For Thee All the Pleasures of Sin I Resign

At 16 years of age, William Ralph Featherstone was living in Montreal. The year was about 1862 and he attended a Wesleyan church. At sometime, he heard the Holy Spirit reveal to him that Christ Jesus was alive indeed, and was offering him friendship and life. He believed.

Not long after, he wrote a poem that has inspired millions of people of all denominations.

My Jesus, I love thee, I know thou art mine.
For thee all the pleasures of sin I resign;
My gracious Redeemer, my Saviour art thou,
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.


I love thee because thou hast first loved me,
And purchased my pardon on Calvary's tree;
I love thee for wearing the thorns on thy brow,
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.


I will love thee in life, I will love thee in death,
And praise thee as long as thou lendest me breath;
And say, when the death-dew lies cold on my brow:
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.


In mansions of glory and endless delight,
I'll ever adore thee and dwell in thy sight:
I'll sing with the glittering crown on my brow:
If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

At least, that's how it appears in old Wesleyan hymnals and The Song Book of The Salvation Army. I'm inclined to believe those are closer to the original words than what I am able to find anywhere on PlayList or iTunes. Where ever I look, and whenever I see the song being sung in churches, one difference jumps out at me; the second line reads: For thee all the follies of sin I resign.

Was it changed by someone that thought it would be a bad idea to describe sin as pleasurable? Maybe it would encourage 16 year old boys to seek it out, if it was pleasurable?

But that's the point. A young boy made the decision to forego the pleasures of sin because Jesus loved him, and he wanted to love Jesus. "Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;" Hebrews 11:25

You know there's a difference between Pleasure and Folly. It is folly to sin. But we will do it. Will you choose to not enjoy it? Not like these guys Paul is describing in Romans...

"And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil ; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice ; they are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful ; and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them." Romans 1:28-32

 For thee all the foolishness of sin I resign? No problem. In fact, the line appeals to the self-elevating opinion I have of my ability to discern good from evil. Evil is foolishness, and I would never consider it wise to partake in it.  But for me to give up the pleasures of sin?  It's an admission that my sinful center has found sin pleasurable. Admit it. We have enjoyed seeing others humiliated and ourselves lifted up; we have dwelt hours on the desires of the flesh, superimposing our fantasies over others; we have amused ourselves with thoughts of perpetual wealth and grandeur. Enjoying that is what William wanted to give up for Jesus.  "For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another." Titus 3:3

And you know,  it actually is more pleasurable to give ourselves, our work, our thoughts and hopes and desires and relationships to Christ; asking him to be Lord. He's not a thief. Pleasure sanctified is pleasure indeed.

"You will make known to me the path of life ; In Your presence is fullness of joy ; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever." Psalm 16:11

*The young man pictured is for illustrative purposes only; it is not a photograph of Featherstone.