Savior Thy Dying Love
Savior, Thy dying love
The hymn emphasizes the Lutheran understanding of justification through Christ's sacrificial death, calling the believer to responsive gratitude and total self-dedication. It reflects the Protestant emphasis on personal appropriation of redemptive grace in response to Christ's atoning love.
History & Background
Written by American Baptist minister Sylvanus Dryden Phelps in 1862, this hymn first appeared in various nineteenth-century American hymnals. The text became widely used in both evangelical and liturgical Protestant traditions.
Hymnal Appearances
- Baptist Hymnal — 370
- Lutheran Worship — 374
- The Lutheran Hymnal — 403
- United Methodist Hymnal — 609
Bulletin Note
Written by Sylvanus Dryden Phelps in 1862, this hymn captures the nineteenth-century evangelical emphasis on personal appropriation of Christ's atoning work, sung to the tune "Something for Me"—itself a statement of grateful obligation.
Preaching Connection
This hymn powerfully embodies the Gospel's double movement: Christ's dying love for us awakens the Law's demand for our complete self-dedication in joyful response.
Stanza Arc
The narrative or theological arc traced by this tune's stanzas: Law-Gospel movement: human righteousness exposed as insufficient (stanzas 1-2), Christ's alien righteousness imputed and clothing the believer (stanzas 3-4), concluding in faith-alone boasting
Themes
Sacrificial love of Christ Personal dedication to Christ Self-surrender Redemption Grace