North Hills Christian Church: Vacaville, CA

Not What My Hands Have Done
Lyrics can be found in the Sing hymnal 242

Bonar was a 19th-century Scottish minister in the Free Church of Scotland. He wrote this hymn in 1861 during a period when Protestant churches were strongly emphasizing justification by faith alone. Bonar was deeply concerned that people were subtly trusting in:

religious effort
emotional experience
prayer performance
moral striving

This hymn is a lyrical justification by grace alone through Christ alone.

Not what my hands have done
Can save my guilty soul;
Not what my toiling flesh has borne
Can make my spirit whole.
Not what I feel or do
Can give me peace with God;
Not all my prayers and sighs and tears
Can bear my awful load.

Thy work alone, O Christ,
Can ease this weight of sin;
Thy blood alone, O Lamb of God,
Can give me peace within.
Thy love to me, O God,
Not mine, O Lord, to Thee,
Can rid me of this dark unrest
And set my spirit free.

Thy grace alone, O God,
To me can pardon speak;
Thy pow’r alone, O Son of God,
Can this sore bondage break.
No other work, save Thine,
No other blood will do;
No strength, save that which is divine,
Can bear me safely through.

I bless the Christ of God;
I rest on love divine;
And with unfalt’ring lip and heart
I call this Savior mine.
This cross dispels each doubt;
I bury in His tomb
Each thought of unbelief and fear,
Each ling’ring shade of gloom.

I praise the God of grace;
I trust His truth and might;
He calls me His, I call Him mine,
My God, my joy, my light.
’Tis He who saveth me,
And freely pardon gives;
I love because He loveth me,
I live because He lives.