He asked
many questions, in fact many bold queries that left little wiggle room for the listener.
Is that perhaps what the minister inside Elisa Albright Hoffman thought was
most effective, most provocative? His words “Have You Been to Jesus?” sound
like something straight out of the pulpit, the conclusion of an address in
which he was challenging his hearers to look deep inside and answer honestly,
and with urgency. It was part of the Great Awakening era in America, as Elisha wrote
songs in 1878 to rouse people out of their spiritual lethargy. But, was he in
fact delivering this message from a pulpit, or was he thinking of another
venue, or perhaps of a time in his future when he would talk to large groups to
coax their commitment to God? This Cleveland resident had someone or a group of
people in mind as he made his inquiries in poetic form. But, his own recent
experience may have provided the most penetrating inspiration for his series of
questions.
Elisha’s
expressions in “Have You Been to Jesus?’ probably came pretty naturally, given his
upbringing and how his life would play
out over some 90 years in the 19th and early 20th Centuries.
Hoffman was the son of a minister, and no doubt must have heard his own father
ask many or all of the same questions that he would pen as a 39-year old. Additionally,
this was a time when he was widowed with three sons, and living in Cleveland,
Ohio as an employee of the Evangelical Association’s publishing enterprise. It
was a bit of a turning point in Elisha’s life, as the mortality of himself and
those closest to him must have still been very palpable with the death of his
first wife just two years previously. The questions he posed in “Have You Been…”
were intensely relevant for this fellow. Is your eternal destiny a settled
matter, and do you know how to rectify your condition if it’s still uncertain? This
sums up Elisha’s outlook in the wake of events not too distant from him and his
young sons. Death, especially at a young age, is a provocative event, and must
have treated Elisha as he approached middle-age no differently than anyone
else. How Hoffman responded speaks volumes. He remarried (in 1879), embarked
upon his preaching ministry for the next 40-plus years in three states, and
composed over 2,000 hymns, most of them after 1878. “Have You Been…” preceded
these new avenues he traveled, giving us some insight into his grief management
method. Others might have blamed God, and distanced themselves from Him. Not
Hoffman, who tried to persuade others to embrace Him; and for himself, perhaps this
was the only tonic that truly salved his spirit. ‘He’s it – the only way out of
sin’s trap and the inevitability of life’s conclusion’, one can sense Elisha had
surmised. ‘Don’t be resigned to death’s penalty. Jesus is the answer!’ Cleanse yourself
of that sin-caked scum and its grip on you with a bath…in blood. Are you ready ‘...for
the mansions bright... (v. 3), Elisha asked. While he may have been lifting
himself with these words, this songwriter probably knew others who needed the medicine
prescribed in his poetry. Don’t we all?
“Have You Been to Jesus” is probably more
commonly known as “Are You Washed in the Blood?”, an appropriate alternative title,
given the number of times that Elisha Hoffman has the worshipper repeat these words.
With his dead wife’s premature departure perhaps still sticking to him like a
spiderweb, Elisha didn’t worry himself with that one-word—usually unanswerable—question.
‘Why?’ he probably said at least once. Yet, he didn’t stay there. Instead, he
drew upon other questions that provided an answer. Washing in blood sounds
unnatural, even repulsive. But, is it really, compared to what death offers? His
blood is something pretty rare, capable of washing and renewing. It’ll be the
only way to get that death-stink off yourself. Just ask Elisha Hoffman.
See composer/author’s biography here: http://www.hymntime.com/tch/bio/h/o/f/hoffman_ea.htm
Also see a more lengthy biography here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elisha_Hoffman
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