April 9Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain — 1 Cor. 9:24.
To gain the victory we must not only put on the armor of God, but we must also be heroes in the strife, and wage an aggressive warfare upon the lusts of the eye and flesh and pride of life and all the foes of righteousness and purity. Love—love for the Lord, for the Truth and for righteousness—must inspire us, or we shall never be victors. Love alone will keep us faithful even unto death, and make us meet for the inheritance of the saints. Where fervent love rules the heart, it implies that the heart is fully submitted to the Lord, and that means that nine tenths of the battle is already won. But, even then, as the Apostle says (Jude 21), we must keep ourselves in the love of God, in watchfulness and prayer and zeal; and grace will abound where love abounds—Z '95, 93 (R 1798). The Christian life is compared to a race. To win the race, careful preparation, great exertion, undiminished perseverance, undeviating endeavor, and the closest possible adherence to regulations are required. He who neglects these will fail to win, while he who persists in these to the end will surely win. Our endeavor should be so to run as to win—P '36, 48. Parallel passages: Psa. 19:5; Eccles. 9:11; Jer. 12:5; Phil. 3:14; Heb. 12:1; 1 Cor. 9:25-27; Gal. 2:2; 5:7; Phil. 2:16; 2 Tim. 2:5; 4:7, 8; Eph. 6:12; 1 Tim. 6:12; 1 Pet. 1:4; 5:4; Jas. 1:12; Rev. 3:11. Hymns: 20, 1, 44, 71, 78, 130, 183. Poems of Dawn, 288: He Leads Us On. Tower Reading: Z '07, 260 (R 4050). Questions: How have I run this week? What was my motive therein? What hindered or helped therein? What resulted therefrom? |
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HE LEADS US ON
HE leads us on, by paths we did not know,
Upward He leads us, though our steps be slow,
Though oft we faint and falter on the way,
Though storms and darkness oft obscure the day,
Yet when the clouds are gone
We know He leads us on.
He leads us on through all the trialsome years;
Past all our dreamland hopes, and doubts, and fears
He guides our steps. Through all the tangled maze
Of sin, of sorrow, and o'erclouded days
We know His will is done;
And still He leads us on.
And then, at last, after the weary strife,
After the restless fever we call life,
After the dreariness, the aching pain,
The wayward struggles which have proved in vain,
After our toils are past—
He'll give us rest at last.
HE leads us on, by paths we did not know,
Upward He leads us, though our steps be slow,
Though oft we faint and falter on the way,
Though storms and darkness oft obscure the day,
Yet when the clouds are gone
We know He leads us on.
He leads us on through all the trialsome years;
Past all our dreamland hopes, and doubts, and fears
He guides our steps. Through all the tangled maze
Of sin, of sorrow, and o'erclouded days
We know His will is done;
And still He leads us on.
And then, at last, after the weary strife,
After the restless fever we call life,
After the dreariness, the aching pain,
The wayward struggles which have proved in vain,
After our toils are past—
He'll give us rest at last.
