Happy Birthday John!

John Calvin, that is.

Quoting from Sherry at Semicolon:

On this date in 1509, John Calvin, or Jean Chauvin, was born in Noyon, Picardie, France. 

To mark the day, Sherry is collecting links to posts about  John Calvin.  I’m going to take the lazy (or busy) woman’s easy way out and post a hymn written by John Calvin, a hymn which celebrates the sufficiency of Christ.

I Greet Thee, Who My Sure Redeemer Art

I greet Thee, who my sure Redeemer art,
My only trust and Savior of my heart,
Who pain didst undergo for my poor sake;
I pray Thee from our hearts all cares to take.

Thou art the King of mercy and of grace,
Reigning omnipotent in every place;
So come, O King, and our whole being sway;
Shine on us with the light of Thy pure day.

Thou art the life, by which alone we live,
And all our substance and our strength receive;
Sustain us by Thy faith and by Thy power,
And give us strength in every trying hour.

Thou hast the true and perfect gentleness,
No harshness hast Thou and no bitterness;
O grant to us the grace we find in Thee,
That we may dwell in perfect unity.

Our hope is in no other save in Thee;
Our faith is built upon Thy promise free;
Lord, give us peace, and make us calm and sure,
That in Thy strength we evermore endure.

It’s a fine hymn. If you’d like to hear it sung, listen to this mp3 from Center for Church Music rather than the organ version at Cyberhymnal.