The Christ Has Come

By Ernest Hampden-Cook

APPENDIX A

HYMNS OF THE SECOND AND THIRD ADVENTS

I.

Church of God, why vainly pining,
For the coming of thy Lord,
Purblind to the clear and shining
Lustre of His faithful word?

Deem not that with voice uncertain
His brave heralds spake to men,
Crying, as uprose the curtain
On the scene- "Christ comes again."

Quickly e'en as these foretold Him,
Quickly as Himself declared,
Did His enemies behold Him
When in glory He appeared;

While His saints, death's slumber breaking,
Soared to meet Him in the air,
At His voice with gladness waking
His immortal Reign to share.

Wherefore, with the faithless servant,
Deem His coming yet delayed;
Of the signs all unobservant
Which He gave thy faith to aid?

Oh, shake off the unbelieving
Spirit which obscures thy gaze,
And with joy the Truth receiving,
Of His Kingdom swell the praise !

To no vague and distant future
Are His victories postponed,
He is reigning in the Present,
Monarch over all enthroned;

His the universal sceptre,
His the government sublime,
All things to Himself subduing,
Now and through all coming Time.

[Tunes: Alla Trinita Beata, Chichester, Falfield, Haydn's Hymn.]

II.

From the outer darkness
Where she long bath lain,
Christ His church is calling
Into light again:

From the clouds of error
Bids her lift her eyes,
And behold His kingdom
Reigning in the skies.

Suddenly, at midnight,
Came He while she slept,
Nor, as He commanded,
Faithful vigil kept.

While the wise and holy
Shared His bridal state,
Shivered the unready
At the closed gate.

Centuries have vanished
Since the Bridegroom came;
Centuries, out of darkness
Calling on His name,
Christians have been crying,
Loud in praise and song:

Wherefore, mighty Saviour,
Tarriest Thou so long?
But the scales are falling
From the blinded eyes,
Comes the revelation
Messaged from the skies:

Cease your piteous outcry !
He for whom ye pine,
Came in power fulfilling
His own word divine;

Came in power triumphant
Conquered, bound in chains,
His inveterate foeman,
And in heaven He reigns

With His saints victorious,
Pledge of that blest day
When, the wide world over,
Men shall own His sway!

[Tunes. Dublin, Edina, Goschen, Hebron, Holy War, Midian, Panis Celestis, St. Alban's, St. Andrew of Crete.]

III.

He came, the Christ of God,
In lowlihood and pain,
To share our sorrows, bear our load,
The Lamb for sinners slain;

Wrought out His work of love,
Then, victor o'er the grave,
Ascended to the realms above,
Omnipotent to save.

He came the second time,
According to His Word,
Arrayed in majesty sublime
And girt with conquering sword;

His rebels to chastise;
His faithful ones to bless
And raise with Him, beyond the skies,
To reign in righteousness.

Then deep in the abyss
He bound His ruthless foe;
Unsealed the founts of heavenly bliss
To heal the world's dark woe;

While of His reign began
The victories ne'er to cease,
Until to Universal Man
Be given His glorious peace.

Once more He then will come,
Sin, death and hell subdued,
To call His outcast exiles home
To Eden-life renewed;

No want, no curse, no tear,
That state of Perfect Love,
When Earth shall form the image here,
Of God's own Heaven above !

IV. AND V.

"Great is the mystery of Godliness." 1 Tim. iii. 16. In the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, then is completed the mystery of God according as Be evangelised to His servants the prophets." Rev. x. 7.

Hymn aloud the Lord's Evangel !
God's great mystery made complete,
When the voice of the archangel
Ushered in, with pomp most meet,
Christ's appearing in His Kingdom,
Throned upon the judgment-seat.

He who came in want and weakness,
Once our guilt to expiate,
Trod the path of pain with meekness,
Bore with human scorn and hate,
Came the second time in glory,
Charioted in royal state.

Not to urge them to repentance,
And heaven's mercy to disclose,
But to speak their righteous sentence,
Came He this time to His foes,
And exile them from His presence,
Banished to aeoian woes.

But His people's whole salvation,
Now in Him was fully wrought,
Made to share His exaltation,
To His Heavenly Kingdom brought,
Reigning with Him o'er the ages
0 what bliss beyond all thought !

