The Song That Slavery Wrote

In 1772, John Newton sat at his desk and wept. The former slave ship captain — a man who had once traded human beings like cargo across the Atlantic — picked up his pen and wrote the words that would become the most famous hymn in the English language: "Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me."

Newton knew exactly what he meant by "wretch." He had spent years chaining men, women, and children below deck in conditions so horrific that many did not survive the crossing. He had cursed God, mocked faith, and lived in what he later called "unspeakable wickedness." But during a violent storm at sea in 1748, Newton cried out to the Almighty for mercy — and something shifted in his soul.

The transformation was not instant. It took Newton years to fully reckon with the evil he had done. He eventually became an Anglican priest, a fierce abolitionist, and a mentor to William Wilberforce, who led the campaign to abolish the British slave trade. Newton spent the rest of his life testifying that no one was beyond the reach of God's grace.

That is the scandal of redemption. It does not wait for us to clean ourselves up. It meets us in the storm, in the wreckage of our worst choices, and says, "I once was lost, but now am found." If grace could reach John Newton, it can reach anyone sitting in your pew this morning — including you.