Sing The Wondrous Love Of Jesus Meaning, History, and Theology
"Sing the wondrous love of Jesus"
- Written
- 1898
- Category
- Hymn
- Rights
- Public domain
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Story
Sing The Wondrous Love Of Jesus, also known as When We All Get to Heaven, is a joyful gospel hymn by Eliza Edmunds Hewitt with music by Emily Divine Wilson. The hymn joins praise for Christ's mercy and grace with biblical hope in heaven, faithful pilgrimage, and the promised joy of seeing Jesus.
Overview
Sing The Wondrous Love Of Jesus, widely known by the refrain title When We All Get to Heaven, is a gospel hymn of Christian hope. It begins with praise for the love, mercy, and grace of Jesus, then turns the congregation's eyes toward the promised home Christ prepares for his people.
The hymn does not treat heaven as an escape from faithfulness. Its middle stanzas place believers on a pilgrim pathway where clouds may appear, but where trust and service continue every day. The refrain answers the burdens of the journey with the joy of seeing Jesus and sharing in his final victory.
This hymn is especially useful in worship when a congregation needs encouragement, assurance, and a clear reminder of the Christian future. It can serve well in services focused on eternal life, funerals, perseverance, Christian service, or joyful praise.
Historical Background
Sing The Wondrous Love Of Jesus was written by Eliza Edmunds Hewitt and first published in Pentecostal Praises in 1898. That collection was issued by the Hall-Mack Company of Philadelphia and edited by William J. Kirkpatrick and Henry L. Gilmour. The hymn has often been printed under the title When We All Get to Heaven, taken from the opening words of the refrain.
The tune HEAVEN was composed by Emily Divine Wilson, also in 1898. Hymnary identifies the tune as HEAVEN (Wilson), gives the meter as 8.7.8.7 with refrain, and lists the tune as public domain. Later hymnals sometimes print the tune title as HEAVEN or use a bracketed first-line tune title.
Hymnological summaries commonly connect Hewitt and Wilson with the late nineteenth-century gospel song and Sunday school song tradition. Hymnology Archive notes that the hymn was first printed with four stanzas and a refrain and that the tune name is usually given in hymnals as HEAVEN. The text and tune represented here were published before 1930 and are public domain in the United States.
Biblical Foundations
The hymn's strongest biblical foundation is John 14:2-3, where Jesus promises to prepare a place for his followers and receive them to himself. The hymn's first stanza reflects that promise by connecting Christ's mercy and grace with the prepared heavenly dwelling of his people.
Revelation 21:3-4 supports the hymn's contrast between present sorrow and future joy. The song speaks of clouds, shadows, sighs, and travel-weariness, while Scripture promises that God will dwell with his people and wipe away every tear.
The hymn also draws on the New Testament's pilgrimage and prize imagery. Philippians 3:13-14 calls believers to press on toward the goal, and 2 Timothy 4:7-8 connects faithful endurance with the crown stored up for those who love Christ's appearing. First John 3:2 completes the hope by teaching that believers will see Christ and be made like him.
Verse Explanation
Stanza 1 begins with praise for the wondrous love, mercy, and grace of Jesus. It then looks to the heavenly home prepared for believers, grounding the hymn's joy in Christ's own promise.
Stanza 2 acknowledges the pilgrim character of the Christian life. Clouds may appear along the path, but the stanza looks beyond present difficulty to the end of the journey, where shadows and sighs give way to rest.
Stanza 3 turns hope into present discipleship. The believer is called to be true, faithful, trusting, and serving each day. The promise of seeing Christ gives present labor its reward and direction.
Stanza 4 presses onward toward the prize. It looks forward to beholding Christ's beauty and entering the imagery of the heavenly city, where the people of God share in final joy.
The refrain gathers the whole hymn into a congregational shout of hope. It imagines the day when believers see Jesus together and celebrate the victory that belongs to him.
