Come, Lonely Heart [free song]

COME, LONELY HEART

Words by Chris Anderson; Music by Greg Habegger
Tune name: SAMARITAN WOMAN

Come, lonely heart, to the outsider’s Friend—
To Jesus, Who seeks out the lost.
Your cruel seclusion has come to an end;
Find welcome, find home, at the cross.
No soul is too small for His mercy;
No sin is too great for His grace!
Come, lonely heart, to the outsider’s Friend;
Find welcome, find home, at the cross.

Drink, thirsty heart, of the water of life—
Of bountiful, soul-quenching grace.
The world’s broken cisterns cannot satisfy;
The Savior is what your heart craves.
No soul is too small for His mercy;
No sin is too great for His grace!
Drink, thirsty heart, of the water of life;
The Savior is what your heart craves.

Rest, guilty heart, in forgiveness of sin—
In pardon from shame-stirring vice.
Though Satan and sinners and conscience condemn,
Your soul may be spotless as Christ.
No soul is too small for His mercy;
No sin is too great for His grace!
Rest, guilty heart, in forgiveness of sin;
Your soul may be spotless as Christ.

Joy, grateful heart, in the hope you have found—
In God, Who is seeking your praise.
Then go to the outcast, that grace may resound,
For Jesus is mighty to save.
No soul is too small for His mercy;
No sin is too great for His grace!
Joy, grateful heart, in the hope you have found,
For Jesus is mighty to save.

© 2012 Church Works Worship (ASCAP) (adm at IntegratedRights.com). All rights reserved.

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DOCTRINAL NOTES

by Mark Perry

Because God delights in worship that is biblical, thoughtful and passionate—what we often call intentional—please consider the following overview of the biblical texts and doctrinal themes behind the hymn “Come, Lonely Heart”:

This hymn text is based on John’s account of Jesus’ meeting with the Samaritan woman at the well in Sychar (John 4:1–42).

The first verse calls the lonely heart to come to Jesus, the outsider’s Friend. Remember the surprise of the Samaritan woman that Jesus, a Jewish man, would speak to her, a Samaritan woman (John 4:9). Furthermore, this woman was ostracized even by her own community because of her checkered past (John 4:18). But Jesus lovingly spoke to her and told her about the water of life (John 4:10, 13–14). No soul is too small or too unimportant for Jesus’ mercy and no sin is beyond the pale of his grace. Sinners can find welcome at the cross, where sin is forgiven.

The second verse urges the thirsty heart to drink deeply of the water of life. Jesus offered this “living water” to the Samaritan woman, but unlike running water that did not need to be drawn out of a well, he spoke of himself, who alone satisfies every desire of the human heart. While human beings constantly dig leaky cisterns (cf. Jer 2:13) in a futile attempt to satisfy the emptiness of their souls, Jesus Christ is what the thirsty heart is craving.

The third verse soothes the guilty heart, pointing to the relief of forgiven sin. For the Samaritan woman, a self-described sinner, Jesus offered forgiveness and rest from her sinfulness. In fact, rather than condemning us, Jesus gave his life as a propitiating sacrifice (Rom 8:34) and then stands as our Advocate before God the Father (1 John 2:1). He pleads his blood against Satan who accuses God’s children (cf. Zech 3:1; Rev 12:10). His sacrificial death provides an answer to the rightful charges of sinners and even our own consciences (1 John 3:20). Through Jesus Christ’s death and life, we stand before God in perfect righteousness (Rom 4:24–25).

The fourth verse encourages the grateful heart to rejoice in the hope of knowing Christ. This hope cannot be silent, but must share itself with others just like the Samaritan woman did, abandoning her water jug, returning to her town, and telling her neighbors, “Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?” (John 4:29). This grace resounds as former enemies of God, brought near by the blood of Christ, go to other enemies of God and plead with them to be reconciled to God (Eph 2:13; 2 Cor 5:18–21). The grateful heart acknowledges God’s grace in salvation, and if God will show mercy to the “chief of sinners,” surely Jesus is mighty to save all who come to him in faith (1 Tim 1:15). “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Rom 10:13). “For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Rom 3:22b–24).