,
the world to Christ we bring,
with fervent prayer;
the wayward and the lost,
by restless passions tossed,
redeemed at countless cost,
from dark despair.
3
Christ for the world we sing,
the world to Christ we bring,
with joyful song;
the newborn souls, whose days,
reclaimed from error’s ways,
inspired with hope and praise,
to Christ belong.
Hymn Info
Biblical Reference
(a) 1 Tim 1:15; Ps 103:3 (b) Luke 19:10 (c) 1 Pet 1:23
Author
Samuel Wolcott (1813-1886)
Year Published
1869
Hymn Tune
ITALIAN HYMN
Metrical Number
6.6.4.6.6.6.4.
Composer
Felice de Giardini (1716-1796)
Year Composed
1769
Alternate Harmony
SDAH 71
