One of the lingering practices of the revivals and crusade meetings in recent centuries (like those of Charles G. Finney, Dwight L. Moody, Billy Sunday, and others) was the invitation hymn at the end of the service. Best known among those, perhaps, was “Just As I Am,” sung at the conclusion of every one of Billy Graham’s crusades across the world. In many churches with a revivalistic heritage it is expected that every service will conclude with an evangelistic invitation, and a hymn as people are encouraged to come forward to signify their decision to receive Christ as Savior.
While every true church is committed to evangelism and to inviting unbelievers to respond to the gospel, not every church is comfortable with this particular practice. That is especially so when the words spoken by the pastor give the impression that the act of coming forward is proof that the person has been born again. That is evident in the way in many such situations the person who has come forward is baptized on the spot and is immediately enrolled as a member of the church. But rather than telling them that they are now saved (“and don’t ever doubt it!”), those churches in a Reformed tradition will prefer to describe such a person as “a hopeful convert,” needing time to see if they have truly understood the gospel and are showing evidence of growing in that conviction and the new lifestyle of the redeemed as they are discipled.
The invitation system, with its “altar call” after the sermon, is a relatively recent innovation, having been introduced by Charles Grandison Finney (1792-1875) during the Second Great Awakening in America. He was a “New School” Presbyterian minister who eventually renounced the Reformed faith and embraced Arminian theology and practice. He conducted revival meetings with an “anxious bench” for those who were feeling conviction from the preaching to come forward to respond to the gospel, before being led to pray “the sinner’s prayer.” He became a professor and then president of the newly-established Oberlin College in Ohio. He taught that conversion is possible if a minister employs the right methodology. He embraced Wesleyan perfectionism and advocated the moral influence view of the atonement. In his 1835 book, “Lectures on Revivals of Religion” he wrote, “A revival is not a miracle, or dependent on a miracle, in any sense. It is a purely philosophical result of the right use of the constituted means.”
For these, and many other reasons, the altar call practice that became so common in Fundamentalist circles (so much so that some have called it “a Baptist Sacrament”!) has been strongly criticized by many including the great 19th century Princeton “Old School” theologian, Benjamin Breckenridge Warfield, who wrote that “God might be eliminated from it (Finney’s theology) entirely without essentially changing its character.” While not addressing the matter directly, J. I. Packer (1926-2020) presents the entirely different and historic understanding of evangelism in his 1961 book, “Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God.” More recently, Iain Murray (of the Banner of Truth Trust) has written a thorough critique of the invitation system in his small 1967 booklet, “The Invitation System,” in which he elaborates on the reasons for Martyn Lloyd-Jones’ (1899-1981) opposition to the use of this method of evangelism. One of Murray’s powerful statements is this. “The invitation system misconceives the role of an evangelist. It makes him a ‘spiritual obstetrician’ whose job is to bring about the new birth of sinners through formulaic methodology when this is, in fact, the job only of the Holy Spirit.” Among the primary reasons so many have rejected its use are these three things. First, it inevitably implies that salvation is something that is dependent on what the sinner does (“coming forward”). Second, it leads “converts” to be immediately assured of their salvation because of what they have done (more than what God has done), which leads to many false conversions of people who soon “fall away.” Third, and perhaps most importantly, there is no biblical example of people being called forward in such a manner.
But with all the things wrong with the altar call / invitation system, believers must be earnestly committed to the practice of calling people to repentance and faith. When Jesus said in Matthew 11:28 “Come unto Me,” He wasn’t calling for a physical response of coming forward in front of the crowd, but rather a spiritual response of trusting in Him and following Him in a new life. Every sermon should point listeners to Christ, and communicate a clear understanding of the gospel. More than that, we should all use every opportunity we find to invite sinners to trust Him. How wonderful to have hymns available to us in our worship to invite people to do just that.
One such invitation hymn is “Only Trust Him,” first published in 1874. It was written by John Hart Stockton (1813-1877), a minister (and hymn-writer) in the New Jersey Conference of what was then known as the Methodist Episcopal Church. He was born of Presbyterian parents in New Hope, Pennsylvania. At the age of 21, he was converted at a Methodist camp meeting in 1838 and enrolled in full membership in the New Jersey Conference in 1857. Because of ill health, with which he struggled for most of his life, he withdrew from actual pastoral work in 1874 and continued by compiling and publishing gospel hymn books, writing both words and music. While he composed many hymns, this is the only one of his still in use today. He died suddenly after attending a Sunday worship service at Arch Street Church in Philadelphia.
Often when he finished a hymn, he would send it to Ira Sankey (1840-1908), who was the music director and soloist for the evangelistic crusades of Dwight L. Moody (1837-1899). As he learned of them, Sankey would put these kinds of hymns in his “musical scrapbook,” which was sort of a musical bottomless pit that Sankey would reach into when he needed to find a new song. In 1873, while was crossing the Atlantic Ocean for services in England, he had time to look through his musical scrapbook. That’s when he discovered this hymn written by Stockton. This is how Sankey described that.
While on the way to England with Mr. Moody in 1873, one day in mid-ocean, as I was looking over a list of hymns in my scrapbook, I noticed one commencing, Come every soul by sin oppressed. Believing that these words had been so often sung that they were hackneyed, I decided to change them and tell how to come to Jesus by substituting the words, only trust Him. In this form it was first published in London. While holding meetings in Her Majesty’s Theater in Pall Mall, London, and singing this hymn, I thought I would change the chorus again, and asked the people to sing, I will trust Him. Then as we sang I decided to change it once more and asked them to sing I do trust Him. God blessed this rendering of the hymn to eight persons present who testified afterward that by the change they were all led to accept salvation.
