I must go on

I Must Go On


I must go on: my hand is put unto the plough;
The wind blows cold; the sluggard leaves the sod unturned;
Nor cares that in the time of harvest he must beg,
But I have seen a Ploughman, spite of wind and snow,
Plough an unbending furrow to the end;
And, ceaseless in His toil, break up the fallow ground,
And through the mist and murk of unpropitious days
Lay up in store the summer's golden harvest joy.
That Ploughman is the Master of my soul:
Therefore, in spite of storm and stress, like Him,
I must go on.


I must fight on: I have in conscience drawn the sword.
The fight is hard: the armed Ephraimites may flee
And fill the streets of Gath and Askelon with mirth;
But I have seen a Warrior take the field alone,
Unsheath His sword against infernal foes,
And, with undaunted soul, cut through the serried ranks
And, though forsaken of the men He came to save.
Pour out His blood to win for them the victor's crown.
That Warrior is the Captain of my soul,
And I, though I should stand alone like Him,
I must fight on!


And I must love: my heart is longer not my own.
The world allures, and fickle hearts may turn aside,
Nor care that ashes mark the place of yester's flame:
But I have seen a Lover, spite of scorn and hate,
Love through an agony of blood and tears;
And, ceaseless in His love for e'en His enemies,
Lay down His life, forsaken of the earth and sky.
And, rising, win a bride, and ring the marriage bells!
That Lover is the Lover of my soul;
And I, unto the endless end, like Him,
I too must love.

Isaiah 53

Isaiah 53:6
Here a confession of sin common to all the elect people of God. They have all fallen, and therefore, in common chorus, they all say, from the first who entered heaven to the last who shall enter there, "All we like sheep have gone astray." The confession, while thus unanimous, is also special and particular: "We have turned every one to his own way." There is a peculiar sinfulness about every one of the individuals; all are sinful, but each one with some special aggravation not found in his fellow. It is the mark of genuine repentance that while it naturally associates itself with other penitents, it also takes up a position of loneliness. "We have turned every one to his own way," is a confession that each man had sinned against light peculiar to himself, or sinned with an aggravation which he could not perceive in others. This confession is unreserved; there is not a word to detract from its force, nor a syllable by way of excuse. The confession is a giving up of all pleas of self-righteousness. It is the declaration of men who are consciously guilty--guilty with aggravations, guilty without excuse: they stand with their weapons of rebellion broken in pieces, and cry, "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way." Yet we hear no dolorous wailings attending this confession of sin; for the next sentence makes it almost a song. "The Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all." It is the most grievous sentence of the three, but it overflows with comfort. Strange is it that where misery was concentrated mercy reigned; where sorrow reached her climax weary souls find rest. The Saviour bruised is the healing of bruised hearts. See how the lowliest penitence gives place to assured confidence through simply gazing at Christ on the cross!

The Napkin

Why Did Jesus Fold the Napkin?
This is one I can honestly say I have never seen circulating in the emails,
so if it touches you, you may want to forward it.

Why did Jesus fold the linen burial cloth after His resurrection? I never
noticed this . . .

The Gospel of John (20:7) tells us that the napkin, which was placed over
the face of Jesus, was not just thrown aside like the grave clothes.
The Bible takes an entire verse to tell us that the napkin was neatly
folded, and was placed separate from the grave clothes.
Early Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the
tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance.
She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus
loved. She said, 'They have taken the Lord's body out of the tomb, and I
don't know where they have put him!'
Peter and the other disciple ran to the tomb to see.. The other disciple
outran Peter and got there first. He stooped and looked in and saw the linen
cloth lying there, but he didn't go in.

Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen
wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus' head was
folded up and lying to the side.


Was that important? Absolutely!

Is it really significant? Yes!


In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to
understand a little bit about Hebrew tradition of that day. The folded
napkin had to do with the Master and Servant, and every Jewish boy knew this
tradition.
When the servant set the dinner table for the master, he made sure that it
was exactly the way the master wanted it.. The table was furnished perfectly,

and then the servant would wait, just out of sight, until the master had finished

eating, but the servant would not dare touch that table, until the master was finished.


Now if the master were done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his
fingers, his mouth, and clean his beard, and would wad up that napkin and
toss it onto the table. The servant would then know to clear the table. For in those

days, the wadded napkin meant, 'I'm done' . . .


But if the master got up from the table, and folded his napkin, and laid it
beside his plate, the servant would not dare touch the table,because the folded

napkin meant, 'I'm coming back!'

He is Coming Back!