Jesus only is our message

We have at least ten hymns in our hymnal that were written by A. B. Simpson, such as, "I am crucified with Christ" (Hymns, #482), "Once it was the blessing, / Now it is the Lord" (Hymns, #513), and "Jesus only is our message" (Hymns, #511). Hymns, #255 speaks of breathing the Lord in stanza 7, saying, "I am breathing every moment, / Drawing all my life from Thee; / Breath by breath I live upon Thee, / Lord, Thy Spirit breathe in me." The experience of this hymn is very rich; the author was breathing continuously, drawing his life from the Lord. Although many of God's children have gone astray, there is a practical, simple, convenient, and proper way to breathe in and receive the Lord's life every moment.

A. B. Simpson was a very spiritual person. He received a great revelation of spiritual matters, seeing that everything is in Christ and does not depend on man's struggle. He wanted only the Lord Himself, and the Lord was his everything; this is to have the experience of Isaac. His ministry emphasized that everything is in Christ. The first stanza of a hymn he wrote speaks of his experience: "Once it was the blessing, / Now it is the Lord; /... All in all forever, / Only Christ I'll sing;/ Everything is in Christ, / And Christ is everything" (Hymns, #513). Later, he wrote another hymn, speaking of Christ being his only, message: "Jesus only is our message, / Jesus all our theme shall be; /... Jesus only, Jesus ever, / Jesus all in all we sing" (Hymns, #511). His experience of the riches of Christ was very deep.

The Christian and Missionary Alliance was established in 1887 by Brother A. B. Simpson. It was an alliance of Christian missionaries that sent out its members to preach the gospel. Brother Simpson was knowledgeable concerning spiritual matters. He wrote hymns such as "I am crucified with Christ, / And the cross hath set me free" (Hymns, #482), "Jesus only, Jesus ever" (Hymns, #511), and "O Lord, breathe Thy Spirit on me, / Teach me how to breathe Thee in" (Hymns, #255). His hymns are deep, and they contain spiritual experiences and spiritual values. His co-workers also had some spiritual weight, one of whom was the missionary John Woodbury, who along with his younger sister established Shou Chen Chapel in Shanghai.