Thence proceeds the power unceasing
Vanquishing the works of Sin,
As from year to year increasing
Doth His Gospel gather in
Conquered hearts to Him, their Saviour,
And at length the world shall win !

[Tunes: Oriel and Regent Square.]

____________________________

0 Thou all triumphant Saviour,
Reigning on Thine endless throne,
By enraptured hosts surrounded,
Loved, redeemed and made Thine own,
Far and wide among the nations
Make Thy Gospel fully known !

Lo, Thy church, in error shrouded,
Now for ages long hath pined,
Waiting for the blessed promise
In Thy precious word enshrined;
To the consummated conquest
Of her Great Redeemer blind.

Wherefore tarries still Thy chariot,
While the weary years go by,
Why art Thou so lon a in coming ?
This hath been her yearning cry.
Lift the veil, Lord, from her vision,
Cure the blindness of her eye !

Give the mind-enlightening Spirit
To illuminate Thy Word,
Let her comprehend its witness
To the coming of her Lord,
And Thy manifested Godhead,
When the archangel's voice was heard !

So once more Thy glorious Gospel,
Clothed with Pentecostal might,
Shall go forth mankind subduing
To Thy love; and on the night
Of their woe shall rise the morning,
And the world be filled with light.

[Tunes: Oriel and Regent Square.]

VI.

0 Thou, of God the Incarnate Son,
Whose reign already hath begun,
Thy throne shall evermore endure,
And Thy dominion stand secure.

When Thou didst come the second time,
Sudden, majestic and sublime,
To visit judgment on Thy foes, ,
And all Thy saints to meet Thee rose;

Triumphant in that solemn hour, The
The kingdom, glory and the power Thou didst
Thou didst for ever make Thine own,
While Hell's dark empire was cast down.

High in the realms of endless light,
Thy saints,made sinless through Thy might,
Thou didst into a kingdom frame,
Its law Thy love, its bond Thy name;

A kingdom of immortal birth,
To serve as pattern upon earth,
To those whose hearts Thy love should win,
Whose lives Thy grace set free from sin.

Ah I what though tarries still the hour
When it shall shine with full-orbed power;
Though slowly spreads the holy leaven
Of wisdom, in Thy gospel given;

Yet we, in faith and hope, rejoice
That one day wholly to Thy voice
The wide world shall obedient prove,
And Man be perfected in Love.

VII.

Thou didst come in power and glory,
Closing up one epoch, Lord !
All Thy faithfulness displaying
To the promise of Thy word.
Saints and angels
Saw Thee, heard Thee and adored.

Rising from the dust to meet Thee,
Sprang the crowd of martyrs brave
All Thy host of true disciples
Who had slumbered in the grave
And rejoicing
Hailed Thee, Monarch, strong to save.

Then the unbelieving nation
Who had scorned Thy gospel's light,
In their Judge their true Messiah
Knew too late, as into night
Of long darkness
Woe and wail, they fled Thy sight.

Now enthroned in matchless splendour
Saving rule Thou dost maintain;
Powers of evil fly before Thee
While on earth extends Thy reign.
Thine the Kingdom
Till the Slayer, Death, be slain.

Then, once more in might appearing,
Thou shalt come, the world to bless,
Root out sin and woe for ever,
Ill destroy and wrong redress;
New-creating
Heaven and earth in righteousness.

[Tunes: Abbeycombe, Everton, Helmsley, Olivet, Ramah, Rousseau's Dream, St. Austin.]

VIII.

When Thou didst come to claim Thine own,
Thy Church was lapped in sleep profound,
The fickle many loveless grown,
Only the few were faithful found.

These, with Thy risen myriads, soared
To meet Thee in the upper air,
And now, for ever with their Lord,
The glories of Thy Reign they share.

But the apostates left behind,
Unweeting they had missed Thine hour,
Remained to grope with darkened mind
'Mongst clouds of error, shorn of Power.

Then of the gifts of Pentecost,
The lustre waned, grew dim and died;
Nor longer might the Holy Ghost
With a disloyal church abide.

But in these days the light once more
Hath dawned, the long-lost Truth is given;
Lord, with the Truth the Power restore,
The Pentecostal fire from Heaven.

Shew forth the virtue of Thy Name,
As in Thy first disciples shewn;
And let this later Age acclaim
New marvels to Thy Glory done!

W. TIDD MATSON

Sarisbury Green, near Southampton.