# Praise for Faith explained — Olney Hymns

> Chapter companion for Olney Hymns by John Newton.

## What happens

This hymn by Cowper praises God for the gift of faith, which enables sinners to receive the merits of Christ's blood. It acknowledges that without divine teaching, hearts are blind to the Savior's worth, and that both the Savior and the power to appreciate him come from God alone.

## Themes in this chapter

### Grace and Unmerited Favor

Faith itself is described as a grace given by God's hand, not earned, and the power to value Christ is also a gift.

### Faith and Trust in Christ

Faith is the 'blood-receiving grace' that trusts in Christ's merits, and without it, the heart remains blind and miserable.

## Character check-ins

### God

Addressed as the Giver of all good, who bestows faith and the teaching power to see Christ's merits.

### Jesus Christ

Referred to as 'my Redeemer,' whose blood is the richest gift and whose merits are hidden from the blind.

### The Narrator

The speaker praises God for faith, confessing human blindness and dependence on divine grace.

## Key lines

> Faith too, the blood-receiving grace, From the same hand we gain; Else, sweetly as it suits our case, That gift had been in vain.

Faith, which receives the benefits of Christ's blood, is also given by God; otherwise, the gift of Christ's blood would be useless to us.

_The hymn emphasizes that faith is a divine gift, not a human work._

> Till thou thy teaching power apply, Our hearts refuse to see, And, weak as a distemper'd eye, Shut out the view of thee.

Until God applies his teaching power, our hearts are like diseased eyes that cannot see him.

_Spiritual blindness is only cured by God's direct intervention._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/olney_hymns_se/chapters/80-praise-for-faith
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/olney_hymns_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/olney_hymns_se/chapters