"Just as I am, without one plea": A meditation

Have you ever had the feeling that you need a word, a song, a something, but can't quite put your mental finger on what you are looking for? I've been having that feeling for the past week or so. There was a hymn somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew it was there, but I couldn't for the life of me remember what it was enough to sing it or even look it up. I have felt a calmness the past couple of days, and I know this was somehow a part of it, but I just couldn't dreg it up out of my subconscious. Hymnary is an amazing and indispensable tool for many things, but it is especially good for when I know I want a hymn, but have only an inkling of what I want. (It is also the only tool I know of where you can search by melody fragment). 

All of that is by way of saying "Just as I am, without one plea" is what has been flitting on the edge of my mind recently. It is one of those songs I have a very hard time singing without crying, but fortunately that is not an impedance to writing about it. If there were a dictionary of descriptive terms, under 'simple and plaintive' would be this hymn. Written by Charlotte Elliot around 1833, it was written as a mediation on how she came to Christ and as a statement of faith. It was first published in The Invalid's Hymnbook (Elliot was herself semi-invalid after a severe illness when she was 32), and according to Hymnary's count has been included in 1,408 hymnals to date. In four short stanzas of 4 verses each*, she lays out every Christian's walk of faith.

Just as I am, without one plea,
but that thy blood was shed for me,
and that thou bidd'st me come to thee,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am, and waiting not
to rid my soul of one dark blot,
to thee, whose blood can cleanse each spot,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am, though tossed about
with many a conflict, many a doubt,
fightings and fears within, without,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am, thou wilt receive,
wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve;
because thy promise I believe,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come. 

The first stanza reminds us of something we often forget--we have absolutely no claim on God except through the blood of Christ. "Good people don't go to heaven. Forgiven sinners do" is the short reminder I sometimes see on cars around here. "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God— not the result of works, so that no one may boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9). There is nothing we bring to the table, except the name of Jesus. But Elliot also reminds us that Christ has not only washed us in His blood, but "bidd'st [us] come". He invites the little children to come to him, and tells his disciples that the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as them (Matthew 19:14). Over and over, Christ invites people, bids them come to him. Our God is a welcoming God. All we have to do is 'come'. 

The second stanza places special emphasis on the cleansing power of Christ's blood. It is one of those images that is somewhat paradoxical. Normally, we think of blood as staining. Its right up there with wine and ketchup on those commercials touting the cleaning power of a detergent. We think of it staining the hands of a murder. Think of the scene in Macbeth where we witness Lady Macbeth's sleepwalking, wringing her hands and trying to wash out the blood. And yet as Christians we constantly use this image of being washed white in  the blood of the Lamb. It is of course a metaphor, but its still a little strange. And yet here, Elliot doesn't dance with the metaphor. Doesn't play theological tricks with it. Its simple. Our souls are covered with dark blots, like a shirt who had a pen burst in the pocket. But no elaborate ritual, no multistep process with three different chemicals are needed to remove these stains. Though the dark spots on our souls are literally 'damned spots', accepting a washing in Christ's atoning blood is all that is needed, and is freely offered, if we would but come.

The third stanza deals with that topic that every Christian deals with, and few like to talk about, except in the context of "I'm not like that anymore". The fact that often we still feel conflicted, doubtful, fearful. We are freed from the power of sin and death, not from fallen human condition in this life. How often was Peter, on whom Christ laid the church, fearful? Conflicted? He doubted Jesus as he was walking on the water to him. We can't possibly expect to do better. The good news is Christ doesn't ask us to come after we're sure. After we've weighed the pros and cons and come to a decision. He does not ask us to come to him after we've gotten over our fears. He will take us just as we are, flaws, sins, doubts, fears and failings all, if only we will come to him.

And here, in the fourth stanza, is our declaration, our hope and our joy. Christ will take us just as we are, with all our brokenness, our guilt, our fear that we don't belong, and takes it all away. We are welcomed as honored guests, our sins are removed as far from the east is from the west, their stains are forever removed, and all our fear, our pain, our brokenness healed. If only we will believe in his promises, by grace through faith, and come unto Him.

*Thanks Dad, for correcting my terminology.