WesleyGospel Ministries

Who hath believed our report?
–Isaiah 53:1 (KJV)–

—

Leonard Ravenhill, “Be Ye Angry And Sin Not” (LDM, 1981).

Dies irae – Dies illa

The day of wrath, that day

Solvet saeclum in favilla
Teste David cum Sybilla
Dies irae – Dies illa
Solvet saeclum in favilla
Dies irae – Dies illa
Solvet saeclum in favilla
Teste David cum Sybilla

Will break up the world into ash
As testified by David and the Sybil
The day of wrath, the day of wrath, that day
Will break up the world into ash
The day of wrath, that day
Will break up the world into ash
As testified by David and the Sybil

Dies irae – Dies irae – Dies illa

The day of wrath, the day of wrath, that day

Solvet saeclum in favilla
Solvet saeclum in favilla
Teste David cum Sybilla – Sybilla
Dies irae – Dies irae – Dies irae

Will break up the world into ash
Will break up the world into ash
As testified by David and the Sybil
The day of wrath, the day of wrath, the day of wrath

Quantus tremor est futurus
Quando judex est venturus
Cuncta stricte discussurus

How much trembling there will be
When the judge comes
And strictly examines all things

1. Day of wrath and doom impending.
David’s word with Sibyl’s blending!
Heaven and earth in ashes ending!

2. O, what fear man’s bosom rendeth,
When from heav’n the Judge descendeth,
On whose sentence all dependeth!

3. Wondrous sound the trumpet flingeth,
Through earth’s sepulchers it ringeth,
All before the throne it bringeth.

4. Death is struck, and nature quaking,
All creation is awaking,
To its Judge an answer making.

5. Lo! the book exactly worded,
Wherein all hath been recorded:
Thence shall judgments be awarded.

6. When the Judge his seat attaineth,
And each hidden deed arraigneth,
Nothing undisclos’d remaineth.

7. What shall I, frail man, be pleading?
Who for me be interceding,
When the just are mercy needing?

8. King of majesty tremendous,
Who dost free salvation send us,
Fount of pity then befriend us!

9. Think, kind Jesu! my salvation
Caused thy wondrous Incarnation;
Leave me not to reprobation.

10. Faint and weary thou hast sought me,
On the Cross of suff’ring bought me;
Shall such grace be vainly brought me?

11. Rightous Judge! for sin’s pollution
Grant thy gift of absolution,
Ere that day of retribution.

12. Guilty, now I pour my moaning,
And my shame with anguish owning:
Spare, O God, thy suppliant groaning!

13. Through the sinful woman shriven,
Through the dying thief forgiven,
Thou to me a hope hast given.

14. Worthless are my prayers and sighing,
Yet, good Lord, in grace complying,
Rescue me from night undying.

15. With thy sheep a place provide me,
From the goats afar divide me,
To thy right hand do thou guide me.

16. When the wicked are confounded,
Doom’d to shame and woe unbounded,
Call me, with thy Saints surrounded.

17. Low I kneel, with heart’s submission;
See, like ashes my contrition!
Help me in my last condition!

18. Ah! that day of tears and mourning!
From the dust of earth returning.
Man for judgement must prepare him:
Spare, O God, in mercy spare him!
Lord, all pitying, Jesu blest,
Grant them thine eternal rest. Amen.

LIKELY CLASSROOM MATERIALS USED TO TRAIN
WESLEYAN-HOLINESS PREACHERS
DURING THE 1970 REVIVAL AT ASBURY COLLEGE

1. Wesley’s 52 Standard Sermons, ed. Burwash (Schmul, 1967).

2. John Wesley’s A Plain Account of Christian Perfection (Epworth Press, 1968).

3. William Cannon’s The Theology of John Wesley (Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 1946).

GOD SPEAKETH once, yea twice, yet man perceiveth it not. IN A DREAM, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falleth upon men, in slumberings upon the bed; then he openeth the ears of men, and sealeth their instruction, THAT HE MAY WITHDRAW MAN FROM HIS PURPOSE, and hide pride from man. HE KEEPETH BACK HIS SOUL FROM THE PIT, and his life from perishing by the sword.
–Job 33:14-18 (KJV)–

The first testimony is from Ronald Reagan, an evangelist with Church of God (Cleveland, TN). His and other testimonies like it are found in Maurice Rawlings, M.D.’s To Hell and Back (Thomas Nelson, 1993), which was turned into this documentary film by TBN in 2007. Church of God is the same denomination as evangelist Mary K. Baxter, who published A Divine Revelation of Hell (Whitaker House, 1993). Howard Storm’s book is My Descent Into Death (Clairview Books, 2000). Storm was a pastor in United Church of Christ from 1992 until 2011, which is surprisingly enough, a mainline liberal denomination. Across the denomination, tolerance of the gay lifestyle seemed to have been a mixed bag, reaching it’s fully gay affirming position in 2011, the year that Storm retired. After his retirement, he continued to travel around and share his Hell experience in these increasingly liberal UCC churches. These testimonies were the precursors to Bill Wiese’s 23 Minutes In Hell (Charisma House, 2006). As far as I understand, Bill is a non-denominational Spirit-filled evangelist. Along with the evangelistic ministries of Ray Comfort, Leonard Ravenhill, David Wilkerson, Paul Washer, and Andrew Strom–Wiese’s testimony has had a tremendous impact on my spiritual life. Rawlings’ book is unique in that it’s a collection of visions of Hell by a born again medical doctor. Visions and dreams of Hell have been written about for all of human history. These continued in medieval Europe after the Bible was written: see Eileen Gardiner’s Visions of Heaven and Hell Before Dante (Italica Press, 1989). They were also journaled in the Great Awakenings–and taken seriously by both Jonathan Edwards and Charles Finney–see Finney’s sermon called “The Self-Hardening Sinner’s Doom.” Such things come from the realm of the spirit, are timeless and eternal, are an interracial and international collective human experience, far exceeding the boundaries of the written word; and we have the most reliable references to them in the pages of the Bible: the divinely inspired, authoritative, inscripturated Word of God to mankind. –J.B.