I have recently written about the songs that inspired Victorian Christians to leave hearth and home to go and proclaim the gospel to the world. J.M. McCaleb is another missions advocate who penned a hymn on the missions theme. His “The Gospel is for All” was written in part to challenge churches to view the worldwide call of the gospel as a priority. Many had become insular in their faith, preaching to those within the fold, or focusing only to their “near neighbors.”
His song challenges [bold type is my observations]:
“Of one the Lord has made the race
Thro’ one has come the fall
Where sin has gone must go His grace
The gospel is for all”
[All men are in need of the gospel, where sin is salvation is needed].
“The blessed gospel is for all
The gospel is for all
Where sin has gone must go His grace
The gospel is for all”
[Here the refrain, re-emphasizes the point].
“Say not the heathen are at home
Beyond we have no call
For why should we be blest alone?
The gospel is for all”
[He questions the assertion that charity (and the Word) starts at home, and that the blessings of god are for our selves alone].
“Received ye freely, freely give
From ev’ry land they call
Unless they hear they cannot live
The gospel is for all”
[We who have received the Good News and have been blessed by God’s promise, did so happily. But (as in the previous verse ) others too have the need for it, who else can share it with them unless it be us?].
Padre's Ramblings 