And Can It Be?
Charles Wesley wrote this hymn shortly after his conversion experience in 1738. Along with his brother John, the Wesleys emphasized the importance of having a personal (even transformative) encounter with Jesus as the beginning of the sanctification journey. Read more about their conversion experience here. “And Can It Be” is thus Charles Wesley’s personal testimony in light of his encounter with the Lord in 1738.
And can it be that I should gain
An interest in the Savior's blood?
Died He for me, who caused His pain?
For me, who Him to death pursued?
Amazing love! how can it be
That Thou, my God, should die for me?
The first verse begins with a series of rhetorical questions – Can I, personally, benefit from Jesus’s sacrifice? In spite of me being the cause of his death? What kind of love is this? Seriously, though? The heart of this first verse is the apparent conflict between the author’s own sin and Jesus’s amazing love for him – “Died he for me, who caused His pain? For me, who Him to death pursued?” As rhetorical questions go, we do not get an answer. We simply sit in awe of Christ's love for us. And this amazement is carried through the chorus – “Amazing love! How can it be / That thou, my God, should die for me!”
'Tis mystery all! Th'Immortal dies!
Who can explore His strange design?
In vain the firstborn seraph tries
To sound the depths of love divine!
'Tis mercy all! let earth adore,
Let angel minds inquire no more.
In the second verse the author attempts to give an answer to the above questions, but realizes that it is an impossible task: “‘Tis mystery all… who can explore His strange design?” To add to this mystery, the author writes another paradox of the Christian faith: “The Immortal dies.” God, who was and is and evermore shall be… dies! Moreover, not even angels can fully comprehend God’s love for sinners – “in vain the firstborn seraph tries to sound the depths of love divine… let angel minds inquire no more.” Thus these questions remain rhetorical. We continue to sit in awe of God’s amazing love for sinners, as the chorus resumes.
He left His Father's throne above,
So free, so infinite His grace;
Emptied Himself of all but love,
And bled for Adam's helpless race;
'Tis mercy all, immense and free;
For, O my God, it found out me.
In the third verse the author gives us a summary of the gospel story – Christ left the Father’s throne, emptied himself, and bled for us. Here, Charles makes an indirect reference to the scripture passage from Philippians: “Though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:6-8). At the end of this verse the author echoes a line from the previous verse, in his attempt to explain the amazing love of God – “Tis mercy all, immense and free.” It is by God’s infinite mercy that Christ came and died for our sins.
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.
In the fourth verse Charles describes his sinful state prior to his conversion – “long my imprisoned spirit lay, fast bound in sin.” Then, the turning point in his Christian journey was when Christ looked directly upon him – “Thine eye diffused a quickening ray.” And then the immediate effect that glance had on his sinful state – “My chains fell off, my heart was free; I rose, went forth and followed Thee.” What a powerful testimony! This is personally my favorite line in the whole hymn because the melody PERFECTLY matches the idea of raising up and following someone else outside of your comfort zone:
No condemnation now I dread;
Jesus, and all in Him is mine!
Alive in Him, my living Head,
And clothed in righteousness divine,
Bold I approach the eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own.
In the last verse Charles provides a striking contrast from verse four. If previously he was “fast bound in sin,” now he confidently declares: “No condemnation now I dread” referencing Paul’s epistle to the Romans: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus'' (Romans 8:1). Also, instead of being “fast bound in nature’s night” he is “alive in Him.” Instead of being trapped in sin’s dungeon awaiting punishment, he is now “clothed in righteousness divine.” What a transformation from the previous verse!
But wait – there’s more! Not only do we get to live a transformed life here on earth, we are preparing ourselves for eternity. The last two lines of this hymn speak directly of our future state when we claim the crown through Christ. Notice the confidence in his voice: “Bold I approach the eternal throne, and claim the crown through Christ my own.” Thanks be to God!
