Ah, dearest Jesus, Holy Child,
Make Thee a bed, soft, undefiled,
Here in my poor heart’s inmost shrine,
That I may evermore be Thine.
It is obvious that in “Dear Christians one and all rejoice”—Nun freut euch, lieben Christen g’mein—we have the outline of Luther’s entire experience of faith, from the moment he felt himself condemned by God till he could triumph in songs of praise. This hymn forms a very clear parallel to his exposition of the Second Article.
Most of Luther’s hymns ought to be found in our English Lutheran hymn books. They are noble church hymns—all Lutherans should know them. The Church Militant is one of Luther’s chief subjects. Note his great heroic hymn “Ein feste Burg.” Note also one of his last hymns:
Erhalt uns, Herr, bei deinem Wort
Und steure deiner Feinde Mord,
(Original: und steur des Pabsts und Tuerken Mord).
Die Jesum Christum, deinen Sohn,