The horse in might and strength of ride,

The pounding hoof, the loping stride,

The limbs of him who runs the race,

His muscles strained in forward pace:

Admiring these we all have seen—

Until God shows us what they mean.

God takes no pleasure in their sight,

These legs of man and horse in flight.

“Run here, run there. The spurs are in.

By all your working you will win

The favor of God’s blessed smile.”

Nay, nay, that man earns hell by guile.

One might object to such a scare:

“You’ll make men sin without a care!

They’ll never strive to do good deeds.

If God has finished all, who needs?”

From man’s perspective this seems true.

If all is done, what’s left to do?

The problem lies in fine disguise.

The man who runs, who strains, and tries

To gain more favor, love, and grace

Will forfeit all he has in place.

Grace never comes by deed of man,

Nor love and favor by his plan.

Both love and grace are gifts divine,

For God is love and Christ is mine.

Now can you see the fallacy

Of running in a race to be

What you already have and are?

Nay, nay, you’ll never get that far.

So why run any race at all?

That question’s answer has no stall.

With freedom’s reign around the horse

He gallops forth in fervent force 

On ever joyful, solid course. 

Nay, nay, assurance is the source. 

He delighteth not in the strength of the horse: he taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man. The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy.—Psalm 147:10–11

This certainty of perseverance, however, is so far from exciting in believers a spirit of pride, or of rendering them carnally secure, that, on the contrary, it is the real source of humility, filial reverence, true piety, patience in every tribulation, fervent prayers, constancy in suffering and in confessing the truth, and of solid rejoicing in God; so that the consideration of this benefit is* an incentive to the serious and constant practice of gratitude and good works, as appears from the testimonies of Scripture and the examples of the saints.—Canons of Dordt 5.12