Must Jesus Bear the Cross Alone? – Thomas Shepherd (1693)

Must Je­sus bear the cross alone,
And all the world go free?
No, there’s a cross for ev­ery­one,
And there’s a cross for me.

How hap­py are the saints above,
Who once went sor­row­ing here!
But now they taste un­min­gled love,
And joy with­out a tear.

The con­se­crat­ed cross I’ll bear
Till death shall set me free;
And then go home my crown to wear,
For there’s a crown for me.

Upon the crys­tal pave­ment down
At Je­sus’ pierc­ed feet,
Joyful I’ll cast my gold­en crown
And His dear name re­peat.

O pre­cious cross! O glo­ri­ous crown!
O re­sur­rect­ion day!
When Christ the Lord
From Heav’n comes down
And bears my soul away.

And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple (Luke 14:27).

Take My Life and Let it Be – Frances Havergal (1874) Hendon

Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to thee.
Take my moments and my days; let them flow in endless praise,
Let them flow in endless praise.

Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of Thy love.
Take my feet and let them be swift and beautiful for Thee,
Swift and beautiful for Thee.

Take my voice and let me sing always, only, for my King.
Take my lips and let them be filled with messages from Thee,
Filled with messages from Thee.

Take my silver and my gold; not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use every power as Thou shalt choose,
Every power as Thou shalt choose.

Take my will and make it Thine; it shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart it is thine own; it shall be Thy royal throne,
It shall be Thy royal throne.

Take my love; my Lord, I pour at Thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself, and I will be ever, only, all for Thee,
Ever, only, all for Thee.

Then the Lord put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the Lord said to me: “Behold, I have put My words in your mouth” (Jeremiah 1:9)

When You are Sick

Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord (James 5:14).

Notice what the half-brother of Jesus does not write: when you’re sick (1) pray for yourself or ask for a friend to pray; (2) call the pastor to pray for you; or (3) go to an evangelistic meeting with a faith healer. Not that these things are necessarily wrong, but instead, James says to call for the elders of the church.

The term “elders” goes back to the Old Testament governance of the nation of Israel (Exodus 3:16, 18; Judges 2:7; 2 Samuel 3:17-21; Ezra 10:7-14; Matthew 26:3). This term was carried over into the church during the Christian age.

Church elders were spiritually mature men in the congregation responsible for leading or shepherding the local congregation by both teaching the Bible and governing its ministry (Acts 14:23; 20:28; 1 Timothy 5:17; 1 Peter 5:1). These men were to visit the sick person when asked. The implication is the one needing prayer is too ill to go to the elders himself.

The word “sick” simply means “to be weak” and is applied in the New Testament for mental ability, emotional fitness, physical health and even appearance, as well as spiritual condition, and conscience. While the word’s focus is on a person’s physical health, it goes far beyond that to include the full wellness of the individual believer.

The elders are not to declare and decree, but to pray asking the Lord to bring healing. Prayer was not the sole tool of the elders.

Elders are also instructed to “anoint” the sick person with oil in the name of the Lord. Olive oil was used extensively in the ancient world for a number of purposes like cooking (Numbers 6:15), fuel for light (Matthew 25:3), a soothing perfume (Luke 7:46), a symbol of being set aside for some special purpose (Luke 4:18), and as a medicine for wounds (Luke 10:34).

Ancients believed oils mixed with various compounds cured everything from toothaches and paralysis. In other words, church elders were to employ both the spiritual cure of prayer with the physical cure of medicine – not simply one or the other but both! Yes, God might heal by prayer of the elders or with medicine, but either way God is the Healer.

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Take My Life and Let it Be – Frances Havergal (1874) Nottingham

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZKGYSRHjpQ

Take my life and let it be
consecrated, Lord, to Thee.
Take my moments and my days;
let them flow in endless praise,
let them flow in endless praise.

Take my hands and let them move
at the impulse of Thy love.
Take my feet and let them be
swift and beautiful for Thee,
swift and beautiful for Thee.

Take my voice and let me sing
always, only, for my King.
Take my lips and let them be
filled with messages from Thee,
filled with messages from Thee.

Take my silver and my gold;
not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use
every power as Thou shalt choose,
every power as Thou shalt choose.

Take my will and make it Thine;
it shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart it is Thine own;
it shall be Thy royal throne,
it shall be Thy royal throne.

Take my love; my Lord, I pour
at thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself, and I will be
ever, only, all for Thee,
ever, only, all for Thee.

Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring Me an offering. From everyone who gives it willingly with his heart you shall take My offering (Exodus 25:2)

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Draw Me Nearer – Fanny Crosby (1875)

I am Thine, O Lord, I have heard Thy voice,
And it told Thy love to me;
But I long to rise in the arms of faith,
And be closer drawn to Thee.

Refrain:
Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer, blessed Lord,
To the cross where Thou hast died;
Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer, blessed Lord,
To Thy precious, bleeding side.

Consecrate me now to Thy service, Lord,
By the pow’r of grace divine;
Let my soul look up with a steadfast hope,
And my will be lost in Thine.

Oh, the pure delight of a single hour
That before Thy throne I spend,
When I kneel in prayer, and with Thee, my God,
I commune as friend with friend!

There are depths of love that I cannot know
Till I cross the narrow sea;
There are heights of joy that I may not reach
Till I rest in peace with Thee.