John Newton’s words carry weight because they were not written by a man who had lived an easy, spotless life. They came from a man who knew sin, cruelty, fear, guilt, and the astonishing mercy of God.
As a young sailor, Newton became deeply involved in the Atlantic slave trade.
He worked aboard slave ships and later commanded voyages himself. His life was marked by rebellion, profanity, and moral blindness.
Then, during a violent storm at sea in 1748, believing death was near, Newton cried out to God for mercy.
That moment began a conversion that would reshape the rest of his life, although his understanding and repentance unfolded gradually.
That is what makes these words so powerful.
“How sweet the name of Jesus sounds in a believer’s ear.”
Newton was not writing about a distant religious theory.
He was writing about the name that soothed his own sorrows, confronted his sin, healed his wounded spirit, and drove back the fear of judgment.
He had discovered that grace was not ...