When Moody and Sankey returned to Philadelphia, a very frail John Stockton helped Sankey lead the congregation in singing this invitation hymn.
The hymn begins with the imperative verb, “Come.” The first line, “Come, every soul by sin oppressed,” is an almost direct quotation from Charles Wesley’s famous hymn “Come, sinners to the gospel feast.” The third stanza of Wesley’s hymn begins, “Come, all ye souls by sin oppressed.” As a Wesleyan minister, Stockton, undoubtedly knew the Wesley hymn and was consciously or subconsciously influenced by it. Another line from Stockton’s hymn, “believe in Him without delay,” seems to draw its inspiration from the opening line of the final stanza of Wesley’s hymn, “This is the time, no more delay.” This is typical language, however, for invitation hymns.
Interestingly, Wesley’s hymn focuses on the open invitation to all: “Come, all the world!” (stanza two). In stanza three, the invitation is clarified further, including: “wanders after rest,” “poor and maimed,” and the “halt, and blind.” Stockton’s hymn centers on the cleansing power of Jesus’ “precious blood” (stanza two). His invitation to “plunge into the crimson flood that washes bright as snow” may have been an allusion to eighteenth-century hymnwriter William Cowper’s familiar, “There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood,” in which he invites sinners to “plunge beneath the flood” and be cleansed of all “their guilty stains.”
When it was first published, Matthew 11:29 appeared on the page with the hymn. “Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me … and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” While this hymn was written for revival services, its message is still clear and relevant today. It is more than an invitation to trust Jesus for salvation as one begins the Christian life. It is also a challenge to trust Jesus from the struggles with sin and temptation and discouragement every day.
The refrain expresses the central message of the hymn, and indeed the central message of the entire Bible. To believe in Jesus, or exercise faith in Him, is to trust Him and His redemptive sacrifice rather than trusting our tarnished record of supposedly good works. Singers should take special notice of the word “only,” as it confirms that we offer nothing of our own to the payment for our sin. As we sing in another hymn, “Jesus paid it all.” And it’s not just that Jesus is the only one who can save us. It is also that there is nothing more than trusting Him that brings that salvation to bear upon our hearts.
Only trust Him, only trust Him, only trust Him now;
He will save you, He will save you, He will save you now.
Stanza 1 is the earnest invitation that we extend in Jesus’ name to “every soul by sin oppressed.” How does that oppression express itself? It will hopefully become evident as part of the convicting work of the Holy Spirit as He makes a sinner miserable until finding relief in Christ. Our God of mercy promises to give rest “by trusting in His Word.”
Come, every soul by sin oppressed; there’s mercy with the Lord,
and He will surely give you rest by trusting in His Word. (Refrain)
Stanza 2 is the explanation as to how this rest comes to those who trust in Jesus. It is because He has “shed His precious blood.” Isn’t it amazing that we can speak of the Son of God, the creator of the universe, as precious?! And how amazing, too, is the imagery from Isaiah 1 that our black sins can be washed white as snow by the crimson blood of Jesus!
For Jesus shed His precious blood, rich blessings to bestow;
plunge now into the crimson flood that washes white as snow. (Refrain)
Stanza 3 is clearly based on Jesus’ words in John 14:16, “I am the way the truth, and the life.” Stockton doesn’t elaborate on the meaning of those three words, but instead focuses on how Jesus “leads you into rest” if you believe in Him. That is the blessing, rest from all that sin takes away from us and presses upon us.
Yes, Jesus is the truth, the way, that leads you into rest;
believe in Him without delay and you are fully blessed. (Refrain)
Stanza 4 is an invitation to come to the Savior, not only for the immediate deliverance from sin’s guilt, but more positively for the joys that lie ahead for those who trust Him. The stanza points ahead to the glory for those “who dwell in that celestial land,” joys that will never diminish but will be as immortal as the people who will be welcomed there.
Come, then, and join this holy band, and on to glory go,
to dwell in that celestial land, where joys immortal flow. (Refrain)
Stanza 5 is cast as the words of the one who has come and trusted in Jesus. It is a prayer addressed to the Savior, in contrast to the words of the one who has been inviting troubled souls to come to Him in the previous stanzas. It praises Jesus for His having “made the way so clear and full salvation free.” It is of such a different character that sadly most hymnals have omitted this stanza.
O Jesus, blessed Jesus, dear, I’m coming now to Thee;
since Thou hast made the way so clear and full salvation free. (Refrain)
The tune MINERVA was written for this text by Stockton himself. No information has been preserved about the significance of the tune name.
Our study of this invitation hymn should include a challenge to all of us to be more diligent and bold in inviting friends to place their trust in the Lord Jesus. One of the greatest joys of the Christian life is that which comes as a result of our seeing someone respond to the gospel. In a sense, we might consider ourselves to be “spiritual midwives.” While it is not in our power to cause someone to be “born from above” (that is actually what Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3), we can be the instrument in God’s hands as they experience that new birth. May this hymn motivate us to more winsomely and prayerfully call others to “only trust Him.”
Here is the hymn as sung by a choir that sounds like they might be from Korea.