O Come and Dwell in Me
O come and dwell in me,
Spirit of power within,
And bring the glorious liberty
From sorrow, fear, and sin.
Hasten the joyful day
Which shall my sins consume,
When old things shall be done away,
And all things new become.
I want the witness, Lord,
That all I do is right,
According to Thy mind and word,
Well-pleasing in Thy sight.
I ask no higher state;
Indulge me but in this,
And soon or later then translate
To Thine eternal bliss.
By Judith Mosomos
UNDER THE CATEGORY of Rebirth and New Creation, “O Come and Dwell in Me” (UMH 388) is a hymn by Charles Wesley that can be appropriate for the New Year. Here he speaks of moving away from the old and approaching the new.
Wesley begins with a prayer request for the Spirit to dwell in him that he may be freed from sorrow, fear and sin. In many of Wesley’s hymns, asking the Holy Spirit to be present in his life is a constant prayer (UMH 332, 372, 387, 501, 603, 606, 635). It is a prayer request not only by his own creativity but one that is derived from Scripture, as written by Paul in 2 Corinthians 3:17 “…and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom”.
In the second stanza, Wesley, filled by the Spirit, anticipates and hopes that the coming of the Lord will be hastened, so all will be joyful. It is clear to him that it will be a day of new beginnings. Again, it is Scripture itself that inspires him, as in 2 Corinthians 5:17. “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old one has gone, the new has come!”
But even as he prays for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, Wesley seeks to be a good witness of the gospel with a prayer that his actions will be pleasing in the sight of the Lord. This alludes to Psalm 104:34. “May my meditation be pleasing to Him, as I rejoice in the Lord.” This manifests his unassuming nature.
In the fourth stanza, Wesley expresses that he desires nothing more because he knows the promise of God’s kingdom. Laurence Hull Stookey once observed of Wesley’s hymns that “though Wesley’s hymns may begin on earth, they end in heaven”.
As Wesley reminds us that another year has gone, perhaps we who at the onset of the New Year ponder on our “New Year’s resolution(s)” can consider welcoming the New Year with this prayer in our heart: “O come and dwell in me, Spirit of power within…”
