atonement – Ken Puls Music Blog

Now I saw in my dream, that they went on, and Great-Heart went before them; so they went and came to the place where Christian’s burden fell off his back and tumbled into a sepulchre. Here, then, they made a pause; and here also they blessed God. “Now,” said Christiana, “it comes to my mind what was said to us at the gate; to wit, that we should have pardon by word and deed: by word, that is, by the promise; by deed, to wit, in the way it was obtained. What the promise is, of that I know something; but what is it to have pardon by deed, or in the way that it was obtained? Mr. Great-Heart, I suppose you know? Wherefore, if you please, let us hear your discourse thereof.”

Great-Heart: Pardon by the deed done is pardon obtained by someone for another that has need thereof; not by the person pardoned, but in the way, says another, in which I have obtained it. So, then, to speak to the question more largely, the pardon that you and Mercy and these boys have attained was obtained by another: to wit, by Him that let you in at the gate. And He has obtained it in this double way: He has performed righteousness to cover you; and spilt blood to wash you in.

Christiana: But if He parts with His righteousness to us, what will He have for Himself?

Great-Heart: He has more righteousness than you have need of, or than He needs Himself.

Christiana Pray make that appear.

Continue Reading The Pilgrim’s Progress

Notes and Commentary

Under the care of Great-Heart, the pilgrims go first to the cross. It is here where Christian’s burden fell off in Part 1 of The Pilgrim’s Progress and it is here where the pilgrims stop to give praise to God.

It is significant that Great-Heart leads the pilgrims to the cross. In the allegory, he represents a pastor and preacher of the gospel. He serves as a guide and is determined to point those under his care to Christ. Paul tells the church in Corinth:

And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified (1 Corinthians 2:1–2).

As the pilgrims look to the cross, an opportunity arises for Great-Heart to instruct them. Christiana remembers when she received pardon from the Lord at the Gate. At that time, the Lord assured the pilgrims: “I grant pardon by word and deed: by word, in the promise of forgiveness; by deed, in the way I obtained it. Take the first from my lips with a kiss, and the other as it shall be revealed.” She gladly received the promise, but does not yet understand the deed—how Christ secured her pardon. She has questions and looks to Great-Heart for answers.

Continue reading Notes and Commentary

The text for The Pilgrim’s Progress is public domain.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from
the New King James Version (NKJV) ©1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

Return to A Guide to John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress Part 2

Behold, my soul, what God has wrought
When by His grace my heart He sought,
When in His love and sovereign plan
He chose to save a wretched man.
When God made heav’n and earth below
He simply spoke and it was so,
But when He sought my soul to save
E’en Christ, His only Son, He gave.

Before God spoke and it was light,
Before men fell in sin’s dark night,
The Lord set forth redemption’s plan
That grace might find this wretched man.
That God would choose for Christ a wife,
And Christ would die to save her life;
The Spirit then would call the bride
And draw her to her Master’s side.

Christ left the glories of heav’n above
And took the form of those He loved.
He shared our suff’ring and our strife
And lived a holy, perfect life.
He found us dead and vile within,
Rebels to God, condemned for sin,
Destined for wrath and hell’s torment,
Yet blinded and in sin content.

Yet in our sin, Christ loved us still
And bore the cross on Cal’vry’s hill.
He took the judgment we had earned
And died as God’s fierce wrath did burn.
Our debt was great, none would suffice
Except a perfect sacrifice,
And as the cross drew forth His blood,
An off’ring rose before our God.

His death has full atonement made!
The debt we owed in full is paid!
He purchased us with His own blood;
Such love! Behold the Lamb of God!
When death and sin defeated fell,
He trampled down the gates of hell
And rose victorious o’er the grave
To live for those He came to save.

He then ascended to the throne,
Now interceding for His own,
And for our comfort, help, and cheer;
He sent His Holy Spirit near,
To open hearts, convict of sin,
To lead to Christ and dwell within,
To daily bring supplies of grace
And hold us fast to Christ’s embrace.

When by His grace my heart He sought,
Behold, my soul, what God has wrought!
The measures to fulfill His plan!
The cost to save a wretched man!
He now prepares for me a place
And soon I’ll see Him face to face,
And wonder through eternity,
How great His mercy shown to me!

I wrote this hymn after traveling on May 15, 1991 to attend a Wednesday evening service at Grace Church in Denton, Texas. John Marshall, who was the guest preacher that evening, spoke from John 1 on the theme: Behold, the Lamb of God. He contrasted the simplicity of becoming a Christian (our responding in faith and repentance) with the difficulty (God’s vast work accomplished through Jesus Christ to bring us salvation). I wrote in my notes:

When God created the world, He spoke,
But when He redeemed men:
He came down—He was born of a virgin—He lived a perfect life—He died upon a cross—He rose from the dead—He ascended to glory—He sent His Spirit—He promised to come again!
“It is a simple though difficult thing for one to become a Christian.”

I began writing the hymn the following day with these lines (that became the end of verse 1):

When God made heav’n and earth below
He simply spoke and it was so,
But when He sought my soul to save
E’en Christ, His only Son, He gave.

The hymn is a celebration of the gospel, patterned after the psalms where the psalmist would address his soul and sing to encourage and remind himself of truth (Psalm 16:2, 42:5, …). The verses are my reflections on the message and effort to preach it to my own soul.

Download the lyrics and free sheet music for this hymn, including an arrangement of the tune DUANE STREET for classical guitar.

More Hymns and Songs from Ken Puls Music

More Hymn tunes arranged for classical guitar

Tag: atonement

Preaching at the Cross

Behold, My Soul

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