Theological Reflection
This hymn centers on Christian eschatology, the doctrine of the believer's future hope in Christ. Heaven is presented not merely as a place of beauty, but as the place where redeemed people see Jesus, rejoice together, and enter the fullness of victory promised by God.
The hymn also teaches perseverance. The Christian life is described as a pilgrim pathway, not as an easy road. Clouds may cover the sky, but faith continues because the destination is secured by Christ's mercy and grace.
Another important doctrine is sanctified service. The hymn calls believers to be true and faithful, trusting and serving each day. Hope for heaven does not weaken earthly obedience; it strengthens it by giving daily labor a joyful goal.
Finally, the refrain gives the hymn a corporate character. It is not only about my hope, but about the gathered people of God sharing a day of rejoicing. Christian hope is personal, but it is also congregational and communal.
Church Impact
Sing The Wondrous Love Of Jesus has been widely reprinted in Protestant hymnals under both Sing the wondrous love of Jesus and When We All Get to Heaven. Hymnary records its presence in Baptist, Methodist, Adventist, Salvation Army, African Methodist Episcopal Zion, evangelical, and interdenominational hymnals.
Its continuing usefulness comes from the way it unites three themes that churches regularly need: the mercy of Jesus, the hardships of pilgrimage, and the joy of final victory. It remains a practical hymn for funeral services, gospel song services, Sunday school settings, and congregational worship focused on eternal life.
Musical Notes
HEAVEN is an 8.7.8.7 gospel tune with a refrain, composed by Emily Divine Wilson. Its rhythmic energy and refrain structure place it within the late nineteenth-century gospel song tradition, where memorable melodies and repeated refrains supported congregational participation.
The melody is bright, direct, and well suited to the hymn's theme of joyful expectation. The refrain should be sung with lift and confidence, but not so fast that the words of hope become rushed.
Because the hymn is often used in funerals and services of assurance, leaders should choose a tempo that balances comfort with joy. Congregations may sing it with simple accompaniment, choir support, or a gospel-style treatment, provided the text's focus remains on Christ and the promised heavenly hope.
Application
- Use the hymn to comfort believers who are grieving by pointing them to Christ's promise of a prepared place.
- Teach the hymn as a song of perseverance, especially when discussing pilgrimage, faithfulness, and service.
- Connect the refrain with the church's shared hope so that heaven is understood as communion with Christ and his people.
- Use the hymn in funeral or memorial services when the focus is Christian hope rather than sentimental remembrance alone.
- Encourage worshipers to see present service as meaningful because it is carried out in light of Christ's coming victory.
Discussion Questions
- What movement do you notice from praise in the opening stanza to hope in the refrain?
- How did the late nineteenth-century gospel song setting shape the hymn's use of refrain, pilgrimage language, and joyful assurance?
- How does John 14:2-3 help explain the hymn's confidence about the believer's future home?
- What does the hymn teach about the relationship between future heavenly hope and present faithful service?
- Where does your congregation most need the hymn's message of joy, perseverance, and victory in Christ?
Teaching Tips
- Introduce the hymn by reading John 14:2-3 and asking listeners to identify how the hymn develops Jesus' promise.
- Use the four stanzas as a simple teaching outline: praise, pilgrimage, perseverance, and prize.
- Ask a small group to compare the hymn's refrain with Revelation 21:3-4 and discuss the end of sorrow.
- Encourage worship leaders to sing the refrain with joyful confidence while keeping the verses clear and pastoral.
- Use the hymn in a funeral or memorial setting only after explaining that its comfort rests in Christ, not in vague optimism.
Sources
-
Hymnary.org, text authority page for When We All Get to Heaven
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Hymnary.org, tune authority page for HEAVEN (Wilson)
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Hymnary.org, contributor authority page for E. E. Hewitt
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Hymnology Archive, When we all get to heaven
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Young, Carlton R. Companion to the United Methodist Hymnal, entry for When we all get to heaven
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World English Bible, public domain text from eBible.org
Sheet Music
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