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I will arise and go to Jesus
He will embrace me in His arms
In the arms of my dear Savior,
O, there are ten thousand charms.
These lines come from the hymn, “Come Ye Sinners, Poor and Needy.”
We often think of charms as something magical—like good luck charms or charm bracelets, worn to avert evil or misfortune. There is another sense of this word though, which is how Joseph Hart uses it when he wrote the hymn in 1759. Charm can also mean “Any quality, attribute, trait, feature, etc., which exerts a fascinating or attractive influence, exciting love or admiration.”i
In the arms of Jesus, the Saviour, there are 10 000 qualities that fascinate Hart, that excite his love and admiration.
Can we say the same thing? Are we moved in 10 000 ways to sing God’s praise? Can we count 10 000 reasons to praise our Saviour?
10 000 is a big number. It sounds like an exaggeration. But I don’t think Joseph Hart was exaggerating when he wrote this hymn. It came after his own conversion experience, incited from his doubt about whether he was really saved, and whether he was allowed to live however he wanted simply because he had already professed with his mouth that Jesus was Lord. He wrote these ideas in a book called The Unreasonableness of Religion that he later repented of when he understood that good works and faith need to be aligned to call oneself a Christian. When he fully and truly comprehended God’s saving grace, he wrote “Come Ye Sinners, Poor and Needy,” in which he talks about the charms that drew Him and continued to draw him to Jesus.
Come, ye thirsty, come, and welcome, God’s free bounty glorify; True belief and true repentance, Every grace that brings you nigh.
The prophet Jeremiah also recorded His reasons for praise in the book of Lamentations. Amidst the siege of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 A.D., he offered his laments about what was occurring to Judah and Jerusalem. Yet even among these cries of woe lies hope. Lamentations 3:22-23 says,
Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
God’s great love, compassion, and faithfulness are a few of His many charms. Even when we sin, we never exhaust God’s capacity to forgive us. His compassions are new each morning even though our sin is old. How many times do we make the same mistakes, whether it be telling lies to get what we want, seeking praise from man for doing good works, or holding onto bitterness because we feel it is our right when we’ve been wronged?
Peter, a disciple of Jesus, was infamous for making mistakes. Three times he denied knowing who Jesus was because he was ashamed to be associated with Him. Jesus still took Peter back even when he renounced Him. Jesus gave him a second chance, and He does the same for us. God relentlessly pursues His children like a shepherd looking for his lost sheep. He offers us 10 000 chances, 10 000 charms, 10 000 reasons to fall in love with Him.
His forgiveness is a charm. So is His protection and provision. David, the writer of Psalms, sings about these charms in the oft-quoted 23rd Psalm:
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.
There are countless other charms found in Jesus—wisdom, comfort, peace, strength, shelter. Do you personally know these charms? They aren’t withheld from anyone, no matter how great your sin. Jesus is greater and He longs to wrap His arms around you. He longs to lavish on you His 10 000 charms, to attract your heart to His, to excite Your love and admiration. He is more than deserving of it. He died for you, He loves you, and He longs for you to know Him.
i. “Charm,” n. 3a. Oxford English Dictonary.
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Inspiration for these articles comes from Gideon and Hilda Hagstoz' Heroes of the Reformation
