In 1738, Charles Wesley wrote a hymn called And Can It Be? and penned these words that describe the natural state of the human heart and what it takes to change it:
Long my imprisoned spirit lay,
Fast bound in sin and nature’s night;
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray—
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.
The portrait Wesley painted with these poetic lines communicates that nothing short of a miracle of God can release a sinner from his shackles! Nothing short of divine intervention can illuminate the spiritual darkness that envelops the human heart! And who is the person Wesley credits with shining “a quickening (life-giving) ray” upon his own darkness? It is none other than King Jesus! Just as the Apostle Paul admitted in 2 Corinthians 4:6, the only light source that can pierce through the otherwise impenetrable veil of darkness that rests over our hearts is “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God” that emits from nowhere else but “the face of Jesus Christ”! It is my hope that this liberating light will dawn upon you today as the unfolding of God’s Word gives light (Psalm 119:130).
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Mike